SSC, equivalent exams: Floods, more subjects drag down pass rate

Tests on more subjects and abysmal results in the Sylhet board due to floods have pushed down the pass rate in this year's SSC exams in nine general education boards compared to last year.

The number of institutions with a zero pass rate has doubled this year, while that of institutions with 100 percent pass rate was lower than last year.

According to the results of the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent exams published yesterday, the number of GPA-5 achievers in general education boards has increased.

Board officials said many students have had outstanding performances as the exams were held on shorter syllabuses and carried fewer marks, while there were also more optional questions.

Girls have outperformed boys in terms of both pass rate and achieving the highest GPA.

Upon receiving the results from the board authorities concerned yesterday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina congratulated the students who passed and called on all to be attentive to their studies.

She also asked guardians to change their mindset regarding admission of their children in "famous" schools.

"There are only a handful of famous schools. Many of us think there would be no dignity [in other schools], while some think their children would get no education unless they can study in those [popular] schools. This mentality needs to change."

Hasina said many a noted dignitary and others holding respected positions in the country have studied at district-level schools.

"Such schools should not be neglected," she said.

LOW PASS RATE

Unveiling the results at a press conference in the capital, Education Minister Dipu Moni said 15,88,657 students took the SSC exams this year, from September 15 to October 1, after a seven-month-long delay.

The delay, she said, was due to the Covid-19 pandemic and floods in Sylhet and other regions.

Of the examinees, 88.10 percent passed, which is significantly lower than last year's 94.08 percent, while 2,33,763 students got GPA-5 -- higher than last year's 1,63,840.

Taking into account the Dakhil exams under the madrasa board and SSC vocational tests under the technical board, the combined pass rate was 87.44 percent -- a big fall from last year's 93.58 percent. Meanwhile, 2,69,602 students got GPA-5 -- 86,262 more than last year's 1,83,340.

Prof Tapan Kumar Sarker, chief of the Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee, said the pass rate came down as students were tested on a higher number of subjects than last year.

In 2021, SSC candidates took exams on only three optional subjects. This year, they had to sit for Bangla, English, mathematics and a fourth subject, besides the three optional ones, said Tapan, also chairman of the Dhaka Education Board.

Board officials also pointed out that the pass rate of the Sylhet board, which was 78.82 percent, was another reason for the overall drop, as it held the lowest position among the nine boards.

Prof Md Kabir Ahmed, secretary of Sylhet Education Board, gave three reasons behind the poor results this year.

"First, [there was] the flood. Many students lost their books, while many others had to take refuge at shelters. We handed them the books needed, but it [the natural disaster] still affected them and their results. Then, there were online classes due to the pandemic, during which many underprivileged students [with no internet access] fell behind.

"And finally, even though they have the better result every year, many girls had to drop out [from school] during the lockdown period and were married off."

Tapan said many students achieved GPA-5 this year as the syllabuses were shorter and they had enough time to prepare.

Jashore Education Board scored the best, with a 95.17% pass rate, among all nine education boards, while Dhaka board topped in terms of GPA-5 achievers.

GIRLS LEAD AGAIN

Once again, the girls outshone the boys in terms of both pass rate and GP-5 achievement.

They look the lead in terms of pass rate for the sixth year in a row with 88.42 percent this year.

For the fifth consecutive year, the number of girls with GPA-5 was higher than that of the boys. This year, 131,304 girls achieved GPA-5, a staggering 28,845 higher than that of boys.

Meantime, 50 institutions had zero percent pass rate, while last year the number was 18.

Dipu Moni said the government will look into the matter of zero percent pass rates.

DAKHIL AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION BOARD

This year, 82.22 percent of some 2.60 lakh Dakhil examinees under the madrasa board have passed, while last year it was 93.22 percent.

Of some 1.45 lakh candidates of SSC (vocational) and Dakhil (vocational) exams, 89.50 percent have passed. Last year, it was 88.49 percent.

A total of 15,457 madrasa students and 18,655 technical students got GPA-5.

Last year, 14,313 madrasa students and 5,178 technical students had achieved it.

At least 363 Bangladeshi students attended eight foreign exam centres and 348 of them have passed.

At a recent press conference, Dipu Moni said that only the public exams of regions that were hit by natural disasters, including floods, will be postponed, meaning exams in other regions will continue.

She also hoped the university authorities will take steps to lift the restrictions on the age limit for higher education at the institutions.