Local News
11+ examination system under review
By Giselle Borg Olivier
May 31, 2006, 18:35

The examination system, known as the 11+ exam, is to be reviewed and recommendations made. The exam is taken at the end of the primary school years and is commonly referred to as the Junior Lyceum Exam and the Common Entrance Exam for state secondary and for church secondary schools respectively.

The strategic plan of the National Curriculum (2001) presents three educational assessment targets that call for a review of the assessment process used in the transition from primary to secondary education. More specifically, the targets refer to the Junior Lyceum and Common Entrance examinations. The aim of this review is to map out a plan of action for achieving these inter-related targets. The review will be divided into four components as follows.

The review will include a study of the rationale of the 11+ examination and the educational context in which it operates. The review process needs to determine the extent to which the rationale is still valid and hence what modifications or alternatives need to be considered. In order to do this in an informed manner, a comparative study also needs to be carried out on transition and selective mechanisms in other European educational systems and beyond.

The review will also study the impact of the 11+ examination on the different stakeholders and on teaching and learning, especially in second the cycle of primary schooling and the two cycles of secondary education. The issue of accessibility of the examination and special requirements will also form part of this review. In particular, aspects of validity will be studied in depth. The aim of this review is to determine the appropriateness of this examination and how it is performing as a selective mechanism.

Once the review is carried out, the working group will make recommendations with regard to the soundness of this examination and possible alternatives. The issue of benchmarking will at this point be studied in depth, in terms of its philosophy and aims. The working group is mandated to consult with major stakeholders throughout the process of review.

The reform document 'For All Children To Succeed' published in June of last year laid out the framework for quality change in Maltese schools; this outlines that while some form of assessment needs to occur at crucial stages in a child’s educational path, it is also important to review the systems that have been in place for the past 25 years. "It would be unwise" said The Minister of Education, Youth and Employment, Louis Galea, "if one were to eliminate any form of 11+ examination, be it the Junior Lyceum or the Common Entrance examination and not replace it with a benchmarking system that shows all concerned what level of skills acquisition a child has achieved and indicated what targets the child, his or her educators and parents need to aim for." The policy document For all Children to Succeed (2005) stated that we need to work on "how to eliminate the rather staccato if not abrupt manner by which students move from primary to secondary schooling in the state system".

The 11+ Examination Review Working Group will be chaired by Dr Grace Grima and will have as members Prof Frank Ventura, Mr Peter Vassallo, Mr Leonard Grech, Mrs Bernie Mizzi and Fr Charles Mallia. The Working Group is expected to complete the review by May 2007.

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