EduMin Sorin Cimpeanu: Baccalaureate exam pass rate at 73.3 pct, a 10-year high

The pass rate at the first session of the national Baccalaureate exam for current 12th graders and graduates from previous years is 73.3 percent, a 10-year best, Education Minister Sorin Cimpeanu told a press conference on Monday.

"I would like to start by congratulating all the 89,000 successful candidates in this session of the Baccalaureate exam, before the filing of score appeals. Last year we had 86,000 successful candidates, by almost 3,000 fewer. More precisely 2,928, although last year there were by 7,211 more exam takers registered. The pass rate is 73.3 percent for the class of 2022 and high school graduates from previous years. It's the highest pass rate since 2013, pre-appeal, a 10-year high," Cimpeanu said.

The Education Minister mentioned that the Baccalaureate exam pass rate is 78.3 for class of 2022 graduates and 32.1 percent for candidates from previous years.

According to the Minister, digital evaluation went very well in Calarasi County, with the results of a satisfaction questionnaire "overwhelmingly" speaking in favor of the digital assessment, as paper correcting teachers enthusiastically support this trend as well.

"Next year we want to be able to expand the digital evaluation nationwide," Cimpeanu said.

On a critical note, he added that it is not normal for high schools to have a mixed study stream and said that every such institution should take on a clearly defined path.

"At the Pedagogical High School we also have public catering classes. Which, I say this with all responsibility, is not normal. Each high school must assume its path. They must develop their human resources, infrastructure and put in efforts to deliver along a certain study stream. These so called 'mosaic' high schools will undergo a detailed analysis, as the pass rates there are low and very low," the Minister added.

Cimpeanu said that the schools that obtained results "well below average" will come under scrutiny starting with Monday.

"There were schools with not even one successful candidate at the Baccalaureate exam and in a few days we will also have the report on the reasons for not signing up for this exam. (...) We will look with particular care at those schools with failed Baccalaureate candidates. (...) I refuse to believe that we have colleagues so cynical that they do not allow access to the Baccalaureate exam in order to prevent the situation where none of those enrolled passes. I refuse to believe it, but we will carefully examine the situation," said the Education Minister.

Cimpeanu mentioned that the Baccalaureate exam could be changed at the earliest starting with 2027, after the bill that implements the conclusions of the "Educated Romania" project is adopted. AGERPRES