Dhaka
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Applications for re-scrutiny of answer
scripts have reached an unprecedented level this year following the publication
of the SSC and equivalent examination results. Within the seven-day application
period, 400,251 students submitted requests to have a total of 1,287,926
subject papers rechecked.
According to officials of the education
boards, the number of applications has increased by around 550,000 compared
with last year. On average, each applicant sought re-scrutiny of three subjects.
The SSC and equivalent examination results,
published on August 10, showed an average pass rate of 62.25% this year, down
from 68.45% in 2025. The pass rate fell by 6.20 percentage points in a year.
The number of students securing GPA-5 also dropped by more than 22,000 compared
with the previous year.
Education board officials believe one of the
major reasons behind the surge in applications is a change in the answer-script
re-scrutiny process.
Previously, re-scrutiny mainly involved
checking for errors in adding marks, omitted marks for answers, or answers that
had not been evaluated.
This year, however, provisions have been
introduced to re-evaluate the entire answer script, increasing students’
interest in challenging their results. Many students who failed to achieve
their expected grades applied in the hope of securing higher marks under the
new system.
Officials also believe the relatively
stricter evaluation of examination scripts, the lower overall pass rate and the
decline in GPA-5 results contributed to the sharp rise in applications.
The Dhaka Education Board received the
highest number of applications. A total of 335,677 applications were submitted
for theoretical and practical subjects.
Of these, 277,665 applications were for
theoretical subjects and 58,012 for practical subjects.
The Chattogram Board received 137,601
applications, followed by Rajshahi with 122,228, the Madrasa Education Board
with 117,059 and Cumilla with 112,611.
The Dinajpur Board received 111,260
applications, Jessore 91,059, Mymensingh 87,157, Barishal 61,086, Sylhet 60,974
and the Technical Education Board 51,214.
Education board data show that English and
mathematics received relatively high numbers of re-scrutiny applications. At
the Dhaka Board alone, around 46,000 applications were submitted for English
and nearly 34,000 for mathematics.
Officials said many students sought
re-scrutiny after receiving lower-than-expected marks. However, it is not yet
possible to say how many students will see their results change following the
re-evaluation.
Professor Syed Akhtaruzzaman, coordinator of
the Inter-Education Board and chairman of the Dhaka Education Board, said
applications had increased unusually this year because of the opportunity to have
answer scripts evaluated under the new system.
He said the education boards would try to
complete the re-scrutiny process and publish the revised results as quickly as
possible.
Professor Khondokar Ehsanul Kabir, a former
chairman of the Dhaka Education Board, said students have the right to seek
re-scrutiny of their answer scripts. Changes in regulations, dissatisfaction
with results and the revised evaluation system had collectively contributed to
the increase in applications.
With students now able to seek a full
re-evaluation of their answer scripts, expectations have also risen. The
biggest challenge for the education boards will be to process the huge number
of applications and publish the revised results within the stipulated
timeframe.
