THE NATIONAL EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL OF TANZANIA

CANDIDATES’ ITEM RESPONSE ANALYSIS

REPORT FOR THE CERTIFICATE OF SECONDARY
EDUCATION EXAMINATION (CSEE) 2019

035 ENGINEERING SCIENCE

THE NATIONAL EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL OF TANZANIA

CANDIDATES’ ITEM RESPONSE ANALYSIS REPORT

FOR THE CERTIFICATE OF SECONDARY
EDUCATION EXAMINATION (CSEE) 2019

035 ENGINEERING SCIENCE

Published by
National Examinations Council of Tanzania,
P.O. Box 2624,
Dar as salaam, Tanzania

© The National Examinations Council of Tanzania, 2020

All rights reserved

i
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD .................................................................................................................iii
1.0 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 1
2.0 ANALYSIS OF PERFORMANCE IN INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS................. 2
2.1 SECTION A: Objective Type Questions ........................................................................ 2
2.1.1 Question 1: Multiple Choice Items ................................................................................. 2
2.2 SECTION B: Short Answer Questions ........................................................................... 4
2.2.1 Question 2: Projectile Motion ......................................................................................... 4
2.2.2 Question 3: Electricity and Magnetism ........................................................................... 6
2.2.3 Question 4: Forces ........................................................................................................... 9
2.2.4 Question 5: Fluid Mechanics ......................................................................................... 13
2.2.5 Question 6: Linear Motion ............................................................................................ 15
2.2.6 Question 7: Optics (Light) ............................................................................................. 19
2.2.7 Question 8: Turning Forces ........................................................................................... 22
2.2.8 Question 9: Angular Motion.......................................................................................... 25
2.2.9 Question 10: Angular Motion........................................................................................ 29
2.3 SECTION C: Structured Questions............................................................................... 31
2.3.1 Question 11: Heat .......................................................................................................... 31
2.3.2 Question 12: Simple Machine ....................................................................................... 37
2.3.3 Question 13: Fluid Mechanics ....................................................................................... 42
2.3.4 Question 14: Electricity and Magnetism ....................................................................... 48
3.0 THE CANDIDATES’ PERFORMANCE ON EACH TOPIC ........................... 55
4.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................... 55
4.1 Conclusion..................................................................................................................... 55
4.1 Recommendations .............................................................................................. 56
Appendix A ................................................................................................................... 57
Appendix B ................................................................................................................... 58

ii
 FOREWORD

The Candidates’ Item Response Analysis (CIRA) report in Engineering

Science subject for Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (CSEE)
2019 has been written in order to provide feedback to the education
stakeholders about the performance of the candidates and the challenges they
faced in attempting various examination questions.

The Certificate of Secondary Education Examination marks the end of four years
of Ordinary Level Secondary Education in Tanzania. It is a summative evaluation
which indicates the effectiveness of the education system in general and the
education delivery system in particular. The candidates’ performance is a strong
indicator of what the education system was able or unable to offer to the
students in their four years of Ordinary Secondary Education.

The analysis presented in this report intends to contribute towards the

understanding of the possible reasons behind the candidates’ performance in
the Engineering Science subject. The report shows the factors that made the
candidates to perform the way they did on different questions. Such factors
includes candidates’ ability to identify the task on the questions they
attempted, ability to follow instructions and candidates’ knowledge of the
concepts related to the subject. The report also highlights factors which made
some of the candidates fail.

Finally, the Council would like to thank all the examination officers,
examiners and all others who participated in the preparation of this report. The
Council is also grateful to staff members who were involved in processing the
data used in this report.

Dr Charles E. Msonde

EXECUTIVE SECRETARY

iii
1.0 INTRODUCTION

This report presents the analysis of the performance of the candidates who sat
for the Certificate Of Secondary Education (CSEE) 2019 in Engineering
Science subject. The analysis shows how the candidates performed in each
question. The analysis also identifies the questions which were performed
well, those which were averagely performed and those who performed poorly.
Furthermore, the report shows the questions which were attempted by most
candidates and those which were mostly omitted.

The Engineering Science paper comprised 14 questions divided in three

sections: A, B and C. The candidates were required to answer all questions in
sections A and B and to choose three questions from section C. Section A
carried 10 marks, while sections B and C carried 45 marks each.

A total of 1232 candidates sat for the Engineering Science Examination, of

whom 667 (54.1%) candidates passed while 565 (45.9%) candidates failed.
The candidates’ performance in 2019 decreased by 14.6 percent compared to
that of 2018. There were 1390 candidates who sat for the examination in 2018.
Among them, 955 (68.7%) candidates passed while 435 (31.3%) candidates
failed. Figure 1 shows the candidates’ performance in Engineering Science in
2019 in comparison with the 2018 performance.

Figure 1: Comparison of candidates’ performance in 2019 and 2018

1
 Figure 1 shows the comparison of the candidates’ performance in 2019 and
2018. The colours present the percentage of performance of the candidates
where red represents those who failed and green stands for those who passed.

The analysis presents the requirements for each question, the candidates’
strengths and weaknesses in their responses and the percentage of candidates
in each group of scores. The analysis is accompanied with bar charts which
summarise the candidates’ performance in particular questions. The report also
provides the conclusion, recommendations and appendices A and B.

The performance in each question is rated as weak, average and good if the
percentage of candidates marks are in the ranges of 0 – 29, 30 – 64, and 65 –
100 respectively. The pass mark for each question is 30% or above. Different
categories of performance are also indicated by special colours where red,
yellow, and green colours denote weak, average, and good performance
respectively as seen in the charts and appendices.

2.0 ANALYSIS OF PERFORMANCE IN INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS

2.1 SECTION A: Objective Type Questions

2.1.1 Question 1: Multiple Choice Items

This question had items (i) - (x) derived from the topics on Periodic Motion; Friction;
Strength of Materials, Optics (Light), Sound, Electricity and Magnetism;
Measurements; Work, Energy and Power; and Heat. The candidates were required to
choose the correct answer from the given alternatives and to write their letter beside
the item numbers.

A total of 1232 (100%) candidates attempted this question. Among them, 259 (21.0%)
scored 0 to 2 marks; 806 (65.4%) scored 3 to 6 marks, and 167 (13.6%) scored 7 to 10
marks. This was the best performed question. The candidates’ performance is
presented in Figure 2.

2
 Figure 2: Candidates’ Performance on Question 1

The analysis carried out indicates that most of the candidates were able to choose the
correct answers in items (i), (ii) (ix), and (x). This indicates that the candidates had
adequate knowledge on the concept tested. On the other hand, the candidates who
failed to score high marks had a problem in item (v) which stated as follows:

(v) Figure 2 shows an observation of the movement of a particle which moves in a

form of wave. If the particle takes one second to move from original point ‘P’
to point ‘Q’, what is the frequency of this wave?
Displacement

Q Time in
P 1 second seconds

Figure 2

A 2.5 Hz B 3 Hz C 3.5 Hz D 1.5 Hz E 2 Hz

The majority of the candidates choose alternative “D” instead of “B”. The
response was wrong because option ‘D’ is obtained by dividing 3 cycles of
wave by 2 seconds. These candidates failed to count the number of cycles in
Figure 2 and to divide it by one second to get the correct answer.
3
2.2 SECTION B: Short Answer Questions

2.2.1 Question 2: Projectile Motion

The question required the candidates to estimate the maximum height that will
be attained by the ball. The question stated as follows;

Two boys are standing 10 m apart south to North and one has to kick the ball
to another boy. If the boy at North kicked the ball to the boy in south at an
angle of 45o to horizontal, estimate the maximum height the ball will attain.

