It is an historical achievement that has been accomplished in the higher education in the Sultanate. This year, the total number of General Diploma graduates are 38,000 and they are offered about 32,000 jobs; it seems as if they are given free opportunities to get enrolled in any of the higher education institutions. The numbers are very encouraging and pleasing as well. If all these opportunities have been offered 10 years back the situation would have been very different and much better than the current one.

We were lacking in finding trained and skillful employees, even as today millions of rials are being spent in a bid to train them in training centres which most offer nothing, but certificate of completing the training. Those who attend such courses either before getting a job or in-job training realise how careless these trainees are. Let’s go to the real story… there is a lost number which is not figured out yet. The number lost is between all the 66,611 students who sat for the exams and the 38,000 who passed the exams.

Thus, where are the rest of students? In the total number of students who appeared in this year’s exams about 18,000 failed the final exams. They were unable to cope up with the challenging exams and the results of those who passed the exams are very low. The digital marking process doesn’t lie. However, there is no doubt that the Ministry of Education will defend the marking process and encourage its media staff to promote this new system and its success because it is the ministry’s project. In fact, I don’t know why some teachers criticise the digital marking.

Personally, I contacted an official in the Higher Education Ministry and I thought he was exaggerating when he said that after the first semester the number of those who failed was more than 20,000 students. Another teacher said that it is a real issue and the Education Ministry is striving to make the exams easier in the next semester in order to reduce the number of failures. In order not to blame the ministry, which is very strict in the exams of the General Diploma, there are other issues that should be taken into consideration as well.

There are some graduates who are unable to read or write properly, although they spent 12 years studying at school. Such educational problems are could not be solved by giving a certificate, which means the future for many. However, there should be a gradual improvement and follow-up of those problems. Some teachers also became a weak link in transforming the information to students who are stubborn and show behaviour nowadays. All these numbers will be added to other numbers in the years to come. Therefore, this issue should be given more attention before it becomes a threat to the society.