Story by Online Reporter
THE Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has confirmed it will strictly enforce limits on the number of subjects learners may sit at both Ordinary and Advanced Level examinations, as part of efforts to safeguard academic quality and uphold national curriculum standards.
Under the revised framework, Ordinary Level candidates will be permitted to register for no more than nine subjects, while Advanced Level learners will be restricted to the conventional three principal subjects. The policy comes into sharper focus this year as the Heritage-Based Curriculum enters full implementation across the country.
Education officials say the move is intended to promote meaningful learning, improve learner wellbeing and ensure that examination outcomes reflect depth of understanding rather than volume of subject entries.
The issue gained national attention following the exceptional performance of Pamushana High School student Mukudzei Ziveyi, who amassed 56 points in the 2025 Advanced Level examinations after sitting for 12 subjects. While the achievement drew widespread admiration, it also sparked debate among education stakeholders, with some warning that such cases could normalise excessive academic pressure on learners.
Responding to the debate, the Ministry’s Director of Communication and Advocacy, Mr Taungana Ndoro, said the policy was clear and had already been formalised.
“The ministry has a clear and revised policy on this matter. To ensure depth of learning, quality of instruction and the integrity of learner outcomes, MoPSE has instituted a cap on the number of examinable subjects. The standard is a maximum of nine subjects at Ordinary Level and three principal subjects at Advanced Level in the Heritage-Based Curriculum,” he said.
He said the policy was designed to shift focus from quantity to mastery, enabling learners to fully grasp core concepts while reducing the risk of academic overload.
“The ministry has already implemented a strict cap. This decisive move aims to promote profound understanding and competency in core learning areas, prevent pupil burnout from excessive academic loads and align all schools and learners with a standardised, manageable curriculum framework,” he said.
In previous years, government support covered 55 percent of examination fees for candidates sitting up to seven O-level subjects and three A-level subjects, including private candidates in public, mission and local authority schools. Learners who opted to register additional subjects were required to pay the full cost for the excess entries.
Ziveyi has since revealed that preparing for 12 subjects required extensive personal sacrifice, including studying late into the night and sitting examinations with minimal rest between papers. His school also sought special permission from the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (Zimsec) to adjust the examination timetable in order to avoid subject clashes.
Education authorities say such arrangements, while permissible under exceptional circumstances, do not reflect the standard learning model envisaged under the national curriculum.
Mr Ndoro said the subject cap also aligns Zimbabwe’s education system with tertiary admission requirements, both locally and internationally.
“We align this with tertiary expectations to meet the standard entry requirements of universities and colleges, both locally and internationally. Our focus now is on ensuring compliance and supporting schools and learners in achieving excellence within this structured framework,” he said.
Most Zimbabwean universities require a maximum of 15 A-level points for admission into degree programmes, with progression to Advanced Level requiring at least five Ordinary Level passes, depending on course requirements.
The ministry also dismissed claims that improved pass rates point to declining standards.
“The ministry firmly rejects unsubstantiated claims of systemic grade inflation. The Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (Zimsec) employs a rigorous, multi-stage quality assurance process, including pre-marking standardization, continuous moderation and post-marking statistical reviews,” Mr Ndoro said.
He said recent improvements in results reflect enhanced teaching strategies, learner commitment and targeted interventions by the ministry, rather than any dilution of assessment standards.
The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining the credibility of Zimbabwe’s examination system while ensuring that learners are supported to excel within a structured and balanced academic framework.
The policy has sparked debate online, with many Zimbabweans weighing in on whether fewer subjects lead to better outcomes:
“Good for him, but not very good use of time during A Levels. He was doing 4 or 5 subjects that teach the same thing: Math, Pure Math, Mechanical Maths, Additional Math. Not very clever use of time. But congrats,” X account, @matigary said in a post.
“Ndatya ini. People are jealous and full of hate out there 😒. The young man has shown immense intellectual capacity, and yet there are people who want to drag him in the mad. What he does with his pointa is up to him,” @FadzoBenjamin1 added.
“The guy is being lambasted for using his OWN BRAINS & TIME by ppl who have done very little in their lives,” @Julie91265349 weighed in.
“Pandakaenda kuchikoro mugore ragochanhembe, Pure Maths was paper 1 Maths, then Statistics, Mechanics, etc were Options in paper 2 Maths. I am not sure why they are making the options full subjects at ‘A’ level. During our time, we would dig deeper into those at Uni,” @ttafamombe said.
“This is the challenge, they split most subjects that were combined before and added on some nee subjects. When I was A Level, there were so many Mathematics options to pursue,” @TKRS_ONE said.
“Whats the use of point yekuita mazi subject hobho. University achapinda mu same class ne team rinema 10 points,” @advocatetinashe weighed in.
“True not quite focused what does want to do after that and are all these subjects a requirement for entry level, as a society we need to rethink where we deploy our resources. If that’s what makes him succeed well done 👏,” @Zowa281 said.
“That’s true and I don’t know why Zimsec has structured their syllabus like that in 2003bwhen I dd A level sciences we had pure maths paper 1 as compulsory then other option papers 2, 3 and 4 and we passed without Internet and text books now kids are wasting time,” @reginaldzhanga1 added.
