Rabat- Minister of Education, Vocational Training, and Higher Education Said Amzazi personally supervised the baccalaureate exams in Tifelt, near Meknes, on Tuesday, the first day of the baccalaureate final exams which will continue until June 8.
Amzazi paid a visit Tuesday morning to Zineb Ennafzaouia high school in Tiflet in addition to other educational institutions in Rabat, Sale, Temara, and Khemisset regions in order to monitor the exam conditions on the first examination day of the 2017-2018 school year.
In an interview with Moroccan news outlet Le 360, Amzazi applauded the efforts of the administrators to create the best exam atmosphere for students: “We have put serious efforts to guarantee the best circumstances for students in addition to raising awareness.”
Amzazi added that he visited the exam institutions to accentuate the importance of the “national” examination, emphasizing that the focus should not always be on the problem of cheating, but also on providing students with a comfortable examination environment.
Today, students across Morocco have taken the exam under the surveillance of the newly installed classroom cameras to prevent cheating and to raise awareness of the graveness of the act.
The current anti-fraud law penalizes cheating candidates caught with communication devices with six months to five years in jail and a fine ranging from MAD 5,000-100,000. The candidates are also prevented from retaking the exams for two years.
Meanwhile Head of Government, Saad Eddine El Othmani visited an educational center for students with special needs in Hay Riad in Rabat to check on students with physical and mental disabilities taking the baccalaureate exams.
Previously, the Ministry of Education announced that this year’s baccalaureate exams are adapted for students with hearing problems and for those with mental conditions, such as autism. The students will benefit from extra exam time and an assistant.
Last year, 325,191 Moroccan students took baccalaureate exams, according to a statement released by the ministry. This year, the number of baccalaureate candidates increased to 440,000 students.
