Good performance remains education ministry’s top priority • Satisfactory exams results despite current situation |12 February 2022

Minister Valentin and his team during the press conference

Performance remains a priority element in the strategic plan and target of the Ministry of Education, and while 2021 was a year of pronouncement, 2022 will be one of action, Minister for Education Dr Justin Valentin has said

He was speaking at the ministry’s second press conference for the year, highlighting the 2021 assessment attainment in schools at different levels in the country.

Minister Valentin was accompanied by the principal secretary for Education Services, Merna Eulentin, and director general for Allied Education Services, Cyril Pillay.

The education minister commended the school teachers for their dedication and perseverance during the difficult time, especially those who went the extra mile to assist and meet the needs of their students.

He also spoke well of the boys who performed excellently well in the exams at different levels.

Minister Valentin also commended the private schools for their good performance and results, which he said is very good source of inspiration for the state schools.

He noted that the ministry’s plan towards raising aspiration and ensuring worthwhile learning outcome is progressing in the right direction, with message reaching all the targeted groups.

Minister Valentin however added that they equally feel there’s still a long way to go, with the next phase of analysis entailing to find out how best to get all schools to perform well.

He said the ministry has the long overdue conversation about school curriculum about content, which they need to start.

This, he said, should not be only about achieving the goals of students who are mainly academically-oriented, but education in Seychelles should allow all students with different backgrounds and abilities the opportunity to shine and achieve important education goals.

Minister Valentin also added that emphasis will be placed on non-academic skills so that all good performers see themselves in this new academic landscape that is being created.

In 2021, for the primary six exams, a total of 1340 pupils enrolled to sit the six examinable subjects, namely, English, French, Creole, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies compared to 1385 in the previous year. However, on average 1324 actually sat those examinations.

Assessment Development Officer Rudy De Ker Sauzon Vielle explained that in 2021, results were rather mixed but showing a downward tendency and still far from the ministry’s target of at least 50 percent of the grades A* to C in most subjects.

However, it to be noted that this level of performance is consistent with performances in 2020, while students again performed better in Creole with an increase in grades A* to C from 50 percent in 2020 to 56 percent in 2021.

For the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), the total number of S5 students enrolled for the examinations, in at least one subject, in 2021 was 611 compared to 703 in 2020.

Chief education officer Kevil Telemaque said this number represents a decrease of 13.1 percent in enrolment, over the previous year.

The percentage of grades A* to C in IGCSE subjects in 2021 was 57 percent, an improvement compared to 2020 which was 55 percent.

Moreover, the result of 2021 shows that students obtained 50 percent of the grades A* to C in eight out of the eleven subjects sat, surpassing that of 2020 whereby students achieved, or exceeded the set target in seven out of eleven subjects.

As for the Diplôme d'études en langue française (Delf), in 2021, 62 students registered for B1 in S4 while there were 79 in 2020.

National coordinator for Delf, Zitabella Labiche, said, concerning S5 students, 855 were registered for Delf for the four levels, A1, A2, B1 and B2 in 2021 compared to 823 in 2020.

Delf has kept with its tradition in 2021 in producing high pass rates across levels, despite the adverse impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on in-person teaching.

On her part, the principal for the School of Advanced Level Studies (Sals), Elaine Larue, said the school registered 80 candidates for the 2021 October/November Examination Series, while the school, in consultation with the Ministry of Education, offered students three pathways in which to complete their examinations in 2021 given the extenuating circumstances of Covid-19.

Students had the options to sit their full A level in all three (3) subjects in October/November 2021, sit AS only in all three (3) subjects in October/November 2021, or sit a combination of A level and AS in October/November 2021 (except for English Literature, Computer Science, History and French where students had to sit their full A level October/November 2021).

Altogether, for the full A level, Sals had 156 examination entries and for AS level, the institution had 66 entries.

The pass rate for the A level examination was at 98 percent with 58 percent scoring a grade C or better.

For AS level, Sals registered a pass rate of 97 percent with 59 percent scoring a grade C or better.

(See the full lists of results and analysis tables on pages 9, 10 and 11).

Roland Duval