National Examinations Board (NEB) released the Class 12 results, revealing a slight improvement compared to the previous year's performance. According to the official statistics, 50.91 percent of the examinees have successfully passed the examination. Conversely, 49.09 percent of students have been non-graded.
The grading system this year entails that only candidates securing a minimum of 35% marks in both theoretical and practical sections will be placed in the successful "graded" category. Those failing to achieve this threshold in both sections are designated as "non-graded."
Grade-wise Improvement
There has been a noticeable increase in the number of students achieving higher grades compared to the previous year. Remarkably, 6,976 candidates scored a GPA ranging from 3.61 to 4, marking a significant increment of 2,797 individuals from last year.
Similarly, 38,999 students achieved a GPA between 3.21 and 3.60, showcasing an increase of 8,892 students from the previous year. Moreover, 69,174 individuals attained a GPA between 2.81 and 3.20, signifying a rise of 3,890 students compared to last year.
However, the number of candidates securing a GPA between 2.41 and 2.80 experienced a slight decline, standing at 63,077 this year, which is 1,016 fewer than the previous year. On the other hand, 11,438 students scored a GPA between 2.1 and 2.40, indicating an increment of 538 students. Notably, only 47 candidates managed to achieve a GPA between 1.61 and 2, marking an increase of 12 individuals compared to the previous year.
Theory vs Practical
One of the most intriguing aspects of the results is the significant gap between theoretical and practical sections. For instance, in the Nepali subject, only 1,717 individuals excelled in the theoretical section with an A+ grade. However, an impressive 183,548 candidates secured an A+ grade in the practical aspect of the same subject. This disparity appears to be influenced by the fact that practical subject teachers are solely responsible for assigning marks. A similar trend is observed in subjects such as compulsory English, social studies, vital education, and mathematics.
Dr. Mahashram Sharma, Chairman of the examination board, attributed the improved results to enhancements in question formulation and the content outlined in the new syllabus. Dr. Sharma also claimed that the introduction of a new system for assessing answer sheets and awarding marks has contributed to the overall improvement.
Grade Increment Examination
The Class 12 examination 2080 witnessed the participation of 372,637 candidates across 1,457 examination centers nationwide. Notably, over 56,000 students, aside from regular participants, joined the grade enhancement examination.
The recent amendments to the letter grading guidelines have enabled the board to conduct grade enhancement exams solely in subjects with "NG" (non-graded) status, effective from this year. This contrasts with the earlier rule where students with "NG" in more than two subjects were required to retake exams in all subjects the following year.
Subject-wise Pass Rate
Among the subjects, compulsory English saw the highest number of candidates falling into the non-graded group, with an astounding 109,527 students in this category. Similarly, 51,104 students in social education and livelihood subjects, as well as 38,452 individuals in compulsory Nepali, were placed in the non-graded group.
