By Pesi Fonua

Three years after Tonga’s Ministry of Education reformed Tonga’s examination marking system, and replaced its Standardized Marks System with a "National Raw Marks - Outcome Based System" there is still confusion and reaction against the new system in Tonga.

As parents are getting ready for a new school year, there are concerns that overseas universities and high schools are having difficulties accepting last year's Tonga's school certificates for the senior forms. Parents and students from Tonga's top schools have complained to their MPs.

The issue was raised by Lord Tu'ilakepa in parliament on Monday 22 January. He said that people had called him and reported how universities and high schools had queried the credibility of Tonga's school certificates.

The difficulty is affecting Tonga's top students who are trying to gain entry to higher education overseas after completing their high school education in Tonga.

The Minister of Education, Hon. Penisimani Fifita expressed his surprise that there was still confusion over Tonga's new examination marking system. He told members of parliament that the ministry planned radio programs over the next few days to clarify the new examination marking system, known as the "Tonga’s Raw Marks – Outcome Based system".

When Hon. ‘Akilisi Pohiva, as Prime Minister and the Minister of Education, in March 2015 suddenly changed how Tongan schools mark their end of the year examinations, there was strong reaction against the decision from within the Ministry and from the public. There were protest marches, and resistance from within the Ministry of Education itself claiming that the Ministry had been working during the past 12 years to move Tonga from Raw Marks to a Standardized Marking System and they had only three years left to complete the task but their work was being undone.

Now, three years down the road after Tonga suddenly changed to a Raw Marks System although there remain doubts  among parents, students and educators, over the wisdom of the change that is impacting opportunities for Tongans to seek higher education opportunies overseas, the Ministry defends its decision.

Regional assessments

 According to the Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Education, Claude Tupou, all 15 member countries of the Educational Quality Assessment Program (EQAP), including Tonga, have adopted Raw Marks Systems.

"Fiji had adopted the Raw Marks system, but they state only the figures, not the Outcome Based results," he said.

Tonga remains the only country in the region that had advanced and established its own National Raw Marks, Outcome Based System, where certificates issued to students show only the Achievement Level and not the marks on every subject. A range of marks corresponding to each Achievement Level are printed on the back of the certificates.

The Outcome Based System is an educational theory that bases each part of an educational system around goals (outcomes). By the end of the educational experience, each student should have achieved the goals.

For Tonga's Forms Five, Six and Seven students sitting Tonga School Certificate, Tonga Form Six Certificate and the Tonga National Form Seven Certificate, the achievement level in each subject is referred to as either "Distinction", "Excellence", "Merit", "Achieved" and "Beginner". The range of marks that differentiate these levels of achievements are shown the back of the certificate as: Distinction 93-100, Excellence 77-92, Merit 58-76, Achieved 48-57 and Beginner 1-47.

Claude said they believe it is kinder to refer to a person with 1-47 as a "beginner" rather than a "failure.”

However, it does not satisfy the demand from some of these higher education institutions that Tongan students have applied to, that want to know the exact marks that a student gets for each subject.

The Tonga School Certificate and Tonga Seventh Form Certificates documents also have spelling errors in the explanations for why the certificates are awarded.

According to the Examination Unit of the Ministry of Education, the exact marks are detailed in a note that is presented with the certificate to the students and given to the students when they are presented with their certificate. More detailed reports on the strength and weakness of the students in each subject are distributed to their schools.

‘Ileini Takeifanga from the Curriculum Division of the Ministry of Education stressed the importance for the teachers to work closely with students, and with the Ministry in order to make the National Raw Marks, Outcome Based System a success.