Drop in O-level passes for Church school candidates

Candidates from Church schools are still outperforming state and independent school pupils in their O-level results.

While 37.3% of state candidates gained their entry requirements for Sixth Form, 68.4% of church school and 57.1% of independent school candidates were more successful.

Candidates from independent schools were more likely to be awarded the top Grade 1 in the majority of subjects, while church school candidates were more likely to gain the entry requirements for Sixth Form, overall. The independent school candidates were more likely to obtain Grades 1, 2, and 3 in English Language, Mathematics, and Physics; church school candidates were more likely to obtain Grades 1, 2, and 3 in Maltese.

But the latest statistical review by Matsec shows a substantial change from 2014.

In 2014, 34.9% (2.4 percentage points less than 2017) of state candidates gained entry to Sixth Form, compared to 75.3% (6.9% more than 2017) of church school candidates. Independent school candidates who went into Sixth Form dropped by six points in 2017, from 62.9% in 2014 to 57.1% in 2017. Overall pass rates in 2017 are roughly similar to those of 2014.

Girls perform better

Girls still do better than boys by a substantial margin. While 54.7% of females born in 2001 gained a Sixth Form pass, only 44.1% of males did so. The gender gap is now larger than that in 2016 and 2015 but smaller than that in 2014.

In the majority of subjects, the largest percentage of candidates who obtained Grade 1 were females

In the majority of subjects, the largest percentage of candidates who obtained Grade 1 were females. They were also more likely than males to obtain Grades 1, 2, 3 and 4. Boys were more likely to obtain Grades 5, 6, 7 and U.

Female candidates were more likely to obtain Grade 1 in Maltese, English, and Physics, while male candidates were more likely to obtain Grade 1 in Mathematics and Biology.

Opening new paths in education

For the first time ever, the 2017 exam session also included a pilot group of 92 students who had chosen to learn a vocational subject in 2014. As from 2015 the subjects were made available to all students.

“The results presented in this report show that this was a successful initiative which offered new opportunities to students with a better aptitude for practical work than abstract knowledge,” a MATSEC report said.

The vocational subjects offered include Agribusiness, Engineering Technology, Health & Social Care, Hospitality, and Information Technology.

Although the final assessment on performance in vocational subjects took place in 2017, continuous assessment, including a yearly centrally-set controlled assessment, started in 2014. Significantly in vocational subjects all candidates managed to present their coursework.

In all vocational subjects but Hospitality, 80% of candidates scored an average 40/60 or more in their coursework component. In Hospitality, 80% of the candidates obtained at least 31-35 out of 60.