There has been a slight improvement in the pass rate for English.

More than a quarter of students who sit for their ordinary level Maltese examination failed this year, The Sunday Times of Malta has learnt.

Mathematics also continues to be a problem subject, with a 22 per cent failure rate, but there has been a slight improvement in the pass rate for English language.

Out of the 4,691 students who sat for the Matriculation and Secondary Education Examinations Board (Matsec) Sec exam in Maltese, that is equivalent to O level, 26 per cent obtained U, which means they failed, according to figures obtained from the Education Ministry.

The good news is that, over the past five years, the number of students failing the exam that tests their knowledge of Malta’s national language has been decreasing.

78%

Students who passed their Sec exams

In 2009, 32 per cent of students failed their Sec (Secondary Education Certificate) exam in Maltese. The percentage dropped to 30.6 per cent in 2010, 29.8 in 2011 and 26 per cent last year.

In contrast with this, the failure rate for physics has been on the increase, starting from 14 per cent in 2009 and escalating to 18 per cent this year.

The table of results for the May 2013 Sec exams, requested by The Sunday Times of Malta, showed the number of students who registered for each subject and a breakdown of their grades. The table also showed whether they opted for Paper A or the less difficult Paper B.

A breakdown by type of school, gender and other demographics could not be provided at this stage as they have not yet been compiled.

When looking at the Sec results across the board, this year 78 per cent of students passed their exams – which means they obtained between grade one and seven. A comparison with results obtained in the previous five years showed that the pass rate has ranged between 76 and 79 per cent.

Students who sit for Paper A have to obtain between grade one and five to qualify and go to sixth form. Any grade lower than a five results in a U. When it comes to Paper B students have to obtain between grade four and seven to pass.

In order to qualify for sixth form a student must obtain passes, between grade one and five, in Maltese, English, maths and one science subject.

The figures showed that when it came to Maltese, English and maths, about half opted for Paper B.

As with Maltese, students continued to struggle to get through their maths exams.

This year, 22 per cent of students who registered for the maths exam failed. The failure rate has been fluctuating between 19 and 21 per cent over the past five years.

When it came to English language, 17 per cent of students failed – an improvement over the 2009 results that saw a failure rate of 21 per cent.

A look at the results for the Advanced Matriculation exams, equivalent to A level, showed that 78.6 per cent of the 6,004 candidates were successful. Last year the pass rate stood at 78.2 per cent.

SEC May 2013 results