Bangladesh Sees Worst Higher Secondary Results Since 2004

Bangladesh has recorded its worst Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent exam results since 2004.

In this year's HSC and equivalent exams, 58.83 percent of students have passed. Among them, 69,097 students achieved GPA-5.

The last time results were this poor was in 2004, when 47.86 percent of students passed. The following year, in 2005, the pass rate was 59.74 percent.

Since then, the pass rate gradually increased. By 2019, it fluctuated between 65 and 78 percent.

In 2020, due to the pandemic, no exams were held. Students were evaluated based on their JSC and SSC results, and all were declared passed.

The 2021 HSC exams were also delayed due to the pandemic. Conducted with a short syllabus and fewer subjects, the pass rate was 95.26 percent.

In 2022, the HSC exams were delayed again due to the COVID-19 pandemic and flooding. Even then, with a short syllabus, the pass rate was 85.95 percent.

The 2023 HSC exams were the first to return to full marks and full duration after the pandemic. That year, 78.64 percent of students passed.

In 2024, exams were conducted in only seven subjects. The rest were cancelled due to student protests and the events following the fall of the government. For the subjects that weren't held, students were evaluated through subject mapping based on SSC results. The resulting pass rate was 77.78 percent.

Had there been no ‘grace marks,’ the pass rate and number of GPA-5 achievers this year might have dropped even further. This was hinted earlier by Associate Professor Fahmida, who served as an English examiner at the higher secondary level for many years.

Currently working at the English department of Eden Mohila College in Dhaka, she hasn't been involved in examining for the past few years.

Yesterday, she stated:
“The culture of giving grace marks existed from the beginning; it actually depends on the examiner’s mindset. Many examiners would show compassion and raise the scores of students who got 31 or 32.”

“When I served as an examiner, I noticed that, on several occasions, examiners were encouraged to be generous. However, it was never formally stated.”

She added, “If the board has now instructed not to give grace marks, then it’s not unusual for this to be reflected in the reduced pass rate or GPA-5 count.”