9th grade final exams begin in digital format

This Friday, 9th grade students will take the first of two final primary school exams, which, for the first time, will be held in digital format, a challenge for which schools say they are prepared.

The Mathematics test will take place in two shifts, the first starting at 9:30 am and the second at 12:00 pm.

For the first time, the final exams for the 9th year will be held in digital format, after, last year, the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation decided to maintain the paper format because it considered that the previous ministerial team, led by João Costa, did not ensure the necessary conditions.

A week ago, the President of the National Association of Directors of Public Schools and Groups (ANDAEP) said he was confident that schools were in a position to guarantee that the tests would be carried out without any problems.

“We are not expecting any setbacks. The machine is set up. We are in a position to safely move forward so that the 9th grade exams can be held digitally,” Filinto Lima said at the time in statements to the Lusa news agency.

Less optimistic, the Missão Escola Pública movement warned that the conditions for equity are not met and anticipated a scenario of disturbance at a time that should be one of serenity.

The representative of school principals downplayed the concerns raised by the teachers' movement, stressing that schools have been preparing for that moment since the beginning of the school year.

In addition to the final exams for primary education, the Learning Monitoring (ModA) exams, which took place between May 19 and June 6 for students in the 4th and 6th years, were also carried out in digital format, with specific constraints, but which Filinto Lima says helped schools to prepare.

After the Math test, students will be assessed again on Thursday in Portuguese.