School grades to be reduced from 13 to 12

• O/L exam for Grade 10 and A/L exam for Grade 12
• Number of subjects for the O/L’s to be reduced from 9 to 7
• Grade 5 scholarship exam to be simplified

By Ajith Siriwardana and Yohan Perera

School grades will be reduced from 13 to 12 under the new educational reforms, the Education Ministry said.

This was disclosed at the time of presenting the progress for 2023 and plans for 2024 for the budget of the Ministry of Education by Minister Susil Premajayantha.
Accordingly, the educational authorities stated that through the proposed education reforms, every child will be given the opportunity to finish school in 17 years.
Accordingly, the age from pre-school education is classified as four years, primary section will be Grades 1-5, junior section 6-8 and senior section 9 to 12.

While it has been proposed to give a certain percentage of marks from school-based evaluations and a certain percentage from exams for the Grade 5 scholarship exam, the Ministry of Education has also proposed to simplify the Grade 5 scholarship exam and eliminate competition.

Through the proposed new education reforms, the Ministry of Education has proposed to conduct the ordinary level examination in Grade 10 and the advanced level examination is scheduled for Grade 12.

It has also been decided to reduce the number of subjects for the O/Ls from nine to seven.

Officials representing the Ministry of Education stated that among those seven subjects, three subjects have been made, namely Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Technical and Professional Skills and Religion and Values.

The officials of the Ministry of Education pointed out that more than eighty thousand (80,000) students fail the Ordinary Level examination in a year, and suggested that no child will fail through the new education reforms and that all children who pass the Ordinary Level examination should be given the opportunity to study vocational training courses.
For that, A-level subjects have been classified into two categories as academic education and vocational education, and a path has been prepared for every child to obtain a degree.
The Ministry of Education also pointed out that two new subjects have been added under academic studies by increasing the current subjects from six to eight. Furthermore, the officials of the Ministry stated that the children will receive the opportunity to obtain education through 10 subject areas under practical studies and through that, the children will get the opportunity to obtain degrees by going through vocational fields.       

- Number of subjects for the O/L’s to be reduced from 9 to 7
- Grade 5 scholarship exam to be simplified