O Level results: 2016 candidates set record for 5 or more passes

AsiaOne
Wednesday, Jan 11, 2017

84.3 per cent of the 30,292 school candidates who sat for the 2016 Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level (GCE O-Level) examination attained 5 or more passes, setting a new record in three decades.

This year's results is also the fifth consecutive year where the record has been broken, with 2015's cohort of 29,723 students attaining an 83.8 per cent mark.

"(The results of the 2016 GCE O-Level examination) are comparable to that of 2015," the Ministry of Education (MOE) and Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board said in a joint statement on Wednesday (Jan 11).

96.5 per cent of 2016's cohort managed to attain at least three passes, MOE and SEAB added.

The results for the 1,865 private candidates with at least one pass dipped slightly to 90.2 per cent, down from 90.5 per cent.

This year's cohort includes 44 student-inmates who studied for their 'O' levels while serving their sentences.

Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs Mr Amrin Amin highlighted these 44 inmates in a Facebook post: "I was at Tanah Merah Prison (TMP) last week and met our Prison School teachers and students.

"Some (of the 44 inmates) are in their early 40s, never too old to learn," the Member of Parliament for Sembawang GRC added.

"They have worked hard, value-added in many ways. I am happy to see there are good education opportunities in our prisons - every school is a good school, this school too!" 

In an earlier Facebook post, Minister for Education (Schools) Ng Chee Meng urged students to be continually challenging their limits and remain curious throughout their learning journey.