The acting Education Director in the Kavango East Region says despite the difficulties experienced by learners prior to the exams, the region is bound to perform better in 2023 than it did in 2022.

Christine Shilima was speaking ahead of the release of exam results by the Ministry of Education on Wednesday.

Shilima says there were various factors that negatively affected the teaching and learning process, saying some learners were not psychologically ready for the exams.

"They were affected by the pandemic of COVID-19; some of them lost their parents, their uncles, their aunts, or their grandparents who were taking care of them.  Psychologically, the majority of the learners were not ready. Our classes for Grades 11 and AS were interrupted by the rewriting of the examination. We started late because some of the teachers had to go for marking, so by the time that they came back to come and start with teaching and learning, they'd already lost some of the time that they were supposed to spend in the classroom."

Despite the hurdles, Shilima is confident that Kavango East will pull through.

"The anticipation is that there should be a slight increase in the performance."

In the 2022 Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate Ordinary exams, Saint Boniface College took first place, Friendly Private School scored second, and Vazungu High School ended up third. But is the list likely to remain the same come Wednesday?

"I'm still confident enough that St. Boniface College will still be top-notch in terms of private schools. But it would be good if a friend could also challenge us because, in education, we like competition. It would be best if you competed with that spirit. If this has been the history of the past, it does not mean that I cannot make history for my school to be seen as the best-performing school."

Regarding public schools, Rukongo Vision School came first in the 2022 Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate Ordinary exams with 98%, followed by Matumbo Ribebe with 83% and Dr. Romanus Kampungu with 72%. Shilima talks about why these public schools have been topping the regional list for years.

"It all boils down to the shoulders of the leadership in the school. If you are keeping an eye on what is happening in your school and the culture, what kind of spirit are you promoting among the teachers? Is it the spirit of being one? Each and every teacher feels that I am part of this school. How are you using the resources for your teachers?"

Wednesday is D-day, and while some learners will be rejoicing, others will have to go back to the drawing board.