Maltese O-Level major obstacle for dyslexic students

The percentage of dyslexic students obtaining a pass in their Maltese O-Level has dropped from 25% in 2018 to just 20% in 2019.

Candidates sitting for their O-Levels fare better in English than in Maltese, an annual statistical report by MATSEC confirms. While only one-fifth of those sitting for their Maltese SEC exam earn a grade between 1 and 5, a quarter do likewise in English.

The report also shows the performance of candidates in both English and Maltese has declined when compared to 2018.

In English Language, 29.4% of dyslexic candidates obtained Grades 1-5 while 49.5% passed with Grades 1-7.  Back in 2018, 40% had obtained a grade higher than five, while 67% earned a grade higher than 7.

In Maltese the rate was lower as 20.5% of the candidates obtained passes with Grades 1-5 while 44.2% obtained Grades 1-7.  Back in 2018, 25% obtained a grade higher than 5 while 55% obtained a grade higher than 7.

In contrast, candidates with dyslexia performed notably well in home economics (85.9%), economics (75.0%), design and technology (73.5%), and German (70%) where the number in brackets indicates the percentage of candidates obtaining Grades 1-7.

Dyslexia is a brain-based condition which causes difficulty with reading, spelling, writing and sometimes speaking. This makes studying languages harder for students with this condition.

In a report issued in 2017, the Commissioner for Education concluded that one major source of the problem which impedes children with dyslexia from continuing their studies is the nature of the Maltese SEC paper. “If the exam paper were to be restructured to emphasise more the communicative and less the linguistic aspect of the subject, Maltese will not present the obstacles it currently does, even if the literature section is retained.”

In representations made to the Ombudsman in 2017, parents of students suffering from dyslexia also felt particularly aggrieved that their children – like all other candidates – are allowed spelling mistakes in most subjects, but are penalized for spelling mistakes in languages when it is a well-known fact that dyslexia sufferers are extremely prone to spelling deficiencies.

Statistics also show that while 13.8% of male candidates applied for examination access arrangements, only 8.4% of female candidates did so.

In 2019, 593 candidates were given examination access arrangements which is equivalent to 10.8% of all registrations. This represents a sharp increase from just 1.6% in 2004.

The percentage of applications for EAAs varies between subjects. A total of 213 registrations were from candidates studying a vocational subject, making up 24.1% of the vocational candidate population.

Subjects with relatively large percentage applications of candidates with access arrangements are hospitality (32.6%), health and social care (22.6%), music (21.7%), information technology (21.6%), textiles and design (19.2%), home economics (18.4%), art (18.0%), agribusiness (18.0%), and engineering technology (16.0%).

Applications by candidates with special needs are processed by the ACCESS Disability Support Committee of the University of Malta, which decides on appropriate arrangements so that these candidates are enabled to take the examinations while being, as much as possible, on par with other candidates. In 2019, examination access arrangements (EAAs) included extra time, rest periods, modified papers, large print, provision of amanuenses, communicators and readers, as well as special instructions to examiners of oral components, invigilators and paper markers.