The candidates who attempted this question were 1049 (85.1%). Among them,
763 (72.7%) scored 0 to 1 mark; 209 (20% ) scored 1.5 to 3 marks; whereas 77
(7.3% ) candidates scored 3.5 to 5 marks. Generally the candidates’
performance in this question was weak. Figure 3 summaries the candidates’
performance on Question 2.

Figure 3: Candidates’ performance on Question 2

The analysis shows that 72.7 percent of the candidates who scored 0 - 1 mark
u 2 sin 2  u 2 sin 2
failed to apply the formula H  or R  to find the
2g g
maximum height reached by the ball. Most of these candidates applied the
formula which does not relate with the concept of projectile motion. Extract
2.1 provides a response of one of the candidates who performed poorly on this
question.

4
 Extract 2.1: A sample of poor response on Question 2

Extract 2.1 shows a poor response as extracted from a script of one of the candidates
who scored 0 mark. The candidate used a wrong formula in calculating the maximum
height attained by the ball.

The candidates who scored 0.5 to 1 marks were noted to have carried out the
computation for initial velocity ‘u’ without showing the formulas. Those who
scored 1.5 to 3 marks were able to write the formula for maximum height,
u 2 sin 2 
H but failed to carry out the calculation by using the given data to
2g
obtain the correct answer.

Further analysis shows that those who scored 3.5 to 4.5 marks were able to recall and
u 2 sin 2  2g
apply the formula H  , or u  but they made slight mistakes in
2g sin 2
computing the data. Therefore, they obtained high scores of 3.5 to 4.5 marks.

Despite those weaknesses, 5.7 percent of the candidates scored all 5 marks
allotted to this question. These candidates were able to realize that in order to
obtain the maximum height (H) attained by the ball, the use of the equation
u 2 sin 2 
H was inevitable. They also realized that since the initial velocity
2g

5
 u 2 sin 2
u was not provided, the equation R  was also to be applied, from
g
2g
which they obtained u  . Extract 2.2 shows a sample of a good
sin 2
response as extracted from a script of a candidate who provided the correct
response.

Extract 2.2: A sample of a good response to Question 2

In Extract 2.2, the candidate was able to deduce an equation for the horizontal
range of a projectile to find the velocity of a ball and finally the maximum
height reached by the ball.

2.2.2 Question 3: Electricity and Magnetism

This question consisted of two parts: (a) and (b). Part (a) measured the
candidates' understanding of the magnetic field inside a solenoid and how its
strengths can be made stronger. Part (b) required the candidates to explain
why electrical cables are left loosen during installation of power transmission.
The question read as follows:

6
(a) Explain briefly how the strength of the magnetic field inside a solenoid
can be made stronger.
(b) Why electrical cables are left loosen during installation of power
transmission? Explain briefly.

A total of 932 (75.6%) candidates attempted this question. Among them, 86.6
percent scored 0 to 1 mark; 12.1 percent scored 2 to 3 marks, and 1.3 percent
scored 4 to 5 marks. Generally, the candidates’ performance on this question
was weak. Figure 4 summaries the performance.

Figure 4: Percentage of candidates’ performance on Question 3

There were 645 (69.2%) candidates who scored 0 mark in this question. Those
candidates failed to realise that a magnetic field can be made stronger by
increasing the strength of the current in the solenoid or placing a soft iron core
within the solenoid and also by increasing the number of turns of the solenoid
in part (a). From their responses, it was revealed that the candidates did not
understand the proportionality of both the applied current and the number of
turns per length as the major means of making magnetic field inside a solenoid
stronger. In part (b) they failed to explain why electrical cables are left loose
during installation of power transmission. Some of them wrote “cables are left
slacken during installation on a hot day in order to allow expansion. This
response was wrong because when the cables expand, they become more
slacken. They confused between ‘contraction’ and expansion. Most of them
did not understand that, the cables become taut and break due to decrease in

7
length during a cold day. That is the reason why electrical cables are left loose
because slackness offens a balance for the cable not to break during the
contraction process. Extract 3.1 provides a sample of poor response as
extracted from the script of a candidate.

Extract 3.1: A sample of poor responses to question 3.

In Extract 3.1 the candidate had misconception of ideas as he/she provided

wrong responses using concepts of unrelated topic.

Apart from this poor performance, 12.1 percent of the candidates who scored 2
to 3 marks were able to provide answers to either part (a) or (b) and therefore
scored average marks. Most of them lacked knowledge on how the strength of
the magnetic field inside a solenoid can be made stronger.

On the other hand, the candidates who managed to score all the 5 marks
allotted for this question had the ability to provide a clear and brief
explanation on the three factors or ways by which the strength of the magnetic
field inside a solenoid can be made stronger. The majority of them listed
factors such as: (i) increasing the size or magnitude of an electric current in
the solenoid; (ii) increasing the number of turns of the solenoid; and (iii)
placing a soft iron core inside the solenoid. Also, in part (b), most of the
candidates explained that electrical cables are left slacken during installation
on a hot day in order to allow the cables to contract and avoid breaking during
cold days or in the mornings and nights. That means if the cables were left taut
during installation they would break on contraction during cold days or
mornings and nights due decrease in length. Extract 3.2 shows a well
presented response as from a script of a candidate who scored all 5 marks.

8
 Extract 3.2: A sample of a good response to Question 3

In Extract 3.2, the candidate managed to outline three factors that can be used
to increase the strength of magnetic field inside a solenoid but also give
reasons why electrical cables are left loose during the installation of a power
transmission system.

2.2.3 Question 4: Forces

This question required the candidates to use analytical method to determine

the magnitude of the resultant force if the pulling forces of 8N due North; 10N
due West; 6N 60° South of West; 5N 45° South of East and 3N 30° East of
North act on a body.

This question was attempted by 895 (72.6%) candidates. Among them, 855
(95.5%) scored 0 to 1 mark; 215 (24.7%), 35 (4.2%) scored 1.5 to 3 marks and
3 (0.3%) scored 4 to 5 marks. This is among the poorly performed questions.
The graph in Figure 5 provides a summary of these scores in percentage.

9
 Figure 5: Percentage of candidates’ performance on Question 4

The analysis shows that 71.2 percent of the candidates who scored 0 mark
failed to present a sketch diagram and to show the directions of the given
forces. They also did not understand how to solve the given forces into vertical
and horizontal components using H.C = F x cos θ and V.C = F x sin θ.
Furthermore, they failed even to state the equation concerning Pythagoras
theorem, that is, R  H .C 2  V .C 2 . Some of them confused the pulling
forces given in the question with the forces due to magnetic line of forces.
Instead of sketching the pulling forces acting on one point on a body, they
drew a magnetic bar showing the magnetic line of forces. Extract 4.1 gives a
sample of a poor response from one of the candidates.

Extract 4.1: A sample of a poor response to Question 4

10
In Extract 4.1 the candidate confused the pulling forces with the force due to
magnet. He/she drew a sketch of magnetic forces instead of a sketch of a space
diagram to show the directions of the five given forces.

