Tawjihi students ‘relieved’ over session-opening mathematics exam

AMMAN — Students sitting for the General Secondary Education Certificate Examination (Tawjihi) on Saturday expressed their "relief" after completing the mathematics exam, the first of the 2018 summer session, saying that the allocated time was adequate and that the questions were objective, measuring various levels of students the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Education Minister Azmi Mahafzah visited several schools to check on the exam sessions as students' parents praised the Educations Ministry's measures inside and outside the examination halls which they said have ensured a suitable environment for students.

During the first day of the Tawjihi exam, 105,932 students from the various streams sat for the first exam: mathematics for the academic streams; animal production for the agricultural stream; and drawing and design for the home economics stream.

Education Ministry Spokesperson Walid Jallad said that 343 students with disabilities sat for the exam including 123 with hearing impairments, 80 with visual impairments, 50 with motor disabilities, 55 with cerebral palsy, and 26 with other types of disabilities, in addition to 38 students from rehabilitation and juvenile centres.

The minister also toured the examination rooms of students with disabilities, stressing the ministry's keenness to provide them with an appropriate and comfortable examination environment. 

The ministry offered sign language interpreters for students with hearing impairment, an accompanying writer or a magnified version of the exam paper for students with visual impairments, as well as a writer and observer for students with cerebral palsy upon request, according to Petra.

Nawaf Ajarmah, examinations and tests management director at the Education Ministry said that 19,000 teachers are in charge of invigilation, while 16,500 will be in charge of evaluation of 87 assessment centres.

Mahafza said that the first day went "smoothly", praising the collective efforts of the teachers and invigilators, as well as other government bodies including the ministries of interior and health, the Special Communication Commission, the Jordan Teachers Association, the administrative jury, the Audit Bureau, the Public Security Department, the Gendarmerie, and the various media channels.