04300

30 Aug 2000

PERFORMANCE BY ETHNIC GROUP

1.        The Ministry of Education has been releasing data on the performance of the various ethnic groups since 1988. The objective is to provide feedback to the communities on how their children have fared in the national examinations.

2.        Attached are three sets of charts showing the performance of the various major ethnic groups in the PSLE, GCE 'O' and 'A' Level Examinations for the past ten years (1990-1999). [Note that the percentages in the charts are based on the candidates who sat for the respective examinations in the given years.]

PERFORMANCE IN PSLE (CHARTS A1-A5)

3.        Chart A1 shows the percentage of pupils who qualified for admission to secondary schools at the end of primary six. This had been on the upward trend up to 1996 but has since appeared to be stabilising at about 96% overall. [For this chart, the percentages are based on all pupils, including those in the EM3 stream.]

4.        Charts A2-A5 show the percentage of EM1 and EM2 stream pupils who scored A*, A, B or C in English Language, Mother Tongue Language, Mathematics and Science. These grades are chosen so that the results can be compared to those in the past. [There are other grades: D, E and U (for ungraded) which are not considered failure grades.] Performance in Mother Tongue Language and Mathematics improved between 1998 and 1999 while that in English Language and Science rose for the second consecutive year in 1999.

PERFORMANCE IN GCE 'O' LEVEL (CHARTS B1-B5)

5.         Charts B1 and B2 show the percentage of pupils who obtained at least 3 and 5 O-level passes. Both indicators have been on the increase for the last two years.

6.         Charts B3-B5 show the pass rates in English Language, Mother Tongue Language and Mathematics. English Language pass rate rose to almost 74% in 1999 after remaining at about 69% from 1994 to 1997. Percentage pass in Mother Tongue Language and Mathematics went up in 1999 following a drop in the preceding year.

PERFORMANCE IN GCE 'A' LEVEL (CHARTS C1-C3)

7.        Chart C1 shows the percentage of pupils who scored at least 2 A and 2 AO-level passes including General Paper. In 1999, there was a slight improvement over the year before.

8.        Charts C2 and C3 show the pass rates in General Paper and Mother Tongue Language respectively. The former has been increasing for the last two years while the latter rebounded slightly in 1999 after falling in 1998.

PERCENTAGE OF P1 COHORT ADMITTED TO POST-SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS (PRE-U, POLY AND ITE) (CHART D)

9.        This chart shows the percentage of a P1 cohort admitted to post-secondary institutions viz. junior colleges, centralised institutes, polytechnics and ITE. Over the years, this percentage has been increasing steadily. [For this chart, the percentages are based on pupils who were first enrolled in primary one ten years before the given years.]

Chart A1: Percentage of PSLE Pupils Eligible for Secondary Schools

Chart A2: Percentage of PSLE Pupils Who Passed English Language

Chart A3: Percentage of PSLE Pupils Who Passed Mother Tongue Language

Chart A4: Percentage of PSLE Pupils Who Passed Mathematics

Chart A5: Percentage of PSLE Pupils Who Passed Science

Chart B1: Percentage of GCE 'O' Level Pupils with At Least 3 O-Level Passes

Chart B2: Percentage of GCE 'O' Level Pupils with At Least 5 O-Level Passes

Chart B3: Percentage of GCE 'O' Level Pupils Who Passed English Language

Chart B4: Percentage of GCE 'O' Level Pupils Who Passed Mother Tongue Language

Chart B5: Percentage of GCE 'O' Level Pupils Who Passed Mathematics

Chart C1: Percentage of GCE 'A' Level Pupils with
At Least 2 A and 2 AO-Level Passes Including General Paper

Chart C2: Percentage of GCE 'A' Level Pupils Who Passed General Paper

Chart C3: Percentage of GCE 'A' Level Pupils Who Passed Mother Tongue Language

Chart D: Percentage of P1 Cohort Admitted to Post-Secondary
Institutions (Pre-U, Poly and ITE)