PN Shadow Minister for Education Therese Comodini Cachia believes that in order for the new level of school leaving certificate to have value it must be recognised equally with Matsec O-levels.
A circular drafted by the Directorate of Quality and Standards in Education was sent to Heads of Schools, stating that the Secondary School Certificate and Profile (SSC&P) will, as of the coming scholastic year, be considered at MQF level 3 (the same level reserved SEC grades 1-5). “Considering that the educational journey in compulsory schooling prepares students up to MQF level 3, this shall be reflected in both the overall level of the certificate as well as at an individual subject level,” the Circular read.
Dr Comodini Cachia states that “the Circular in question establishes the school leaving certificate as a certificate of accomplishment. This makes it possible for form V students to obtain through their mock exams a certificate that is the equivalent on MQF level 3 (Matsec/'O' level). Crediting students' accomplishments is one of the main aims of education and in this sense this step is positive”.
“However, the government will now need to ensure that this certificate has real value. If the school leaving is equal in terms of its MQF level to its Matsec/'O' level counterpart, the government must make sure that it will be equally recognized. Also the government has to clarify whether this equivalency really means equal recognition of value or only equal recognition of respect. It is time that honesty reigns in education so that educators, students and parents know the truth and not have to sift through the rhetoric,” she said.
“There could be a pitfall or two in this system which will need to be addressed. First, the circular reflects very shoddy work from the Ministry with it being issued after the mock exams were held. The manner in which this was done also reflects badly on the value of the certificate itself since we currently have a situation where students are sitting for different papers, set by different educators in different schools. In other words the government needs to ensure that the three systems (State, Church and Independent) we have currently in place are brought on board and made actively participant in this new system. Educators, students and parents found themselves preparing for mocks, sitting for mocks and grading mock exams without knowing that this could qualify for a different system”.
The PN representative argues that at the same time the accreditation seems to have been given to the Directorate of Education under a new Bill which only passed through parliament this very week, that is after the circular was issued. “In other words the circular detailing this new accreditation system preceded the law. This in itself is enough justification to question the validity of having different bodies accrediting the same MQF levels”. She explained that the two bodies would be Matsec as well as the Directorate, and must now ensure they have equal respect and equal value.