Most of the candidates who attempted this question scored 0 to 1 mark. The
main challenge faced by these candidates was how to resolve the given forces
in terms of horizontal and vertical components by using H.C = F x cos θ and
V.C = F x sin θ respectively. Nevertheless, lack of mathematical skills,
especially on Trigonometric Ratios, to find the cosines and sines of the angles
180°; 210°; and 315° was another challenge to most of the candidates. In
addition, they failed to sketch the free force diagram in order to resolve the
forces into vertical and horizontal components and hence obtain the resultant
force. However, a few candidates were able to recall the Pythagoras theorem
but failed to make the correct substitution of data to get the required
magnitude of the resultant force.

The statistics show that 4.2 percent of the candidates scored 2 to 3 marks.
Some of these candidates were able to draw the relevant sketch and managed
only to make substitution without writing the formula of horizontal and
vertical component of forces. Others sketched the diagram and wrote the
formula for resultant force but failed to identify the negative or positive sign
with respect to the direction of respective forces.

Moreover, 0.3 percent of the candidates who scored high marks (4 to 5) had
enough knowledge and skills on the topic forces especially forces in
equilibrium and sufficient mathematical skills particularly on Trigonometric
Ratios. The candidates who scored 5 marks were able to draw the correct
sketch of a free force diagram showing the correct directions of the given
forces. They managed to resolve the values of forces into the horizontal and
vertical components and finally applying the Pythagoras theorem to compute
the resultant force (R) as R  H .C 2  V .C 2 R 9.062  2.962 = 9.53
N. Extract 4.2 provides a sample of well-presented responses as extracted
from the script of one candidate.

11
Extract 4.2: A sample of good responses to Question 4

12
 Extract 4.2 is the correct response from one candidate who was able to
perform all computation stages correctly and obtained the correct answer.

2.2.4 Question 5: Fluid Mechanics

This question was composed from the topic Fluid Mechanics. It consisted of
parts (a) and (b) as follows:
(a) Suppose you have been assigned to measure the following quantities:
(i) Density or relative density of liquid such as milk
(ii) Atmospheric pressure
(iii)Gases such as the pressure of a steam in a boiler
(iv) A pressure of a gas supply
Identify the instrument that you would use in each case.

(b) Identify the principles that would be applied in the construction of a car
hydraulic brake.

Data analysis indicates that 89.4 percent of the candidates who attempted this
question had the following scores:
64 percent scored marks ranging from 0 to 1, while 32.4 percent scored 1.5 to
3 marks, and only 3.6 percent scored 3.5 to 5 marks. These scores imply that
the candidates’ performance on this question was weak as summarised in
Figure 6.

Figure 6: Percentage of Candidates’ Performance on Question 5

13
From the analysis made on the candidates’ responses it was revealed that some
of the candidates who scored 0 to 1 mark failed to mention a specific
instrument for measuring the given quantities, in part (a). They were also not
able to identify the principles that would be applied in the construction of a car
hydraulic brake. Their responses showed that they lacked knowledge and
skills on how to measure the said quantities and had no experience on
undertaking the required measurements. The candidates who scored 1 mark
either managed only to identify the Pascal’s Principle as the principle which is
applied in the construction of a car hydraulic brake or identified one specific
instrument for measuring one of the given quantities, in part (a) and failed the
rest thus scoring 1 mark. Extract 5.1 shows a poor response.

Extract 5.1: A sample of a poor response of a candidate to Question 5

Extract 5.1 shows a response of a candidate who failed to identify and mention
a Hydrometer, Barometer, Bourdon gauge, and Manometer as the instrument
for measuring density or relative density, atmospheric pressure, high gas
pressure such as the pressure of steam in a boiler pressure, and pressure of a
gas supply respectively. The candidate also, failed to mention the Pascal’s
Principle as the principle which is applied in the construction of a car
hydraulic brake.

The candidates who scored 1.5 to 3 marks were able to identify two or three
specific instrument for measuring the given quantities but some failed to
attempt the remaining parts of the question. It was also noted that a few of
them were able to identify the principles that would be applied in the
construction of a car hydraulic brake which is Pascal’s Principle of pressure
transmission in fluid.

For those who scored 3.5 to 5 marks had high performance on this question.
Some of them were able to identify all four specific instruments for measuring
14
 the given quantities, in part (a) but failed to attempt part (b) of this question.
Others were able to identify three specific instruments for measuring the given
quantities and were also able to identify and mention the principles that would
be applied in the construction of a car hydraulic brake thus they scored high
marks on this question.

There were only two candidates who scored all 5 marks on this question.
These candidates managed to identify all four specific instruments in part (a)
and mentioned the Pascal’s Principle as the principle that is applied in the
construction of a car hydraulic brake in part (b). It is revealed that these
candidates had enough knowledge on the topic measurement and fluid
mechanics. Extract 5.2 presents the correct response of question 5.

Extract 5.2: A sample of a good response.

In Extract 5.2 the candidate identified the instruments for measuring the given
quantities as assigned but also the Pascal’s Principle of pressure transmission
in fluids which is applied in the construction of a car hydraulic brake.

2.2.5 Question 6: Linear Motion

This question was from the topic Linear Motion. The question was set to
measure the competence of the candidates on how to employ some of the
fundamental physical quantities. The question read as follows:
Two cars A and B situated 60 km apart all at rest started moving at the same
time along a straight line in the same direction with uniform acceleration of 5
m/s2 and 3 m/s2 respectively. If car B was ahead of car A, how long in minutes
will car A overtake car B?

A total of 1057(85.8%) candidates attempted this question. Out of whom, 809

(76.5%) scored 0 to 1 marks including 726 (68.7%) who scored 0; 183 (17.4
%) scored 1.5 to 3 mark and 65 (6.1%) scored 3.5 to 5 marks. The candidates’

15
performance on this question was generally weak. The scores candidates are
presented graphically in Figure 7.

Figure 7: Candidates’ performance on Question 6

The candidates who scored 0 had several weaknesses with regard to the linear
motion topic. Some of them lacked knowledge and skills on computation on
how one car would surpass the other car when they are travelling in the same
direction at different speeds. Others failed to remember any linear motion
formula. This question was typically competence based. The candidates failed
to envision the way car A could overtake car B. They did not realise that car A
would travel two distances to overtake car B. The first distance was from point
of car A to point where car B was at rest. The second distance was the
distance travelled by car B up to the point of overtaking. They also failed to
1
remember the formula S  t  at 2 , which could lead them to compute the
2
two distances travelled by car A. Some of these candidates made errors while
calculating this question. They made computation of the given data in question
by engaging simple arithmetic computation such as multiplication of the given
data, summation of data and the like. Through their responses, it was noted
that they either lacked the concept of the linear motion topic or did not
remember the formula required. A sample of a poor response scanned from a
script of one candidate is presented in Extract 6.1.

16
 Extract 6.1: A sample of the poor response

Extract 6.1 shows a poor response from the script of a candidate who failed to
calculate the distances that could be taken for car A to overtake car B. Thus
he/she was not able to calculate the time required.

Some of the candidates who scored more than 1 mark remembered the formula
for finding the distance moved (S) in a given interval of time (t) which is given
1
by S = ut  at 2 but did not succeed to use that formula to form a new
2
equation. Therefore, they scored low marks.

