HK sees decline in TSA performance of P3 students

The percentage of primary three pupils meeting basic competency levels in this year's Territory-wide System Assessment (TSA) has declined.  

The news came as the Education Bureau released on Monday the results of the assessment, which evaluates the learning performance of Primary Three, Primary Six and Form Three students in three core subjects. 

According to the report, 80.9 percent of P3 students met basic competency levels in Chinese, which is lower than last year's 82.4 percent; the figure for English fell from 79.5 percent to 78.7 percent.  As for Mathematics, it dropped to 85.3 percent from 86.5 percent.  

Meanwhile, the performance of Form Three students remains generally steady. The percentage of those making the grade in Chinese and Mathematics was higher than last year’s figure, standing at 77 percent and 79 percent, respectively. The figure for English has fallen 0.8 percentage points to 67 percent.  

A bureau spokesperson thanked the school sector for continuously adopting diversified teaching strategies and measures over the past year to cater to students' different needs and raise students' interests and learning abilities.  

“The EDB will continue to work closely with all stakeholders, render full support to schools, strengthen teachers' professional capacities, and enhance learning and teaching effectiveness through organizing teacher training, enriching learning and teaching resources, such as continuing to enhance the Student Assessment Repository as a one-stop platform for learning, teaching and assessment, organizing diversified activities, and providing appropriate school-based support services,” the spokesman said.  

The spokesperson also said the TSA, having been enhanced in 2018, has been implemented according to its policy intent and position as “a low-stake assessment with emphasis on feedback” in a satisfactory manner without increasing the burden on students.