Independent School students outdo govt school pupils

Students of Independent Schools outperformed their counterparts in government and private Arab schools in Qatar, as the Supreme Education Council (SEC) yesterday announced initial results of the 2005 Qatar Comprehensive Educational Assessment (QCEA).

The results, however, indicate that although Independent School students performed better, the performance level didn't meet the high standards put into place as part of the ongoing education reform process in Qatar, Adel Al Sayed, director of SEC's Evaluation Institute said, while announcing the results. The annual assessment, launched last year, has been carried out by the Evaluation Institute.

The results also show that the non-Qatari students performed better than Qatari students and girls outperformed boys, as was shown in last year's results.

Last year the assessment was conducted on the basis of an international system but this time the tests were designed to meet the requirements of the Qatari curriculum and the reform process, Adel Al Sayed said.

"The 2005 QCEA is an important step in the continued educational reform Qatar is undertaking. With this year's results we now have a system and the tools to monitor and report the progress and changes in the education reform," he noted.

Over 80,000 students in all public and private Arabic schools took the exams based on four subjects-Arabic, English, mathematics and science. The tests were given to students in grades 1 to12, except science, which was given to students of grades 4 to 12.

This year's tests were of higher quality because they were based on tests aligned with standards Qatar has put into place, Adel Al Sayed said. The standards reflect what students need to learn to be productive citizens, who contribute to their country's success and who may be well-employed in the international job market. Another milestone was implementation of performance levels which indicate whether students' performance fully meets the standards, approaches them, or below these standards.

This year's results indicate that most students' performance is either approaching the new standards or below these demanding criteria recently put into place. "The SEC can make better policy decisions, teachers can make more informed curriculum choices and parents can use the results to gain a better understanding of schools," he said.

The SEC has plans to develop a separate assessment system for international schools in Qatar. The community schools would not be included in this since they are out of the Qatari system and run by their respective communities, he explained in reply to question from The Peninsula. SEC, however, will collect data about these schools as well, he added.

Apart from QCEA, Qatar will also take part , in March 2006, in the international studies known as PISA, PIRLS and TIMSS, which will show how the education reform process is progressing and how Qatar's students compare globally, Adel Al Sayed said - The Peninsula