There were candidates who scored 1.5 to 3 marks. Some of these managed to
write the formula for the distance taken by car A to overtake car B but they
failed to add the distance of interval between car A and car B. Therefore, they
scored average marks. Others managed to arrange the two equations required
for this calculation but instead of adding the two distances which are 60000
mm and the distance travelled by car A, they wrongly subtracted from each
other thus they scored average marks.

However, 11.4 percent of the candidates who scored all 5 marks were able to
envision the way car A overtook car B. They were able to calculate the two
17
distances travelled by car A to overtake the car B by applying the
1
formula S  t  at 2 . Furthermore they were able to make t the subject to
2
execute the time that would be taken for car A to overtake car B. Extract 4.2
shows a sample of good response from one candidate.

Extract 6.2: A sample of a good response

In the sample above the candidate managed to perform well on this question.
1
He/she remembered the equation S A  u At  a At 2 for the distance moved by
2
1
car A and S B  u Bt  aBt 2 for the distance moved by car B. Then he/she
2
was able to form the equation SA = SB + 60000 at the instant when car A
overtook car B. Finally, he/she substituted the correct data into the equation
created hence obtained the value of t as 244.95 seconds or 4.1 minutes.
18
2.2.6 Question 7: Optics (Light)

Question number 7 stated as follows:

An object of 10 cm high is placed at 30 cm away from a concave mirror. A 2
cm high image is formed on the same side as the object. Determine:
(a) the image distance from the mirror.
(b) the value of the focal length.

The analysis shows that 1168 (86.72%) candidates attempted this question.
Among them, 390 (33.4%) scored 0 to 1 mark; 197 (16.9%) scored 1.5 and 3
marks and 581 (49.7%) scored 3.5 to 5 marks. The candidates’ performance in
this question was good. The graphical presentation of the groups of scores is
summarised in Figure 8.

Figure 8: Candidates’ performance on Question 7

The candidates who scored all the 5 marks were able to remember and apply
v h
the magnification formulae m  and m  i to find the image distance (v)
u ho
1 1 1
from the mirror and also managed to apply the mirror formula   to
f u v
determine the value of the focal length f of the concave mirror as shown in
Extract 7.1.

19
Extract 7.1: A sample of a good response to Question 7

20
In Extract 7.1, the candidate managed to recall and apply the correct
magnification formula to determine the image distance (v). Also, he/she
managed to determine the value of the focal length (f) of the concave mirror.

On the other hand, it was shown that some of the candidates who scored less
than 5 marks seemed to be familiar with the magnification and the mirror
formula but presented wrong substitution of data. For example, some of them
h
instead of substituting the value of ho into the equation v  I x u , they
hO
substituted the value of u. This made them score good marks but less than 5
given marks.
However, a few (16.9%) candidates scored 1.5 to 3 marks. Some of these
candidates were only able to write the two formulae for magnification and
mirror. Others wrote the formula and substituted wrong data in the formula.
Therefore, they scored average marks.
There were also a considerable number (33.4%) of candidates who scored 0 to
1 mark. Some of these candidates presented only a mirror formula thus scored
1 mark. Others failed to present any correct formula between the
magnification and mirror formula. Thus, they scored zero. Extract 7.2 shows a
sample of a response from the script of a candidate who performed poorly.

21
 Extract 7.2: A sample of poor responses to Question 7

Extract 7.2 shows a candidate who failed to determine the image distance from
the concave mirror and the focal length of the mirror. This candidate failed to
remember any formula instead he/she computed unknown arithmetic to
determine the image distance (v) and the focal length (f) and ended up with
wrong answers.

2.2.7 Question 8: Turning Forces

This question was constructed in order to measure the ability of the candidates
to make use of the principle of moments and its application. The question read
as follows:
Figure 4 shows a uniform wooden lath AB, weighing 1 N rests on two sharp-
edged supports C and D. Calculate the reactions at the supports R1 and R2.

22
 1N 0.5N

A C B
D
10 R 20
R
401 50
2

140

This question was attempted by 75.7 percent of the candidates. Among them,
63.3 percent scored 0 to 1 mark, 38.4 percent scored 0 mark, 33.8 percent
scored 1.5 to 3 marks and 2.9 percent scored 3.5 to 5 marks. This question was
among those performed averagely. The graphical presentation of scores is
summarised in Figure 9.

Figure 9: Candidates’ performance on Question 8

It was observed that the candidates who scored 5 marks had the ability to state
and apply two conditions for equilibrium when a number of parallel forces act
on a body. This group were also able to realize that a uniform wooden lath has
the same thickness and therefore its weight was 1N and acted at its centre.
They managed to sum up the forces with regard to their direction and they
applied the equation of the sum of the clockwise and anticlockwise moments
to solve the required reactions. Extract 8.1 is a sample of a good response as
scanned from a script of a candidate.

23
 Extract 8.1: A sample of a good response to Question 8

Extract 8.1 shows a sample of response from a candidate who managed to

identify uniform beam with the same weight, and therefore its weight acted at
its centre. Also, the candidate managed to apply the two conditions for
equilibrium when a number of parallel forces act on a body, to solve the
reactions R1 and R2 at supports C and D.

The analysis established from the script of the candidates shows that 2.9
percent scored below 3.5 marks but more than 1.5. They marks did not realize
that a given weight of the wooden lath AB acts at its centre. This confused
some of the candidates by placing the weight of lath at other positions rather
than the middle of the lath and therefore they scored averagely on this
question. Others were not able to include the weight of the lath (hidden
downward force = 1N). As a result, their computation ended up with wrong
answers. If these candidates had known the concept of including the weight of
lath in their calculation they could have been able to compute this question
and end up with correct answers.

24
 There were 38.4 percent of the candidates who scored 0 mark. It was observed
that, most of them failed to state the two conditions for equilibrium of parallel
forces. Their computation on this question revealed they lacked the concept of
the turning forces topic. Moreover, they lacked knowledge and skills of
sketching the balanced parallel forces in a meter rule or lath. Others confused
the principle of moments with that of determining the equivalent resistance
connected in parallel electric current. Extract 8.2 shows a sample of a poor
response extracted from the script of one candidate.

Extract 8.2: A sample of poor response to Question 8

Extract 8.2 shows the response from the script of a candidate who confused
the formula of principle of moments with that of determining the equivalent
resistance from the parallel electric current circuit. Instead of applying the two
conditions for equilibrium when a number of parallel forces act on a body,
he/she substituted the data (distances referring the position of downward
forces) into the formula for equivalent total resistance of parallel resistance in
an electric circuit thus ended up with wrong computation and responses.

2.2.8 Question 9: Angular Motion

The question read as follows:

A car moving with a velocity of 10 m/s accelerates uniformly for 0.5 km until
its velocity is 18 m/s. If the rolling diameter of the wheels is 600 mm,
determine the wheels angular acceleration.

25
The statistics show that 1141 (92.6%) candidates attempted this question.
Among them, 67.6 percent scored from 0 to 1 mark with 42.2 percent being
those who scored 0 mark, 15.6 percent scored from 1.5 to 3 marks and 18.8
percent scored from 3.5 to 5 marks. This analysis is summarized in Figure 10.

Figure 10: Candidates’ Performance on Question 9

The candidates who scored 0 in this question were not able to identify linear
motion equations. They failed to write the formula v2 = u2 + 2aS and a = αr
through which they could determine the wheels angular acceleration. Most of
these candidates did not write any formula. Instead they did some arithmetic
computation by using the given data thus presenting unknown calculation with
wrong responses. Extract 9.1 provides a sample of poor response.

