The Matsec Board has been asked to ensure that exam candidates will not be disadvantaged because of the poor quality of the audio system they suffered during the comprehension session of the Italian O level exam, held last Saturday, Education Minister Evarst Bartol told parliament this evening.

He was reacting after Opposition education spokesman George Pullicino tabled a petition organised by a student and digitally signed by 1,772 people after the Italian language exam on Saturday.

Mr Pullicino also pointed out that German exam candidates had also encountered similar problems.

Mr Bartolo said that action was being taken to ensure that candidates were not disadvantaged in all such exams. He confirmed that there were complaints following the Italian language exam, adding that there were some complaints after the German exam and one complaint after the Spanish exam.

On Saturday, candidates who sat for the Italian exam complained that the system used to playback recordings emitted distorted sounds, making it very difficult for them to understand what was being said.

The Matsec board confirmed it had received “numerous complaints” from those sitting for the Italian exam and announced it would be investigating the issue further. It said that before Saturday’s session, Matsec officials had conducted a pilot-test of the recording, adding that the venue had already been used for the listening comprehension components for Arabic, Spanish and German.

Parents said that students who sat for the German listening exam earlier this month had also expressed concern that they could not make out the words properly.

It’s unfair on the students and something has to be done

A mother who insisted on anonymity said that, although worried that her son might not have performed at his best as a result of the distortion, she decided not to seek any action.

However, after it emerged that students had reported the same issue during the Saturday session, she decided to come forward, adding that she would be filing a complaint with the Matsec board.

“How is it that the system had not worked properly two weeks ago and, yet, students sitting for the exam on Saturday had, again, to experience such an ordeal? It’s unfair on the students and something has to be done,” the mother insisted.

A Matsec spokesman said the board had not yet received any complaints with regard to the German listening comprehension.

However, an online petition calling for the Matsec board to compensate students who sat for the listening comprehension exams stated that students who sat for Italian, German and Spanish exams had been affected by distorted sound. 

The petition included several comments from students who experienced similar audio problems during German and Spanish listening comprehension exams. 

"My sons are native German speakers and even they couldn't understand what was being said," one irate mother wrote. 

The petition had attracted more than 1,700 signatures by this morning.

“Matsec receives the odd complaint from candidates during the different session, which is, of course, considered accordingly," the Matsec spokesman said.

“This year marks the first time that a recording was used for Italian listening comprehension and, as stated on Saturday, Matsec is looking into the matter,” the spokesman added.

Just over 1,600 students sat for the exam at De La Salle School and at the Examination Centre in Victoria on Saturday.

No complaints from candidates in Gozo were received, the board said.