SINGAPORE – Students who sat the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma exams in Singapore have performed better than their global counterparts.

Almost all the 2,152 students from Singapore – or 97.99 per cent – who took the exams last November passed, compared with the global rate of 68.73 per cent.

Their average scores were also higher than the global average: 38.49 points against 28.58 points, according to the Switzerland-based IB Organisation that conducts the exams.

Students from eight schools – including Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), the School of the Arts (Sota), St Joseph’s Institution and Hwa Chong International School (HCIS) – received their results on Friday (Jan 4).

There are another 17 institutions in Singapore that offer the IB diploma. Students from those schools sat the first round of exams in May last year.

At ACS(I), 357 of its 444 students obtained 40 points and above, with 268 scoring 42 to 45. It did not release its number of perfect scorers who received the maximum 45.

The school’s average score was 41.5 points out of 45, which was slightly lower than the previous cohort’s average score of 41.62.

At Sota, the 146-strong cohort scored 39 points on average, with 72 of them obtaining a score of 40 and above – the school’s best performance in the past five years.

There were another 14 students from Sota who did the IB Career-related Programme, which requires students to take up four core subjects, two diploma subjects, and a career-related study.

HCIS’ 135 students scored 36.1 points on average, with 35 obtaining a score of 40 to 45 points. Three students scored 44, the school’s top score this year.

According to the IB Organisation, Singapore produced a total of 38 perfect scorers this year.

Globally, 18,387 students took the exams last November and more than 180,000 exam papers were processed in 16 languages.

IB chief assessment officer Paula Wilcock congratulated students on receiving their results. “This day is the culmination of two years’ dedication to their studies and is a significant milestone for students all over the globe.”

Dr Siva Kumari, IB director-general, added: “Your IB study has given you great breadth and depth of knowledge, the ability to think critically, and the opportunity to flourish intellectually, as well as emotionally, physically and ethically, not just in your next educational step but in life.”

The IB Diploma Programme is a two-year programme conducted at 25 institutions in Singapore. IB qualifications are recognised by universities across the globe.

Source: Read Full Article