Extract 9.1: A sample of poor response to Question 9

26
In Extract 9.1 the candidate failed to write the formula v2 = u2 + 2aS and a =
αr and applied wrongly the given data to the calculation. Therefore, the
candidate failed to attain good scores.

From the analysis point of view, it was seen that the candidates who scored 0.5
to 1 mark were able to write the formula v2 = u2 + 2aS or a = αr but did not
convert the dimensions of distance and diameter provided in the question to
millimetres and metres. Therefore, their computation gave them wrong
responses. Others managed only to convert the dimension but they failed to
remember the formula and thus they ended up with low marks on this
question.

The analysis shows that 13.6 percent scored 1.5 to 3 marks. Most of these
candidates were able to convert the distance moved by the car from kilometre
and millimetre to metres but they failed to remember the correct linear and
angular motion formula so that they could compute the angular acceleration
requested. Others managed only to remember either the correct linear or
angular motion formula therefore their computation led them to perform
averagely on this question.

Moreover, 18.8 percent of the candidates who scored high marks (3.5 - 5)
were able to write both the formula v2 = u2 + 2aS and a = αr and apply
correctly the given data for the calculatin therefore some of them attained
correct responses. Among these candidates, there were those presented all
calculation steps correctly and scored all 5 marks. Others made some errors in
the calculation of linear acceleration thus scored 3.5 and less than 5 marks.
Extract 9.2 provides a sample of good response.

27
Extract 9.2: A sample of good response to Question 9

Extract 9.2 contains a response of the candidate who was able to convert 0.5
km into metres and 600 mm into metres. He/she applied the formula v2 = u2 +
2aS to obtain the linear acceleration ‘a’. Finally, the candidate managed to
substitute the value of ‘a’ into a = αr to obtain the angular acceleration ‘α’ into
radians per square second.
28
2.2.9 Question 10: Angular Motion

The question stated as follows:

One boy in the mechanical workshop has to tight a nut of a school lorry. A
force of 50 N is to be applied at right angles to the end of a spanner 150 mm
long. Find the work done by the boy if the spanner is moved through 150°.

The analysis shows that this question was attempted by 1101 (89.4%)
candidates. Among them, 468 (42.5%) scored 0; 308 (28%) scored 0.5 to 1
mark; 165 (15.0%) scored 1.5 to 3 marks; whereas 160 (14.5%) scored 3.5 to 5
marks. Generally the candidates’ performance in this question was weak. This
performance is also signposted by Figure 11 which shows the percentage of
the candidates’ performance graphically.

Figure 11: Candidates’ Performance on Question 10

Most of the candidates (70.5%) did not perform well (as they scored less than
1.5 marks) on this question. Some of them were only able to remember the
formula for work done which is the product of force and distance moved by
the force and failed the rest. Others did not manage to convert the angle θ from
degrees into radians. They just substituted 150° into the formula, Work done =
F x rθ thus ended up with an incorrect value of the work done by the boy.
From the analysis, it was shown that about half of all the candidates (42.5%)
who attempted this question scored zero because they failed to understand that
from angular motion the distance (s) moved by a rotating particle is given by S
= rθ (that is, distance = radius x angular displacement in radians). They also
did not use the equation work done = F x rθ or work done = Fr x θ where Fr is
equal to Torque ‘T’, thus work done = T x θ. It seems they lacked knowledge
on the topic of work done especially on the subtopic Torque. Their
computation engaged wrong formula. As a result, they scored zero. Extract

29
10.1 gives a sample of a poor response as extracted from a script of one
candidate.

Extract 10.1: A sample of a poor response to question 10

In Extract 10.1, the candidate failed to identify the appropriate formula for
calculating the work done by the boy when turning a spanner through an angle
of 150°. The candidate wrote work done = force x distance moved instead of
writing work done = force x distance that is, Torque x angular displacement or
work done =Fr x θ. He/she also failed to change the angle 150° into a radian.

Most of the candidates who scored averagely on this question (from 1.5 to 3
marks) were either able to convert the angle θ from degrees into radian or
wrote the correct formula but substituted 150° into the work done = F x rθ.
Thus, they scored average marks on this question. Others remembered part of
the formula but failed to remember the angular distance travelled which is
given by S = rθ. Therefore their computation operations had carried average
scores.

The candidates who scored all the 5 marks allocated for this question
understood that the work done by a rotating spanner is given by the equation
Work done = F x rθ. They also, converted the angle θ into a radians before
substituting it into the formula. They pursued all calculation steps successfully
and obtained the correct answer. A sample of a good response as extracted
from a candidate’s scripts is depicted by Extract 10.2.
30
 Extract 10.2: A sample of a good response to Question 10

Extract 10.2 shows the candidate who understood that the work done by a
rotating a rod is given by employing torque. He/she managed to convert the
angle from degree into radian and managed to carryout all calculation steps
successfully to obtain the intended response.

2.3 SECTION C: Structured Questions

2.3.1 Question 11: Heat

Question 11 stated as follows:

Suppose the equipment made up of 1 kg of aluminium, 1.5 kg of copper and
2.5 kg of iron is cooled from 50°C top 20°C at a rate of 1.9kJ/min. If the
relative specific heat capacities are aluminium 0.21, copper 0.09 and iron
0.12.
(a) Determine the thermal capacity of the equipment.
(b) How long would it take to cool down the given range?

31
The candidates who attempted this question were 829 (67.3%). Among them,
756 (91.2%) scored from 0 to 4 marks where 674 (81.3%) scored 0 mark; 44
(5.3%) scored from 4.5 to 9.5 marks; whereas 29 (3.5%) scored from 10 to 15
marks. The candidates’ performance on this question was generally weak. This
performance is also presented by Figure 12 which shows the percentage of
candidates’ performance graphically.

Figure 12: Candidates’ Performance on Question 11

The data analysis shows that 91.2 percent of the candidates scored 0 to 4
marks out of which 81.3 percent scored 0. This indicates that most of the
candidates who opted this question had insufficient knowledge on the topic
Heat because they failed to remember the formula for Specific heat capacity
and thermal capacity of aluminium, copper and iron respectively. Others
presented wrong computation by substituting the given data into a wrong
formula. Therefore, they finished their calculation with an incorrect answer in
part (a) and (b). In part (a), most of them had no idea that Thermal capacity of
the equipment is the summation of the Thermal capacities of all materials of
aluminium, copper and iron. In part (b) they were not able to describe the
formula of heat transmitted to the surroundings which is equal to thermal
capacity of equipment times the fall in temperature of the equipment.
Therefore, they scored 0. The major challenge to the candidates who
attempted this question was on how to create a proper expression for
computing the total thermal capacity of the equipment. Another challenge was
on how to calculate the specific heat capacities of the aluminium, copper and
iron in part (a). Extract 11.1 shows a sample of poor response from a script of
one candidate.

32
 Extract 11.1: A sample of a poor response to Question 11.

Extract 11.1 shows that the candidate failed to write the formula for finding
specific heat capacity of a material using the equation: specific heat capacity a
material = relative specific heat capacity of the material x specific heat
33
capacity of water. He/she also failed to form the expression which could have
been used to find the total thermal capacity of the equipment.

