SPM 2023: Perak sees year-on-year improvement

IPOH: The number of candidates from public schools in Perak who passed the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination for 2023 increased by 2.45 percentage points over the previous year.

State Education director Datuk Mohamad Fauzi Mahson said 92.55% or 25,227 out of 27,259 candidates who sat for the SPM are eligible to get certificates, compared to 24,877 candidates or 90.1% in 2022.

Mohamad Fauzi said of the 27,259, some 772 or 2.8% obtained all As (A+, A and A-).

“Six of them got all A+ for the subjects they took.

“One of the state’s best achievers was an Orang Asli student from SM Sains Tapah, who scored 9As (4A+, 3A, and 2A-),” he told a press conference at the state Education Department here on Monday (May 27).

“Some 3,458 candidates or 12.7% obtained at least a credit or Grade C for all subjects, while 15,900 or 58.3% passed all their subjects,” he said, adding that SMK Bawong in Sungai Siput, a school with majority Orang Asli children, saw a 100% pass rate.

“There were also 119 candidates with special needs who sat for the SPM.

“Three candidates with physical disabilities scored 8As and 1C, 7As and 1B, and 6As and 2Bs,” he added.

Mohamad Fauzi said the average grade (GPN) for candidates in Perak also improved, with a score of 4.75, compared to 4.92 in 2022.

He said the GPN between schools in rural and urban areas has also narrowed by 0.01 point.

“Schools in rural areas obtained 4.74 while schools in urban areas got 4.75.

“Several steps have been taken through strategies that focused on helping pupils in rural areas overcome challenges.

“Among these included the Cikgu Saarani Tuition initiative by the state government,” he added.

Of the 80 subjects in the examination, Mohamad Fauzi said 52 recorded an improvement while 21 subjects showed a drop.

He said improvement was seen in core subjects like Bahasa Malaysia, English, History, Mathematics, Islamic Studies, Moral, and Science.

“The subject average grade (GPMP) for English has the biggest improvement with a score of 5.09, compared to 5.37 in 2022.

“This was followed by Science, Moral, Mathematics and Bahasa Malaysia,” he said.