The Education Ministry abolished the national centralised exams Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) and Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3) in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
While these have been replaced with the school-based Academic Session Final Test (UASA), the unique benefits of centralised exams, as highlighted below, cannot be denied:
> Standardisation and fairness
Centralised exams provide a standardised metric across schools, allowing a fair comparison of students’ abilities.
Without a common assessment, differences in teaching quality, resources, and grading standards across schools could lead to inconsistent results.
Centralised exams, therefore, help maintain an objective measure, ensuring that students across the country are assessed on an even playing field.
> Mitigation of bias
School-based assessments can be susceptible to unconscious bias, as teachers might inadvertently favour or penalise students based on subjective factors.
Centralised exams are usually anonymous and are graded by external assessors, reducing the potential for individual bias and personal relationships to affect scores, thus providing a more impartial evaluation of student ability.
> Preparation for high-stakes environments
Centralised exams are high-pressure environments that mirror the type of challenges students will encounter in higher education and in their careers, where they are often required to demonstrate knowledge and skills under time constraints.
The experience of studying for and taking standardised tests helps students develop discipline, time management, and stress-handling skills that can be invaluable later in life.
> Higher accountability and rigorous standards
Centralised exams hold schools accountable to national or regional academic standards. Without such exams, there may be variations in rigour across schools, potentially allowing some students to graduate without mastering key skills.
Exams create a measurable outcome for what students should know, encouraging schools to maintain high standards of teaching and learning.
> Reduction of grade inflation
School-based assessments can lead to grade inflation over time, as teachers may feel pressured to give higher grades to avoid negative feedback from parents or administrators.
Centralised exams help counteract this by providing an objective, external benchmark that prevents schools from over-inflating grades.
> Objectivity in university and job applications
Universities and employers often rely on exam results as a reliable indicator of a candidate’s knowledge and potential. Centralised exams provide a straightforward, comparative measure of student ability.
Replacing them with school-based assessments would make it harder for universities and employers to evaluate applicants objectively, potentially impacting students’ opportunities.
In conclusion, while school-based assessments are valuable for providing ongoing feedback and supporting learning, centralised exams play a critical role in ensuring fairness, accountability and standardisation across the education system.
Replacing centralised exams with school-based assessments alone may lead to inconsistencies, reduced rigour, and a potential loss of public trust in educational outcomes. Hence, a balanced approach that includes both forms of assessment would likely serve students best.
LIONG KAM CHONG
Seremban