On the other hand, 9.9 percent of the candidates scored from 0.5 to 4 marks.
These were able either to write one or two formulae for either thermal capacity
of the equipment or the specific heat capacity of a substance but substituted
wrong data and therefore they scored low marks. Others identified the
fundamental formulae used to calculate the thermal capacity of the equipment
or the specific heat capacity of a substance but failed to follow up the correct
procedures to obtain the required answer. It seemed that they did not
understand that thermal capacity and heat capacity have the same meaning.
Furthermore, they failed to realize that the quantity of heat lost or transmitted
to the surroundings per minute is equal to thermal capacity times the fall
(change) in temperature of the equipment.

Those who scored averagely on this question (5.3%) were only able to identify
the formula for thermal capacity of the equipment but failed to write the
formula for the specific heat capacity of a substance which was equal to
relative specific heat capacity times specific heat capacity of water. Others
wrote all the formula correctly in part (a) but wrote the wrong one in part (b).
For example, instead of writing “Heat transmitted to surroundings = Thermal
capacity of equipment x fall in temperature in the equipment”, they wrote
Heat transmitted to surroundings = Specific heat capacity of aluminium+
thermal capacity of + thermal capacity copper + thermal capacity iron. Thus
ended up with average marks .

Some of the candidates who scored high marks (10 to 15 marks) were able to
verify that in order to obtain the total thermal capacity of the equipment, the
specific heat capacity of each material must be found first using the formula
specific heat capacity = specific heat of capacity of water x relative specific
heat of the material. They managed to calculate and substituted correct data to
to obtain the specific heat capacity of material and their thermal capacity. A
few (1.6%) failed to remember the formula Q x t = C∆θ which could be used
to calculate time‘t’ for the equipment when cooled from 50oC to 20oC.
Therefore, their computation ended up with high marks but less than 15 marks.

The analysis shows that there were 16 (1.9%) who scored all 15 marks. These
candidates were able to calculate all necessary parameters in part (a) and (b).
Therefore, they managed to determine the thermal capacity of the instrument
and the time that would be taken down the equipment to the given range of
34
temperature change. Based on their responses, it was observed that, the
candidate from this group had enough knowledge on the topic about heat
especially when dealing with thermal heat capacity and specific heat capacity
of a substance. Extract 11.2 shows a well presented answer of the candidates
who scored all 15 marks.

35
Extract 11.2: A sample of a good answer to Question 11

Extract 11.2, shows the response of one candidate who was able to attempt the
question correctly in parts (a) and (b). The candidate managed to remember

36
 the formula and substituted the correct data and followed all calculation steps
correctly and come up with correct responses in both parts of the question.

2.3.2 Question 12: Simple Machine

The question stated as follows:

(a) A barrel weighing 1000N is raised from the ground to a platform
1.25m high by rolling it up on a plank. If the effort is applied in a
horizontal direction (assuming that resistance due to friction is
negligible), what length of plank is necessary to allow the barrel to be
raised by a force of 250N as shown in Figure 5.
B

1.25m
250N

A
B

(b) Wooden windlass used by one of artisan miners has a crank of

30 cm long and a barrel of 15 cm diameter (assuming 80%
efficient). What is the effort required to raise a load of 300 N?

This question was opted by 947 (76.9%) candidates. Among them, 695
(73.4%) scored 0 to 4 marks and 161 (17.0%) scored 0; 248 (26.2%) scored
from 4.5 to 9 marks; and 4 (0.4%) scored from 10 to 10.5 marks. From the
analysis, it was found that only 3 candidates scored 10 marks and 1 candidate
scored 10.5 marks. The candidates’ performance on this question was
generally poor. This performance is also presented in Figure 13 which shows
the percentage of the candidates’ performance.

37
 Figure 13: Candidates’ Performance on Question 12

The analysis shows verified that the candidates who scored 0 were not familiar
with the pulling forces on an inclined surface. Therefore, they failed to resolve
the horizontal force of 250N into the component parallel to the plane in part
(a). Also failed to present the formula “E= 250N x Cos θ” which was a parallel
component to the plane acting upon the plane and represented the effective
force that would raise the barrel of 1000N from A to B. They also did not
realise that if the barrel of 1000 N was moved by an effort of 250cosθN from
A to B, then the distance moved by the effort was AB (length of the plane) and
the distance for the load of 1000N was 1.25 m (height of the plane).
Furthermore, the candidates did not realize that since the resistance due to
friction was negligible, hence they had to equate the mechanical advantage
(M.A) and the velocity ratio (V.R) to form the first equation with unknown
angle of the plane and length of the plane as follows: M.A = V.R. That was:
1000 N AB
M.A = and V.R = . They failed to calculate the length AB
250 cos  N 1.25 m
in part (a) because they lacked the knowledge of identifying the minimum
force parallel to the plane required to raise the load up the plane from A to B
which is 250 Cos θ (N) and slightly greater than the opposing force acting
down parallel to the plane which is 1000 x Sin θ (N).

In part (b), a considerable number of candidates failed to understand that crank

of the windlass implied the handle of the windlass. Also, they failed to
comprehend that the equation which applicable to calculate the velocity ratio
R
of the windlass (V.R) is V.R = which is similar to the equation for
r
calculating the velocity ratio of the wheel and axle with the wheel radius (R)
and the axle radius (r). They failed to understand that 30 cm represented the
radius (R) of the circle described by the crank (the handle) of the windlass.

38
Others took 15 cm as the value of the radius (r) of the barrel instead of 7.5 cm
which could have been obtained by dividing the diameter of 15 cm by 2.
Extract 12.1is a sample of poor response presented by one candidate.

Extract 12.1: A sample of a poor response to question 12

Extract 12.1 shows a candidate who failed to comprehend that the minimum
force, parallel to plane, required to raise the load up the plane from A to B was
39
250Cos θ (N). In part (b), the candidate failed to calculate the radius (R) of
the circle described by the crank of the windlass which could be obtained by
of dividing 15 cm by 2. Furthermore, he/she was unable to apply the equations
Load M .A
M.A = and Efficiency = to calculate the effort required to raise
Effort V .R
the load of 300N.

Some of the candidates who perfomed averagely (4.5 to 9.5 marks) on this
question were only able to calculate the minimum force parallel to the plane
required to raise the load up the plane from A to B in part (a) but failed to
R
write the formula for the velocity ratio (V.R) of the windlass V.R = . Others
r
wrote the correct formula in both parts (a) and (b) but either failed to substitute
the correct data either in part (a) or (b). Thus they scored average marks on
this question.

There were those who scored high marks. The analysis shows that there was
no candidate who scored full marks (15 marks). Only three candidates scored
10 marks and one candidate scored 10.5 marks. These candidates were able to
compute correctly and followed appropriates most of the steps of the question
except that they mixed up some substitution of data thus ended up with high
marks but less than 15 marks allotted to this question. For example, one
candidate managed to write all the formulae correctly in parts (a) and (b) and
substituted correct data but in part (a) the candidate wrote Mechanical
Load 1000 N 4N
advantage = = = and Velocity ratio =
Effort 250 NCos Cos
Dis tan ce moved by Effort
but did not carry out further calculation to obtain
Dis tance moved by Load
the velocity ratio and therefore did not score all the allotted marks. Extract
12.2 shows a part of correct response provided by one of the candidates.

