2017 KCPE Results: No cheating reported as top pupil scores 455 marks

There was no single case of cheating or malpractice recorded in this year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) as the overall performance improved.

A total of 9846 scored 400 marks and above, a major improvement from last year where only 5,190 candidates scored over 400 marks. A total of 993,718 students sat the exams.

The best candidate this year scored an impressive 455 out 500 marks far outshining the best from 2016 who would not even have cracked the top 20 list.

Thanks to the remarkable improvement in the overall performance, it was announced that all pupils who sat the exam will get their results.

Speaking while releasing the 2017 KCPE results at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), Education Cabinet Secretary, Dr Fred Matiang’i, said that this year’s results recorded a significant improvement.

“The best candidate in last year’s exam would not be even top 20 in this year’s results thus showing remarkable improvement,” he said.

Matiang’i was keen to note that the marking in this year’s KCPE results had a 99.98% accuracy rating with every student who sat this year’s exam expected to get their results as there were no cancellations, missing marks or any case of malpractice recorded.

This year, the Kenya National Examinations Council used the automated Optical Mark Recognition machines that fast-tracked the process of marking with results being released just 19 days after the national exam ended.

Another improvement recorded was with students who scored below 100 marks dropping from over 6,000 last year to 2,360 in this year’s exam.

Matiang’i indicated that all students who attained 400 marks and above would be placed in national schools regardless of having been in a private or public schools with the  Form One placement expected to be completed by 4th December, 2017.

In a rare proud moment, the Education CS announced that six students in the top 100 list came from special needs schools further adding that the government has committed to improving their infrastructure in a bid to empower students with special needs.

He attributed this year’s success in exam and delivery results to a multi-agency collaboration in the sector saying it has indeed yielded results.