Senior six national examination results for this year indicate a drop in performance of four percentage points compared to 2019 when national examinations were last conducted.
The Ministry of Education released the results on Nov. 15 where students performed at 85.3 per cent, noting a decline from 89.5 per cent in 2019.
The results were announced by Valentine Uwamariya, the Minister of Education at the ministry headquarters in Kacyiru, Kigali.
A total of 47,399 candidates sat for this year’s national exams, and 40,435 of them passed.
Among those who passed, 51.6 per cent are girls representing a total number of 20,880 while boys are 19,555 or 48.4 per cent.
At least 679 private candidates sat for exams and 467 of them passed, which is 1.15 per cent of the total students who passed.
The pass mark remained at 9 aggregates while the highest score is 73.
The pandemic disrupted the education system, forcing school closures and halting the examination calendar where these students were supposed to have sat in 2020.
However, Uwamariya said that the students across all categories (general education, Teacher Training College (TTC), and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)) performed well at 98 per cent.
Abdul Karim Mugisha, a student in Physics, Chemistry and Math at Riviera High School said he is extremely happy for being the best performer despite the difficulties he met during Covid-19.
"It was hard for me too but I took time to revise my notes with the help of teachers as it demanded commitment and faith,” he said.
Kellia Umuhuza Gatete, the second-best performer who studied Maths, Physics and Geography at Gashora Girls Academy encouraged her fellow girls to be bold and courageous, that they can succeed as well.
"We were used to teachers closely following up on our studies, but during Covid-19 it was really hard studying by ourselves. I thank our school that helped us with online platforms to keep in touch with our teachers,” she said.
Those who scored below the passing marks will have an option to repeat the national exams as private candidates.