40
 Extract 12.1: A sample of a good response to question 12

Extract 12.1 the candidate was able to comprehend that the minimum force,
parallel to plane in part (a), required to raise the load up the plane from A to B
is 250CosθN. Therefore, the candidate accurately calculated the length of the

41
 plane. In part (b), the candidate managed to calculate the radius (R) of the
circle described by the crank of the windlass where he/she divided 15 cm by 2.
Load
Furthermore he/she was able to apply the equations M.A = and
Effort
M .A
Efficiency = to calculate the effort required to raise the load of 300N.
V .R

2.3.3 Question 13: Fluid Mechanics

Question 13 consisted of two parts, (a) and (b). Part (a) was as follows:
The weighed rod in Figure 6 floats with 6 cm of its length under water of
density 1000 kg/m3. What length of the rod is under the surface when the rod
floats in brine of density 1200 k/m3?

Ro Ro
d d

Bri
6c Wate ne
m r

Figur
e6

In part (b), the question was as follows:

A cube of volume 7.2 cm3 displaces 2000 N of water when floating in a

swimming pool. What is the volume of the cube which is above the water
surface?

The candidates who attempted this question were 729 (59.2%). Among them,
439 (60.2%) scored 0 to 4 marks; out of whom 290 (39.8%) scored 0 mark;
185 (25.4%) scored 4.5 to 9.0 marks; and 105 (14.4%) scored 10 to15 marks.
The candidates’ performance in this question was average. This performance
is also indicated by figure 14 which shows the percentage of candidates’
performance graphically.
42
 Figure 14: Candidates’ Performance on question 13

Some of those who scored 0 to 4 marks were not able to remember the
formula for density in which they could make the Volume ‘V’ the subject such
m
as V = where V is the volume of the brine displaced. Furthermore the

candidates failed to use this formula to calculate the volume of water displaced
and therefore they failed to calculate the mass of the brine displaced in part
(a). In addition to that, they failed to remember the law of floatation which
could lead them to give the formula for mass of the brine displaced = mass of
water displaced. They further failed to calculate the length ‘L’ by employing
volume ‘V’ and area ‘A’.

Likewise, in part (b), the candidates had to apply the law of flotation in order
to get the mass of water displaced and hence the volume of the water surface
which is equal to the volume of the cube below the surface of water. But
some of them failed to subtract the volume of water displaced (that is, the
volume of the cube below the surface) from the whole volume of the cube to
get the volume of the cube above the surface of water which is 7.0 m3.
Therefore, these candidates scored 0 in this question. For candidates who
scored 0.5 to 4 marks (20.4%) managed either to write only a formula for
density or both density and volume in part (a) and therefore they scored low
marks. Others were able to write both the formula and the law of floatation but
failed to substitute correctly the data. They, thus ended up scoring between 0
and 4 marks. Extract 13.1 provides a sample of a poor response.

43
Extract 13.1: A sample of a poor response given by one of the
candidates to question 13.

44
In Extract 13.1, the candidate failed to apply the law of floatation to determine
the length of the rod under the surface when it was floating in brine in part (a).
Likewise, in part (b), the candidate failed to apply the same law of floatation
to determine the volume of the cube which was above the water surface.

The analysis shows that, some of those who scored 5 to 9 marks were able to
write a formula for the density only or for both density and volume in part (a).
In part (b) they wrote correctly the formula for volume of the cube above
water surface which is ‘Total volume of the cube – Volume of the cube below
the water surface’ and substituted some of the data correctly but with some
mistake in part (a) as they failed to apply the law of flotation. Thus, they
obtained the length of the rod when it floats in brine. Others managed only to
perform well in part (b) and therefore they scored average marks.

Despite that, the question was averagely performed. There were those who
scored high marks (from 10 to 15 marks). Some of these candidates were able
to write the law of flotation and correct formulae in parts (a) and (b) but made
some mistakes in their computation. For example, one candidate did not
substitute the value of the length of the rod under water and therefore he/she
failed to calculate the correct length of the rod when it floats in brine thus the
candidate scored below 15 marks. A few candidates (6.7%) from this group
were able to score all 15 marks. These candidates managed to calculate the
length of the rod under the surface when the rod floats in brine in part (a) and
the volume of cube above the water surface. Analysis of their responses, it was
shown that, these candidates had knowledge on fluid mechanics. They also
had enough skills to compute different parameters with regard to fluid
mechanics. Extract 13.2 indicates a response of a candidate who performed
well in both parts of the question.

45
46
 Extract 13.2: A sample of a good response to Question 13

Extract 13.2, shows that the candidate was able to use mass (m) and cross-
sectional area (A) of the rod as a constant when the rod floated in both liquids.
The candidate applied the law of flotation to establish the equation weight of
water displaced = weight of brine displaced, in part (a). The candidate then

47
 formed and presented all relevant equations to get the length of the rod below
the surface of the brine as 5 cm. In part (b), the candidate applied the law of
flotation to get the mass of the water displaced and hence the volume of the
water displaced which was equal to the volume of the cube below the surface
of water. He/she then subtracted the volume of water displaced from the whole
volume of the cube to get the volume of the cube that was above the water
surface.

2.3.4 Question 14: Electricity and Magnetism

This question consisted of three parts: (a), (b) and (c). The aim of the question
was to measure the candidates’ understanding on Electricity and Magnetism. It
required the candidates to estimate and make analysis of the usage of
domestic/industrial power in terms of time, energy, efficiency and cost. The
question read as follows:
(a) A new type of light bulb has recently been invented. It produces the
same amount of light as an ordinary (old) 1000 W bulb but uses only
25 W of electrical power. It is expected to last for 5000 hours.
(i) How many kilowatt - hour does a 1000 W lamp use in 5000
hours?
(ii) How much will it cost if TANESCO charges 300 Tanzanian
shillings for 1 kilowatt – hour?

(b) A house is on the main supply of 230 volts which supplies voltage to
1.5 kW hot plates, six 60 W lamps and a 100W refrigerator. The hot
plates are on a different fuse line from the lighting circuit which
include the refrigerator. What amount of current flows through the
fuses in each line when all appliances are in use?

(c) A transformer in the Cement Factory, receives 0.55A from 240 volts
mains, it is used to light 12 volt – 40 watt lamps in parallel, find:
(i) efficiency
(ii) the total cost of using it for 10 hours at Tsh 300 per kilowatt –
hour.

The question was attempted by 817 (66.3%). Among them, 334 (40.9%)
scored between 0 and 4 marks and 124 (15.2%) scored 0; 305 (37.3%) scored
4.5 to 9.5 marks; while 178 (21.8%) scored 10 to 15 marks. The candidates’

48
performance in this question was average. Figure 15 presents the scores of the
candidates in percentage.

Figure 15: Candidates’ Performance on Question 14

The performance of the candidates on this question indicates three groups of

scores attained. The group with weak performance scored from 0 to 4 marks.
The average scored from 4.5 to 9.5 marks and those with high performance
scored from 10 to 15 marks. For those who scored 0 marks (15.2%) were not
able to write any correct formula with respect to Electricity and Magnetism in
parts (a), (b) and (c). In part (a), they did not manage to covert the 5000 hour
to kilowatt hours and to calculate the charges that could be incurred if 300
Tanzanian shillings which were charged for every 1 kilowatt-hour. In part (b),
Power
they failed to write the formula ‘ Current  ’ so that they could
Voltage
calculate the amount of current which was flowing through the fuses in each
line when all appliances were in use. Furthermore, the candidates failed to
compute efficiency and the total cost of using a transformer for 10 hours at
300 Tanzanian shillings per kilowatt – hour in part (c). From the responses
provided by this group of candidates, it was concluded that they had
inadequate knowledge on the topic on Electricity and Magnetism. Some of
those who scored from 0.5 to 4 marks (25.7%) were only able to write kWh
for 5000 hours = 1000 x 5000 hours but did not continue to finish this question
and thus they scored 0.5 marks. Others partially did part (a) (i) by writing kWh
for 5000 hours = 1000 x 5000 hours and 5000000 Wh = 5000 kWh. Therefore,
they scored 1 mark. The analysis shows that those who scored more than 1
mark but less than 4.5 marks (16.7%) were able to answer correctly part (a) or
partially part (b) or (c) and therefore they scored how marks.

