July 25, 2008	Friday	Rajab 21, 1429

ISLAMABAD, July 24: Centralised examination has provided a credible testing system that judges the performance of thousands of students on the scale of prescribed merit to judge an educational environment.

This was stated by Director-General, Federal Directorate of Education (FDE), Attiqur Rehman while speaking at a ceremony held in connection with the announcement of primary and middle class centralised examination results here on Thursday.

Mr Rehman said the system had provided the basis for ratification of the academic journey towards excellence.

In all 19,696 students appeared in the class-V examination, out of which 17,884 remained successful with a pass percentage of 90.8 per cent. The number of students appearing from F.G. schools and model colleges was 13,354 and 2,700, respectively.

As many as 12,214 (91.45 per cent) students from F.G. schools passed the examination while the number of those from model colleges was 2,615 (96.85 per cent). About 3,640 private candidates appeared in the examination out of which 3,055 remained successful.

Moreover, the number of students who appeared in class-VIII examination was 16,778 out which 15,335 passed. As many as 10,909 students appeared from F.G. schools, 4,062 from model colleges and 1,807 from private institutions. The pass percentage remained 92.51, 98.74 and 68.18 per cent, respectively.

Mohammad Hanif stood first among boys in the class-V examination by securing 547 marks out of 600, while Humayun Khan obtained second position by obtaining 545 marks. Mohammad Tayyab bagged the third slot with 541 marks.

Among girls, Ayesha Malik stood first, Hajra Naveed came second and Namra Batool obtained the third position.

However, the top three positions for class-VIII were secured by students of a private school, Ali Trust School and College, Khana.

The director-general said the FDE had been conducting centralised examinations of class VIII since 2007 after the successful implementation of class V centralised examinations for five successive years.

He said the directorate’s goal of providing quality education was substantiated with policy decisions related to process of classroom teaching, evaluation and character-building of students.

The directorate introduced posting of fictitious numbers on answer scripts this year for the first time to ensure credibility of examinations, making the system more reliable, he said, adding that the centralised examination enhanced the spirit of competition and consolidated the foundations of better academic development.

An effective system of reward and accountability has also been introduced where best teachers as well as top achievers are given awards and prizes.

The director-general also announced 650 merit scholarships for boys and girls of classes five and eight amounting to Rs200 per month each.

He said: “The introduction of centralised exams for primary and middle classes has made teachers and students conscious of their progress.”

A visible change was evident in schools and model colleges, as every year things were moving in the positive direction, he added.