The Education Ministry has announced a 10 percent improvement in Cambridge O’Level examination pass rates for 2012.
President Mohamed Waheed claimed the results were due to education sector improvements, while former Education Minister Musthafa Luthfy claimed that these policies were enacted under the previous government.
The Education Ministry announced 2012’s Cambridge O’Level (grade 10) examination results on Saturday (May 25), noting that 31 students achieved global top 10 rankings, with five of these students having the “highest results worldwide” in various subject areas, according to local media.
The five students who achieved O’Level scores categorised as some of the “highest in the world” were presented with a prize and newly created presidential medal by President Waheed.
Additionally, 426 students achieved local top 10 rankings, meaning they achieved high scores in various subjects compared to other test takers in the Maldives.
“The number of students who passed five subjects was at 46 percent last year, whilst in 2011 it was at 37 percent,” said Education Minister Dr Asim Ahmed.
Receiving a ‘C’ or above in five subjects is considered a pass.
The the number of students who passed eight subjects increased two percent, from 17 in 2011 to 19 percent in 2012.
Overall 8,456 students in the Maldives participated in the 2012 exams, an increase from 6,100 in 2011.
Announcement of marks delayed
Preliminary results for the 2012’s Cambridge O’Level examination were not released sooner due to “difficulties” in analysis, the Ministry of Education said earlier this year, despite claiming “one of the highest pass rates to date”.
O’Level exams began in early October and concluded in late November 2012, the Education Ministry’s Department of Examinations (DPE) Director General Ibrahim Shakeeb told Minvian News.
“This is just how the process is; 90 days after the final exam session the preliminary results are available. Candidates can then ask to have their marks rechecked, which takes about a month,” Shakeeb explained.
“Students have a week or two to apply for rechecking, once the [preliminary] results are issued,” he continued. “Then the exams are sent to Cambridge.”
Preliminary O’Level exam results were issued to students at the end of January 2013.
“There were quite a large number of requests for rechecking, so it took Cambridge over a month to respond,” said Shakeeb.
“Final results are only issued after the recheck is complete. Cambridge does not release results country by country, rather [marks] are released online, globally,” he noted.
“Three to four months for the process to be completed is the norm,” he added.
Shakeeb told Minivan News earlier this year that the recheck process was ongoing and estimated it would be completed around late March.
Students are currently “in the middle” of the A’Level exam period, which began May 7 and will conclude June 24, according to Shakeeb.
Former Education Minister Shifa Mohamed previously claimed it was a change in Ministry of Education practice for preliminary O’Level results not to be publicly disclosed prior to the final results.
Preliminary Cambridge exam results arrive in January or February, with little difference between these and the final results, she explained.
“Analysis of these findings should only require three days,” Shifa said at the time.
Previous education policies
“The current government would not have been able to do anything in the period of time between coming to power [Febuary 2012] and when students sat for the exams [October 2012],” former Education Minister Dr Musthafa Luthfy told Minivan News today.
“The high exam pass percentage rate is due to what we did when we were in government,” he claimed. “Before us, there was no target set.”
The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) had aimed to raise O’Level pass rates from 27 to 60 percent in five years by implementing a holisitc educational policy involving multiple strategies, Luthfee explained.
The quality of Maldives school education and exam pass rates will continue to improve if the current administration abides by the policy guidelines put in place by the MDP government, he emphasised.
“There are several strategies which should be included in all aspects of education. Working on one aspect will not improve exam scores or educational quality,” said Luthfee.
“We rapidly established single session schooling for 55 percent of institutions to provide children the opportunity to engage in opportunities outside of the classroom and develop their character through extracurricular activities,” he explained. “This enabled improved student discipline and motivation.”
“Educational standards were also improved, by developing ‘smart school’ indicators to assess teachers, school authorities, and the Education Ministry,” he continued. “Previously there were no assessment standards.”
“Educational management – classroom and school – was enhanced, which included institutionalising mandatory inservice teacher training each term,” he added. “The education system was also decentralised, and school boards were developed to bring parents into the decision making process, which improved teacher and parent motivation.”
“We also supported private higher education and established the Maldives National University (MNU),” said Luthfy.
He claimed these policies have not been maintained under Waheed’s administration.
“This year there was no money to continue the single session schooling,” Luthfy said.
“If they continue to dismantle the strategies we’ve set, exam results will not continue to improve,” he noted. “However, if they abide by these strategies then quality of education and motivation will continue to increase.”
“The vigour of the policy program made the public aware of the importance of education and the importance of exam pass rates, as well as other educational aspects,” he declared.
The Education Ministry was not responding to enquiries at time of press.
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Mediocre at best. The 50 percent failures will go on to become the future terrorists and gangsters because they're above manual labor. The 50 percent who survived by parroting facts without any critical thinking, have no opportunities to do what they study what they wish. They'll end up going to CHSE (a terrorist grooming center) and then Pakistan or Saudi Arabia to beccome the future vanguard of Dhivehistsani Islamism.