Most of the candidates who scored less than 4.5 marks failed to apply properly
Power Power Output
the equations: Current  and Current   100%
Voltage Power Input
49
though they succeeded to remember them. Others multiplied 125000 Wh by
300 instead of 125kWh by 300 when they were computing the cost of
electricity consumed in part (a)(i), while other candidates applied
V2
inappropriate equations for power such as P = I2R or P  or instead of P =
R
VI. Extract 14.1 gives a sample of a poor response as scanned from the script
of a candidate.

Extract 14.1: A sample of a poor responses to Question 14

50
In extract 14.1 the candidate failed to remember the formula P = VI in order to
calculate the electric power. Also, this candidate failed to recall the equation
for the efficiency of the transformer which is:
Power Output
efficiency   100% . This candidate did not understand how to
Power Input
find the total cost of electrical energy if if you are provided with the cost per
kWh and the electrical energy in watt-hour. Besides, the candidate did not
understand how to convert electrical power from watts to kilowatts.

Some of those who scored from 4.5 to 9.5 marks were able to attempt only
two parts of the question and failed to compute accurately in all other parts
and therefore they scored average marks. For example, some of these
candidates calculated the 5000 kWh and amount of current ‘I’ correctly in
parts (a) and (b) respectively but failed to calculate the efficiency and the total
cost of using a transformer for 10 hours in part (c). Therefore, their
performance was average. This result shows that they lacked knowledge on
the electrical power consumption and the input (Power taken from mains) and
output electrical power.

However, 21.8 percent of the candidates who scored high marks (10-15)
managed to write the correct formula in part (b) and (c) but they failed to
follow few calculation steps. Thus, they ended up with high marks but less
than 15 marks. Others manage to compute and covert the 1000 W and 5000
hour to kilowatt hours in part (a)(i) and calculated the charges incurred in part
(a) (ii) and (c)(ii). In part (b) they managed to write the formula
Power
Current  and therefore they calculated the amount of current which
Voltage
was flowing through the fuses in each line when all appliances were in use.
Furthermore the candidates managed to compute efficiency in part (c)(i). Thus
they scored all the marks. These candidates showed that they had adequate
knowledge and skills on computing electrical problems as seen in Extract14.2.

51
52
53
Extract 14.2: A sample of good responses to Question 14

54
 In Extract 14.2 the candidate multiplied 1 kW (1000 watts) by 5000 hours to
obtain 5000kWh, in part (a) (i). He/she managed to compute and obtain the
cost for using one new bulb for 5000 hours, in part (a)(ii). Furthermore, the
candidate calculated correctly the current flow in each fuse lines of the hot
plate and the refrigerator and the lighting in part (b). In part (c) the candidate
was able to calculate the efficiency of the transformer and the total cost of
using it for 10 hours at Tsh 300 per kilowatt – hour.

3.0 THE CANDIDATES’ PERFORMANCE ON EACH TOPIC

The analysis of performance based on individual topics shows that on the

multiple choice questions from various topics the performance was good
which is 79.7 percent of the candidates who performed above average. The
performance of candidates on the Light (Optical) topic (66.6%) was good as
candidates performed above average on this topic.

The topics which were performed averagely were Fluid Mechanics (39.8%),
Turning Forces (36.7%), Electricity and Magnetism (36.3%) and Angular
Motion (32.4%).

The candidates performance is weak on the following topics Work, Energy

and Power was 29.5 percent. Projectile Motion the performance was 27.3
percent. Simple Machine is 26.6 percent of the candidates scored below
average: On Linear Motion 17.4 percent of the candidates scored below
average on Heat, 8.8 percent of the candidates scored below average and
Forces 4.5 percent of the candidates scored below average, thus performance
on these topics were weak. Appendix B provides the summary of the
candidates’ performance per topic in Engineering Science subject.

4.0 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

4.1 Conclusion
In 2019, the performance of the candidates in the Engineering Science subject
for the Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (CSEE) was average.

The analysis of the candidates’ responses indicates a number of factors that

seemed to affect the performance of the candidates.

(a) Some of the candidates could not identify the demands of the
questions.
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 (b) Some of the candidates were not knowledgeable about different topics
in the subject. It was revealed that the candidates lacked knowledge on
the following areas:
(i) general skills such as arithmetic computation and drawing;
(ii) heat energy, fundamental heat equations, and heat problems;
(iii) fluid mechanics;
(iv) basics of turning forces laws governing forces to be in
equilibrium and the diagram of moments of forces; and
(v) the fundamentals of electricity and electrical power.

4.1 Recommendations

Considering the conclusion made above, this report presents the following
recommendations to improve performance in Engineering Science subject in
future.

(a) Candidates are advised to read questions carefully before answering

them. This will enable them to understand the requirement of questions
before they attempt them. It will also help them to provide the correct
answers in accordance to the requirement of the questions.

(b) Candidates are advised to practise a lot by doing many exercises on

arithmetic computation using different formulae and by sketching
different Engineering Science diagrams. This will help to equip them
with skills and knowledge about the key concepts in the subject.

(c) The candidates should cover all topics in the O-Level syllabus by
reading various books, journals and published articles to make sure
they understand the application of formulae, concepts and laws
involved in Engineering Science to solve various questions. Education
stakeholders including teachers should facilitate that.

(d) Since candidates indicated lack of knowledge in some aspects, the

education stakeholders should make sure there is an effective teaching
and leaning before the candidates sit for the examinations.

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 Appendix A

Figure 16: The comparison of candidates’ performance between 2019 and

2018

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 Appendix B
Analysis of the Candidates’ Performance Topic in CSEE 2019
Engineering Science Subject

Percentage of
candidates who
Question Recomme
Topics scored 30
Number ndations
S/N percent or
more.

1 Periodic Motion; Friction;

Strength of Materials, Optics
(Light), Sound, Electricity
1 79.7 Good
and Magnetism;
Measurements; Work,
Energy and Power and Heat

2 Light (Optics) 7 66.6 Good

3 Fluid Mechanics 13 39.8 Average

4 Turning Forces 8 36.7 Average

5 Electricity and Magnetism 14 & 3 36.3 Average

6 Angular Motion 9 32.4 Average

7 Work, Energy and Power 10 29.5 Weak

8 Projectile Motion 2 27.3 Weak

9 Simple Machine 12 26.6 Weak

10 Linear Motion 6 17.4 Weak

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 Percentage of
candidates who
Question Recomme
Topics scored 30
Number ndations
S/N percent or
more.

11 Heat 11 8.8 Weak

12 Forces 4 4.5 Weak

13 Measurement 5 3.6 Weak

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