[Recom.org] Only 1.2% got A1 for SPM Chinese

wwhong wrote:

anyway, i just read that the major cause of the low percentage of A1 is because of the sudden change in exam format? just wondering how large is the difference? those who took the test care to enlighten me?

There has always been a puzzle in me that why people would attribute low A1 percentage to "exam formats", "unexpected questions" or something like that. I think if we get to the way exam works, we should cut the furore well more than half.

The fact is, whether 1.2% get A1 or 12% get A1 in chinese language, it doesn't matter much if the paper is hard or the format is new. If the "pihak pihak berkenaan" wants only1.2% to get A1, they simply set the cutting point higher, if they decide that 10% should get A1, they simply lower the cutting point so that more candidates exceed the A1 threshold.

There's never such a thing as "in order to get A1 in SPM every year, you should get 80 or above". The grading of SPM is relative rather than fixed, and it's all at the discretion of "pihak pihak berkenaan".

p/s: Some may argue what explains then, a school which gets very low score when a paper is hard in a particular year. I think it has to do with local variability where the school fail to meet the standard that was mandated by the marking scheme of that paper. Let's say this year chemistry paper focuses a lot on inorganic, while my school teacher all spotted physical chem, then it wouldn't be a surprise that my school scores low overall in chemistry paper. However, do take note that this is only a local effect, and it will not have affected the performance of the whole country.