Having single session ion school will not improve the student performance ? Nos students are attending class whole day or multiple session.
There was no proof or proper research done to prove that single session will improve students IQ either.
In 2012, Waheed had managed to have most of the required teachers in school much better than what had happened in 2011.
Even in 2013, the school requirements of teachers were managed better than 2012 too.
But i believe that now students are getting better results not because of the Government policies but it is because these exams are much easier now than what we had ten years back . Cambridge exams in general is much easier than University of London Exams which we used to have in Maldives some 10 yeas back.
The improvement in the results also was very much influenced by the resources availably today for students through internet also.
I do not believe either waheed or Nasheed had anything to do with this improved results from the students.
@ Homosexual
What a retard u r! u believe all those who are not homosexual are terrorists? lmao, a hopeless mental case indeed!
Ann
Exactly how did you come to that conclusion that he thinks that? Funny how you pull things out of your ass and claim others as retards.
And I fully agree with everything homosexual has said here. Most students only learn to parrot things in school. I have seen what students study for their O Levels, and it is ridiculously easy. When kids bring in ridiculous grades like 99% out of subjects like english, it really makes you think. The lucky ones go to terrible universities in Malaysia or Bangladesh and come back as our future politicians, teachers and doctors.
Homosexual and Wives...
You really are retards!What ever good for the Maldivian community is bad for you people! You never wish anything good for the people of the Maldives because you are so hung on blaming others!
I personally know how these children work in school and their determination to win something in their studies! How dare you insult their hard work!
Shows the level you ingrates have fallen into!I hope you do not go on to do something like the previous athiest(hung himself from the terminal In the airport)!Your self esteem is so low that now you go on blaming children and cursing them!!Pathetic, simply pathetic!!
Ann: Don't be silly. Of course there are homosexual terrorists. The "sodomy for jihad" fatwa would very likely appeal to the male homosexuals. If you visit Afghanistan, the bacha bazi boys there will have a lot to tell you about their services. And don't forget the boys of eternal youth who will serve these terrorists in Suvaru Ge.
This is what Dhivehistani students learn at school. Their highest ranks were in Islam - they can tell you how many eyes are required to witness the act of zina but they can't tell you how we're related to the great apes or what happened during the Holocaust or what theodicy is. Judging by your comment you probably need to know what a strawman is.
The students have got very good results. As rightly pointed out, they may have 'parroted' through the school/exams.
But the fact it there are very bright students among them.
The question is, how is the country making use of these brilliant students, and grooming them for the future of the country?
Why is it that, even now, basics are available only in Male'; Living in Male is very expensive; And the only jobs worth anything are that of politicians; And to be a politician, all you need is to rant rubbish, and need zero qualifications.
The statistics of 8000+ students coming out of school, annually; the number of jobs that are created in the country is probably less than a 1000 a year, if that.
@Homo is right. Most of these students, no only the failures, will become criminals, not because of their choice, but they have zero choices for work, money, living, entertainment.
A very sad situation.
Oh Shimy don't be so butthurt. I am simply criticizing how students are taught, and when they come back as the 'top 10' or whatever, in reality, the best ones are those who can memorize the most notes. When it comes to individual critical thinking, these kids would all be terrible at it. I did my O Levels in Male', and we spent more time memorizing past paper questions and their answers than actually trying to figure out what we were learning. That is exactly what students do now as well.
Minivan is hopelessly infested with these retards (homo, moron, andhiri andhirin, wives.. etc) who continually insult and do not offer anything in the way of normal dialogue. Now why they tuned their displeasure at these innocent school children who got good grades at their school bewilders me.
There shall be a way to vote these leaches out from this forum.
@human being on Wed, 29th May 2013 8:44 AM
I would not call you a retard. I would call you blind. Do you not see the quality of our MP's? Do you not know that even 10 years ago, there were students excelling in these exams? Where are those students? Why are they not in decision making posts??
@human being
Atleast we aren't the ones calling for the beheading of apostates, blasphemers and homosexuals. We also don't call for the annihilation of the USA, UK, Israel and mass murder of Jews. Furthermore we also don't use 'taqiyya' to lie to non-maldivian readers on minivan.
I actually agree with most of the things Andrew Andreas said.
The majority of students with all the high 'academics' and high marks are mostly lacking in serious decision making skills and practical talent. With months and months of doing 'pastpapers' they memorise, and know what's to come for the exams over and over again, as they do the same syllabus every year without fully understanding the concepts behind them. They do not have the creative minds that deserve these awards. They rarely ask why OH- ions are liberated as oxygen and not hydrogen. They don't think of practical situations when applying physics. They study word to word off the textbooks specifically for the exam, in a monotonous manner. They know the textbook definitions word to word, but they can't explain it when asked to.
But within these students are the exception of a truly bright student. The maldivian government does almost close to nothing to harness the potentials of such students to aid in the development of the country.
I'm doing my O'Levels this year and I think the education system is really ****ed.