2024 PLE results: Improved general performance, S1 to begin Feb 17

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 2024 PLE RESULTS 
📍 State House, Nakasero

The results of the 2024 Primary Leaving Examination (PLE) were released Thursday (January 23), showing improved performance generally and with the males edging the females.

The First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Janet Museveni (pictured below), officially released the results during a function held at State House Nakasero in Uganda's capital Kampala.

Last year's PLE — conducted in early November — was themed around embracing security and holistic assessment of learners in a dynamic environment.

As has been the trend in recent years, more girls than boys completed the primary education cycle in 2024. Proportionally, the boys performed better than the girls and recorded a lower failure rate.

While presenting the release statement at State House Nakasero in Kampala, Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) executive director Dan Nokrach Odongo also said the board registered more learners with special needs, including the blind, the deaf, the physically handicapped and the dyslexics.

As many as 108 incarcerated candidates, including one female, registered to sit last year's PLE — 71 from Luzira Prison in Kampala and 37 from Mbarara Main Prison in Mbarara City.

Overall, at grade 8 and above, candidates performed better in Social Studies & Religious Studies (SST), Integrated Science and Mathematics.

Odongo said there was a general decline in performance in English compared to 2023. Additionally, distinction scores dropped in all the subjects.

"This reflects the difficulties that candidates had with questions needing higher ability levels (application questions)," explained the executive director.

He said while there was a higher proportion of the candidates passing compared to 2023, there was a drop in the number of candidates obtaining Division 1.

In total, 64,141 candidates were ungraded (Division U), which means they failed to reach the minimum level of performance that can be awarded (Division 4) and therefore are not eligible for admission to secondary school.

Meanwhile, in terms of numbers, Odongo said there were more girls in Division 2 and at the lower divisions "because of the fact that more candidates registered and sat the examination than the boys".

'Worrying development'

In his speech at the start of Thursday's function, UNEB chairperson Prof. Celestino Obua (pictured above) pointed out that some schools "fraudulently" registered "perfectly normal students" as special needs candidates.

In his delivery later, Odongo expounded on that.

Calling it a "worrying development", the executive director said these candidates are placed under the category of Others — pupils that suffer from health conditions such as asthma, epilepsy and sickle cell anaemia. 

"The board recognizes that such candidates may get attacks during the examination period. However, those candidates do not require any specialized assistance, except extra time of 45 minutes allowed to them," said Odongo.

"The errant schools have been found to select their good pupils to benefit from the extra time."

He said this matter is being investigated further.

'Security of exams extremely important'

On the 2024 PLE theme, education minister Janet Museveni said the security of examinations is "extremely important as it guarantees results that are credible".

In her speech, she urged head teachers to particularly pay attention to learner dropout, especially those that have registered to sit the exam.

"Any school dropout is an undesirable state," said the First Lady, who spoke of the need for stakeholders to collectively find out the reasons behind such school dropouts at such a critical stage of a young learner's life.

In pursuit of answers, the minister turned the spotlight on the family, where a learner hails. She said "we should look into ways to strenghthen the family" to ensure that every child is supported in school.

"We need caring and empowering families to support learners," said Mrs Museveni, adding that it is "unrealistic and wrong" for parents to think that schools or the  education system should shoulder all the responsibility for learners.

"We must talk to the parents and mobilize our communities to know the major role they have in the learning of their children."

'Personal transformation'

In her delivery, the minister also said it is "commendable" that UNEB has extended the opportunity for more inmates to sit exams by opening another exam centre at Mbarara Main Prison.

She said while behind bars, an inmate should also use their time in there for education, "which is an important aspect of the process of personal transformation and character correction".

The encouragement that the First Lady has to "all those that passed PLE is that there are various opportunities for post-primary education in secondary schools as well as technical education".

And to the ungraded candidates (Division U), she encouraged "you and your families to persevere and give PLE another try", reiterating that learners that repeat P7 are still eligible to benefit from the capitation grant.

'Do not limit children's aspirations'

And for parents and guardians who may want to consider a career in technical education for their children, the minister urged them to aspire to complete at least O'Level — "because lower secondary education is vital in getting learners grounded in basic knowledge of the natural science such as Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics" and others.

"So please do not limit your children's aspirations to merely completing Primary Seven," she urged.

"I am glad now that the items that UNEB is using in the examination papers are addressing the use of knowledge and skills in solving our every-day problems."

Emphasizing the importance of mastery of knowledge, skills and competencies to the nation at large, the education minister said teachers "must take heed of the findings from the work of candidates and go back to the basics of teaching holistically".

Mrs Museveni said it is "unfortunate" that exam malpractice — in the form of direct assistance from school directors and teachers to candidates — is still happening in schools.

For such cases, she said "we shall let the law take its course and thereafter subject those found guilty to the appropriate disciplinary process of the teaching service".

S1 to begin term on Feb 17

On the mpox outbreak, the First Lady urged all heads of education institutions to keenly follow the periodical updates released by the health ministry on the situation and in turn guide their respective staff, parents and learners.

She revealed that the selection exercise for Senior One will be conducted next week on Thursday and Friday (January 30 and 31), adding that the education ministry will communicate further details in due course.

The first term reporting date for Senior One students will be February 17.

At the conclusion of her speech, the education minister officially released the 2024 PLE results.

 WATCH 👇🏽 



 📲  How to access results

Now that the results have been released, the public — including parents and candidates — can now access the 2024 PLE results via SMS on their mobile phones (telecom charges apply).

▪️ Type PLE [leave a space], type full index number
▪️ Send to 6600

UNEB said schools can access the results through their portals while printed copies will be collected by the respective district/city/municipal inspectors of school from the UNEB Ntinda offices from Monday, January 27, 2025.

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