Decline in pass and GPA-5 achievers in HSC
Masum Billah :
On 26 November 2023 the results of HSC and its equivalent examinations were published showing the pass percentage 78.64 against 85.95 percent of last year.
The nine general education boards have scored 75.9 pass percentage which was 84.31 percent in 2022.
In the current year eight education boards started their exams on 17 August and ended on 25 September but due to natural calamities Chattogram, Madrasa and Technical Education Board started their exams on 27 August means ten days late.
This year 13 lac 57 thousand 915 students appeared in the HSC and equivalent examinations out of which 6 lac 89 thousand are boys and 6 lac 68 thousand are girls.
The figure shows an encouraging picture of 50:50 ratio of boys and girls giving us hints that girl students have not dropped much after SSC level.
That’s really encouraging. On top of that, in terms of the pass percentage and GPA-5 graders also the girls stand ahead of boy students.
Girls students pass 3.81 percent more than boys and six thousand 135 more girl students have obtained GPA-5 than boys.
Board wise percentage keeps Barishal Education Board at the top position with 80.65 percent and bottom Jashore Board with its pass percentage 69.88.
This year total 10 lac 67 thousand 852 students have passed even though 13 lac 75thousand students registered for the exam. Dhaka Board sees the pass percentage 79.44 which was 87.83 last year.
In Cumilla Board 75.39 percent, Chattogram Board 74.45 percent, Sylhet Board 73.07 percent, Dinajpur Board 70. 44 percent students passed and the figure of passing is less than the previous year in all the boards.
Every year, it happens that one board sees highest pass percentage than others making 5- 6 percent or even more difference than that.
Why does it happen nobody is seen to be bothered about it though every year I request the authorities concerned to find out the real causes through comprehensive research.
The girl students’ pass percentage is 80.57 percent and boy students’ 76.76 percent.
I feel an urge to find out its real cause even though some assumed causes we utter every year that the boys remain busy with various types of complexities, politics and they are more actively involved in social media.
Girl students remain away from these complexities and can give more concentration on studies. Still, some evidence- based works and study should have been on the table to gauze the real causes.
How difference is it when we see the GPA-5 holders were one lac 76 thousand 282 in 2022 that has become half of this figure that is 92 thousand 365 meaning clearly 83 thousand 917 less than the previous year. It must be a great mishap and its causes must be unearthed.
Both the pass percentage and GPA-5 have decreased this year. Several reasons can be attributed to these facts. First of all, the quality of education has come up as a big issue for the last several years.
The trend is students come out with rich GPA but their application and real performance in the field does not show its refection at all.
The scripts were examined in a relaxed way, students’ adopting unfair means in the examination and short syllabus were other reasons behind it.
But this year the syllabus was full and board examiners were probably a little bit strict to evaluate the scripts. The pass percentage of humanities group shows the lowest.
The science students’ pass percentage stands at 87.84 whereas the students from humanities groups saw 70.79 and business studies 77 percent. This percentage has affected the total degrading of pass rate.
Another big cause is most students’ failing in English. In all the nine general education boards the pass percentage of other subjects except English is 90 to 99 percent.
Whereas, in English it is 77-88 percent.In Dhaka Board the failure rate in English is 13.17 percent, Rajshahi 16.82, Cumilla 18.02, Jashroe 22.64, Chattogram 11.09, Barishal 13.99, Sylhet 17.81, Dianjpur 17.20 and Mymenshing board 24.62 percent.
Some students of Dhaka Board comment that the questions of English were a different type and harder than the previous times.
The chairman of Jahsore Board says the questions of English were a little bit harder’ and the chairman of Dhaka Board said `our students are always weak in English that has impression in the publish examination’.
The renowned colleges of the country used to enroll their students on the basis of their own admission test or screening process that was not done for the last several years due to the policy of the government to ensure the admission of all sorts of students in the famous and ordinary colleges.
In one sense, the decision is reasonable. In these institutions advanced students were prepared for the public exams differently which the ordinary students could not cope up with it.
Another cause may be, every year we see the pass percentage of Madrasa Education Board and Technical Education Boardremains much higher even though there lies no convincing reason behind it.
This year they have also a conservative attitude probably to examine the scripts. Madrasa education board has seen 90.75 pass percentage this year which was 92.56 percent last year.
After covid-19 this year the HSC students had to sit for the examination on their full syllabus and examination for 100 marks each subject and for three hours’ time. All these three areas were relaxed in the previous years.
The lower pass percentage in English was another cause. The aftereffect of the pandemic, the inertia of students, teachers and the entire education scene has yet to overcome that also affected the results.
In 2021 HSC and equivalent examines one lac 89 thousand 169 students obtained GAP-5 breaking all the previous records since grading system was introduced in 2001.
That even surpassed the results of 2020 when students had auto pass. Students then had short syllabus and the syllabus was given to them earlier for taking adequate preparation, and students did not have to sit English examination, they had subject mapping in English. Totally it was an incomplete teaching learning situation.
However, situation compelled the authorities to do it. Overall evaluation was very relaxed and easier that never talks about the usual way of evaluating students’ performance in the public examination.
(The writer is president, English Teachers’ Association of Bangladesh (ETAB) and former Faculty Member of Sylhet, Cumilla, Mirzapur Cadet College and Rajuk Uttara Model College. )
