Education boards plan Dec re-exams for HSC English, Math

Education boards plan to hold re-examinations by December for students who failed English or Mathematics in this year’s HSC and equivalent exams.

The form fill-up process may begin in November. Initially, the plan is to complete the entire process - from form fill-up to conducting examinations, answer script evaluation, and result publication - within one month. If this initiative succeeds, passed students may also get the opportunity to participate in university admission tests.

This decision was made on Monday during a meeting of the Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee. However, although there was discussion on whether a re-examination opportunity would be given for a third subject alongside English and Mathematics, no final decision was reached.

Chairman Syed Akhtaruzzaman confirmed the matter and said Prime Minister’s Education Adviser Mahdi Amin has provided guidelines.

Several attendees of the Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee meeting added that there is a plan to start the re-examination process in November. Following an announcement from all education boards, one week may be given for form fill-up.

Considering the number of examinees, the initial plan is to set up one examination center per upazila. However, if the number of examinees is higher, a maximum of two centers may be set up in some upazilas.

To arrange the re-examination quickly, officials have considered preparing an extra set of question papers at the time of making question papers for the main examination. After the publication of the main examination results, new form fill-ups could be conducted, followed by holding exams at a limited number of centers. Then, answer scripts will be evaluated rapidly to publish results.

However, details regarding eligibility for re-examination, subject selection, exam schedule, post-result admission to the next academic year, and coordinating university admission test opportunities must be clarified in the final policy framework. Detailed information will be available following the plan of the education boards and the decision of the ministry.

Re-examination within three months from 2027

The government has taken a policy decision to introduce re-examinations within three months for students failing the SSC and HSC examinations. In this case, the opportunity will not be for all subjects, but only for the subject or subjects in which the student failed.

However, taking into account the preparation of education boards, examination schedules, and necessary policy formulation, the system is generally expected to launch from 2027. The Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee has been instructed to prepare a plan and submit it to the Ministry of Education by 15 October.

Ministry of Education wanted to introduce the three-month re-examination system starting this year. However, education boards consider it difficult to implement the full system this year due to a lack of sufficient time for necessary preparations, exam scheduling, form fill-up, and result publication following the SSC and equivalent exam results.

Akhtaruzzaman said, “Since college admissions have already concluded following this year’s SSC results, introducing this method at this level will not be possible this year. However, from next year, students at both SSC and HSC levels will get re-examination opportunities.”

Risk of dropout during a one-year wait

On Saturday, Mahdi added that the government is considering whether students who fail in any subject can be given another exam opportunity within three months instead of waiting one year.

Mojibur Rahman of the Institute of Education and Research at University of Dhaka noted, “For whatever reason a student fails in one or two subjects, making them wait a whole year is not reasonable. Because while waiting a year, many students lose interest in studying. Some drop out, while others enter working life. This increases the risk of dropping out. If quick re-examination opportunities are launched, students can maintain the continuity of their education.”

To protect students failing in English and Mathematics from wasting a year or dropping out of studies, earlier around 2019, various proposals and initial discussions had emerged from the then Ministry of Education regarding grade improvement or special examinations in specific subjects within the shortest time for public examinations (especially for those failing one or two subjects in SSC).

Although it did not take full shape at that time, education board officials said under the government, following the direction of Mahdi, a process has begun to institutionalize and transform this into a permanent policy framework.