This year’s HSC examination results under the Chattogram Education Board have seen a significant decline in both the pass rate and the number of GPA-5 achievers. Officials stated that such low-quality results have never been seen since the board’s establishment.
The published results show that the pass rate this year stands at 52.57%, which is about 18% lower than last year. Furthermore, while 6,097 students achieved GPA-5, this is nearly 4,000 less than last year.
The results were formally announced by the Controller of Examinations, Parvez Sazzad Chowdhury, at the Chattogram Education Board auditorium at 10am on Thursday.
Explaining the reason for the decline in results, he said there were strict instructions from the Ministry of Education this time that overmarking must not be done under any circumstances. Students have been evaluated solely based on what they wrote.
He further said, “Previously, there was a tendency in some cases to award higher marks. Relying on that, many might have thought they would get high marks even if they wrote less. Additionally, the July movement and recent events have negatively impacted studies.”
Reasons for the result debacle
Parvez Sazzad Chowdhury said that although teachers were appointed in those districts through NTRCA, many teachers leave their posts after a short time. Consequently, the lack of regular classes disrupts studies.
He called for resolving the teacher crisis, along with initiating scholarship programmes, skill development training, implementing the rubrics method in assessment, and taking special initiatives to raise awareness among parents.
According to the published results, this year, a total of 102,970 students from Chattogram district and city, the three hill districts, and Cox’s Bazar participated in the exam under the Chattogram Board. Among them, 53,560 passed. The pass rate came to 52.57%.
Last year, the pass rate was 70.32%. And 10,269 students had achieved GPA-5.
This year, the pass rate for male students is 48.95%; the pass rate for female students is 55.49%.
The pass rate in Chattogram city is 70.90%. The pass rate in the district, excluding the city, is 43.63%.
Among the three hill districts, the pass rate in Rangamati is 41.24%, in Khagrachhari 35.53%, and in Bandarban 36.38%. The pass rate in Cox’s Bazar district is 45.39%.
The Science group has the highest pass rate at 78.75%. The pass rate in the Business Studies group is 55.30 %, and in Humanities it is 37.08%.
This year, the pass rate for male students is 48.95%, while for female students it is 55.49%, clearly showing comparatively greater success for girls.
What students and parents are saying
Many are elated upon receiving their results. Yet, many others were seen crying. A female student who passed said, “Compared to other years, the exam went badly for many this time. But I feel very happy that I could pass. The contribution of parents, teachers, and friends behind this result is immense.”
One parent said, “My daughter got GPA-5. The questions were very difficult this year. Accordingly, I was very worried whether she would perform poorly. Compared to last year’s results, the scores are much lower this time.”
