Minister looks to silence final exam critics

National Education Minister Mohammad Nuh called Saturday for an end to criticism of final exams as the government would maintain its current policy in a bid to improve education in the country.

“These attacks on the system will not help improve education in the country. Critics of the policy are bashing it before it’s had a chance to succeed,” Nuh was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.

He said the government considered the national exam necessary to boost overall student competency in the wake of tough global competition.

The government, he added, would only consider comments that helped to improve the final exam system by blocking schools from cheating.

The Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of a civic action against the national final exam as the single factor determining whether students graduated.

The government insists on maintaining the policy of having a final exam, but admits schools and teachers had the final say in evaluating student competency.