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CXC Exams Pushed To July
posted (May 13, 2020)
Normally, the C-SEC and CAPE exams would be underway this month - but due to the COVID 19 - which has forced schools to close all across the region, those CXC exams have been delayed. But, now, new dates have been announced: those exams will be held in July.

This is the decision coming out of the First Emergency Virtual Meeting of the Council for Human and Social Development - which Beize's minister participated in. He told us about the decision via zoom teleconference today:

Hon. Patrick Faber, Minister of Education
"Our territory will proceed with CXC exams, both CAPE and CSEC exams starting in the month of July. So we are off the current schedule and we will resume the exam on a new schedule that will begin in July. Those schedules are not finalized yet that's my understanding. They are working on them now and from what I am told so far the exams will begin in the week straddling June/July and so the first exam will be on the last day or two of June and then the full month of July is what we are looking at for taking the exam. What was adopted in the meeting is that we would use a modified approach for this year since we are faced with the issues of Covid-19. That modified approach will mean that they will take into consideration by and large only paper 1 which is the multiple choice and the school-based assessment which is paper 3. Working on this schedule will expect the results for CXC exams in early September. This is why we said all along that these exams were not cancelled. We didn't want people to become complacent and not study and this is why we went to great pains to say ey this is still on, we are still negotiating, we are still giving Belize's input. This is now the position and we want people to prepare and prepare well for the exams come the start of July and going forward."

Now, the council agreed to have Examinations administered, quote, "via an e-Testing modality in countries that are equipped with the requisite infrastructure." Well, Faber said the decision for Belize, though, is that we would rather just do it the old fashioned way:

Hon. Patrick Faber, Minister of Education
"In Belize we have opted to do a full paper-based test and so it requires the physical appearance of a student in a testing center where he/she would be given a paper booklet and they would have to work on the paper right there. The CXC has also offered to do a mix modality for those territories that can do that, but in Belize as I've said we've agreed that we will just do paper-based."

If you have more questions, the Ministry has put out an FAQ release which you can find on our facebook page.

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