A’Level results disappointing

A lack of focus may be one of the reasons for the disappointing pass rate of the 2005 Cambridge International A’Level results. In an interview with the Searchlight, Chief Education Officer Susan Dougan described the pass rate as “lower than in previous years” and opined that this may have been due to a number of factors, including a lack of focus and seriousness of students towards their work.

Dougan said that another contributing factor to the pass rate may have been a weakness in the English language. She pointed out, “If you are weak in English, it translates into other subject areas. There would be a problem analysing and interpreting the questions in the exam.” {{more}}

The Chief Education Officer also noted that “the once inadequate library facilities may have been another contributing factor. Government has built a new Learning Resource Centre, (LRS) because they knew the importance of students having somewhere to sit and study.

“We have also improved the computer laboratories. The tuck shop services were also improved so that students would not have to move off the compound in search of a bite and return to classes late.”

Dougan pointed out that there were adequate teachers in place so this would not have significantly affected the A’Level results. She revealed that despite “the lower than previous years results,” overall the pass rate was in the high 60’s and favourable in comparison with other countries in the region. She said that results in subjects like History and Art showed improvement over last year’s results.

Eight candidates from the SVG Community College have obtained four A’Level passes and one A/S Level pass in General Paper. 48 students got three A’level passes, 104 students got two A’level passes, 100 got one A’level pass. The number of students who failed to pass any subject was not available.

Candidates wrote the examinations in 18 subjects. Of the 621 candidates who wrote the May/June 2005 Cambridge International A’Level Examinations, 349 (56.2%) were students while 272 (43.8%) were private candidates. There was a total of 722 subject entries at the Advanced Level . Twelve persons (1.7%) received Grade As and 50 (6.9%) received Grade B passes.

The pass rate for students at the SVG Community College exceeded 75% in Accounting, Art &Design, Biology, French, History, Law, English Literature and Psychology.