The possibility of introducing a national assessment system that is available to all students who complete secondary school education is being considered by the Matsec Review working group.

A spokesman for the Education Ministry told The Times that a number of students opt not to sit for the Secondary Education Certificate (SEC) exams, at the end of secondary school, for a number of reasons.

"We hope that as part of the reform that we envisage in this sector, we will be able to create a type of assessment that will enable all students to obtain a certification that records their attainment," he said.

Asked whether this assessment would be for each subject that a student was studying, the spokesman said that together with other details this was still being examined by the working group which was analysing the review of the Matsec system. He said the way forward would start being discussed when the report is presented.

The working group, coordinated by Grace Grima of the Matsec Support Unit, was launched last year and is currently reviewing the system with the aim of strengthening it and making it more relevant to today's labour market.

Its mandate is to carry out a review of the national exams at both SEC and Matriculation level (the certificate needed for University entrance) and advise on the future of external certification in Malta at both secondary and post-secondary levels.

The Matsec Examinations Board was established in 1991 with the aim of replacing the British GCE 'O' and 'A' level examinations with a local system that is appropriate for most secondary school students.

The spokesman said the working group's report is expected to be finalised by October and the ministry would then start consultations on it.

One of the important aspects of the reform, the spokesman said, was to develop these examinations while keeping the quality and value that they currently have both at a local and international level.