Gov’t Plans to Make A-Level the Final Grade in School Education

The government is working towards establishing A-Level as the final grade in the school education system of the Maldives before the end of the current presidential term, Education Minister Dr Ismail Shafeeu has said.

The announcement was made during the High Achievers Award ceremony held on last evening. According to the Minister, the move aligns with the administration’s education policy to ensure that no student is left behind.

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To support this shift, the Ministry of Education has already facilitated A-Level education in 23 schools across the atolls. Dr Shafeeu stated that setting A-Level as the terminal grade in the school system would represent a significant step forward for national development.

He further noted that the number of students enrolling in A-Level has increased by 70 percent this year. However, he expressed concern about the outcomes, highlighting that the pass rate among A-Level students has declined from 60 percent to 50 percent, despite the government’s substantial investment in the sector.

The Minister revealed that the government allocates MVR 4 billion annually to education but is not seeing satisfactory returns in terms of academic performance.

He also addressed the high failure rate among O-Level candidates, stating that 54 percent of students fail the examination. A gender disparity was also highlighted, with a pass rate of just 44 percent among male students, compared to 56 percent among female students.

Dr Shafeeu acknowledged that this significant difference in outcomes presents a major challenge and confirmed that an assessment will be carried out within the year to determine the causes behind the lower performance among male students.