INTERACTIVE: Have our SPM students really improved?

PETALING JAYA: Physics, English and Mathematics are among the subjects with the biggest improvement in overall scores among Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination candidates.

Physics recorded the strongest improvement for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) stream subjects from 2021 to 2023, while English and Mathematics had the biggest improvement for core subjects, The Star’s analysis of SPM results show.

The analysis was done to identify the strongest, weakest and most popular subjects for candidates sitting for the national exam. The 2023 SPM results were released on May 27.

The current assessment format for the SPM, which is called the Standard Secondary School Curriculum (KSSM), was first implemented in 2017 and revised in 2021.

The KSSM replaced an earlier format known as the Integrated Secondary School Curriculum (KBSM), which was in use from 2014 to 2016.

Here’s what the results show:

STEM subjects

SPM candidates score either an A, B, C, D, E or G (Fail) for each subject.

They also get a grade of between 0-9 for each subject, with a lower index value showing a better achievement.

The figures show that in the recent 2023 SPM results, the average grade obtained by candidates nationwide for the majority of the four STEM subjects (Physics, Biology, Chemistry and Additional Mathematics) were all stronger compared with 2022 and 2021.

The average grade for Physics, which was at 4.4 in 2021, improved to 4.37 in 2022 and 4.15 in 2023.

The number of candidates who scored As (A+, A, A-) for Physics grew by 3.3 percentage points from 23.6% in 2021 to 26.9% in 2023.

However, the best results recorded for Physics under the original KSSM was recorded in 2017, at 4.09.

The results had deteriorated over the following years under the old curriculum, with candidates scoring 4.27 in 2020, prior to the curriculum revision.

“Aspects that have changed in the curriculum involve content and arrangement,” said the Education Ministry.

“The SPM results from 2017 to 2020 cannot be compared with that of 2021 and subsequent years because these two cohorts of candidates used a different curriculum and assessment formats,” it added.

Meanwhile, the other three STEM subjects showed improvements, both before and after the curriculum change in 2021.

Additional Mathematics was the only STEM subject that recorded weaker results under the new curriculum in 2022, but later improved in 2023.

The other two subjects, Chemistry and Biology, both showed continuous improvements in the results in 2022 and 2023.

According to the Education Ministry, STEM subjects continued to be among the most popular elective SPM subjects, but had seen declining participation over the years.

Core subjects

English and Mathematics had the biggest improvement for core subjects in 2023, compared with 2021.

Both these subjects recorded a 0.29 drop (improvement) in average grade in 2023.

Previously, English was the toughest core subjects in the KSSM, where the average grade ranged from 5.81 to 5.98 between 2017 and 2020.

In the revised syllabus, English recorded a lower grade of 5.23 in 2021, with the results further improving to 5.13 and 4.94 in 2023.

The number of candidates who scored As in English grew by 4.9 percentage points from 22.3% in 2021 to 27.2% in 2023.

The pass rate (A+ to E-) for the subject was at 88.8%, the highest since 2017.

Meanwhile, the average grade in Mathematics improved from 5.57 in 2021 to 5.28 in 2023.

Prior to the syllabus revision, the subject recorded a better average grade of 4.94-5.03.

History and Bahasa Melayu were the next top performers among core subjects in 2023, with a 0.25 drop in average subject grade compared with 2021.

Bahasa Melayu was the top performing core subject in terms of obtaining the best average grade, at 3.86 in 2023, compared with 4.11 in 2021.

History recorded 4.63 in 2023, compared with 4.88 in 2021.

The number of candidates who passed the subject (recording A to E scores) grew by 4.8 percentage points from 89.6% in 2021 to 94.4% in 2023.

Meanwhile, Science saw a -0.22 improvement in average grade (4.93 in 2023 and 5.15 in 2021), while Pendidikan Islam recorded -0.2 (4.11 in 2023 and 4.31 in 2021) and Pendidikan Moral -0.13 (4.66 in 2023 and 4.79 in 2021).

Most popular elective

Pendidikan Seni Visual was the most popular elective in 2023, surpassing Additional Mathematics.

In 2023, 111,775 SPM students sat for the subject, while in 2022, a total of 109,672 took it up.

Additional Mathematics was the most popular elective in 2022, with 113,709 who sat for the paper.

However, it fell to second place in 2023, with 109,921 pupils taking it on.

The remaining top 10 most popular elective SPM subjects maintained the same both in 2022 and 2023.