The Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) have jointly introduced a new scoring system for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) based on Achievement Levels (ALs). The new system aims to shift away from an over-emphasis on academic results by recognising students’ varying levels of achievements across different subjects.
In this new AL system, each subject is scored based on eight Achievement Levels (ALs), from AL1 to AL8. The best score a student can achieve in each subject is AL1, which corresponds to a raw score range of 90 to 100 marks. This represents a comprehensive and excellent understanding of the subject matter and a high proficiency in the skills associated with the subject.
However, you mentioned a score of 16 for PSLE in the context of the AL1 grading system. Here’s how this works. The total PSLE Score is the sum of the AL scores for all four subjects – English, Mathematics, Mother Tongue, and Science (or Higher Mother Tongue, in some cases). Each subject contributes a score from AL1 (best) to AL8 (least proficiency), where AL1 corresponds to 1 point, AL2 to 2 points, and so on.
Thus, a total PSLE Score of 16 with the AL1 grading system would signify a solid academic performance across all four subjects. This is calculated by adding up the individual AL scores for each subject (For example, 4 subjects with an AL score of 4 each would sum up to 16).
The total score range for the new PSLE scoring system is from 4 to 32, where 4 represents the highest possible score (AL1 in all four subjects), and 32 is the lowest possible score (AL8 in all four subjects). Therefore, a score of 16 is considered to be a commendable achievement in the context of the new PSLE scoring system, showcasing good understanding and proficiency across all four subjects.
It’s important to remember that this new system places a greater emphasis on students’ individual progress and learning, rather than just their final scores. The MOE and SEAB hope that the shift towards this AL grading system will create a more holistic, student-centric education system in Singapore.
As such, a PSLE score of 16 in the AL1 grading system for the MOE SEAB PSLE Examinations indicates a good level of understanding and proficiency in the four subjects examined. It reflects a balanced academic performance and suggests a strong foundation for moving on to secondary education.
