High-stakes examinations and curriculum narrowing: Examination pressure constraints of the competency-based education of grade nine business studies in Lusaka District in Zambia

Joseph Kanswe; Innocent Mutale Mulenga

doi:10.51867/AQSSR.3.4.82

Authors

Joseph Kanswe The Examination Council of Zambia Author
Innocent Mutale Mulenga The University of Zambia Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2636-3630

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51867/AQSSR.3.4.82

Keywords:

Business Studies, Curriculum Implementation, Competency-Based Learning, Examination Pressure, Syllabus Coverage, Teaching to the Test

Abstract

This study was an examination of the extent and nature of Business Studies syllabus coverage and the institutional and instructional factors influencing content coverage in Grade Nine classes in selected secondary schools in Lusaka District, Zambia. The study was motivated by concerns that high-stakes examination pressure may encourage teachers to prioritise examination performance over comprehensive and competency-based curriculum implementation. Guided by the Humanistic Learning Theory, the study adopted an embedded mixed-methods research design. The target population comprised deputy headteachers, Heads of Department, Grade Nine Business Studies teachers and learners. Five schools were selected, comprising three public, one grant-aided and one private schools. Purposive and simple random sampling were used to select 90 participants: five headteachers, five HoDs, ten teachers and 60 learners. Data were collected using questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and document analysis and analysed using frequencies, percentages and thematic analysis. Findings showed that syllabus coverage was uneven and selective, with teachers prioritising highly examinable topics, particularly Final Accounts, while topics such as Entrepreneurship received less attention. Past-paper drilling and examination preparation increasingly displaced regular syllabus teaching. Inadequate teaching time, syllabus overload, overcrowding, split sessions and examination-related teacher performance pressures further contributed to selective coverage of topics. Based on these findings it was concluded that examination pressure and institutional constraints interacted to produce uneven syllabus implementation and limited opportunities for meaningful, competency-oriented learning. The study findings and conclusions lead to the recommendations of protecting teaching time, monitoring balanced syllabus coverage, integrating examination preparation with competency-based learning, and broadening teacher appraisal beyond examination results.

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