The Phenomenon of Mass Excellence in the Libyan Secondary School Certificate: A Comparative Analytical Study Between the Science and social Sections and its Implications for Assessment Quality and Academic Distinction (An analytical study based on the res
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65405/trxjrn82Keywords:
Group excellence, Libyan secondary school certificate, grade inflation, assessment quality, academic distinction, science section, arts section, National Examinations Center.Abstract
This study explores a phenomenon that has become the subject of widespread debate in the Libyan educational landscape, namely what can be termed “mass excellence”; that is, the unprecedented concentration of high scores and grades in the secondary school certificate examination results, exceeding what can be explained by an actual improvement in learning outcomes. The study began with the official announcement of the first session results for the academic year (2025–2026), which recorded an overall success rate of 77.28%, a record increase of approximately 20.7 percentage points compared to the previous year (56.62%). Quantitative analysis showed that 66.9% of the total cases included in the official grading distribution (103,244 students) received the grade "Excellent." The percentage of those achieving Excellent in the science section was 71.2% of the total cases included in the official grading distribution (61,494 students out of 86,412), while it was 45.0% in the humanities section (7,402 students out of 16,437). Combining the Excellent and Very Good grades, the percentage of those achieving both "Excellent" and "Very Good" in the science section reached approximately 95.5% of the total cases included in the grading distribution (and 85.9% in the humanities section), making the lower grades (Good and Acceptable) almost nonexistent in the distribution. Historical comparisons documented that the percentage of those achieving "Excellent" in the science section increased from 55.6% in 2022–2023 to The study found that the Libyan student performance rate is projected to reach 71.2% in (2025–2026), rising from approximately 29% nationally in (2013–2014) to 66.9% in 2026. Using the International Framework for Grade Inflation and Score Inflation, the study concluded that the surge in Libyan results is not based on justifiable variables (such as student density, documented methodological reforms, or documented improvements in the educational infrastructure). The available qualitative evidence, ranging from complaints about the difficulty of mathematics and physics exams to an analysis of mathematics questions showing that 89.4% of items fell within the lower levels of Bloom's Taxonomy, suggests that the most likely explanation lies in the ease of the exams and the low threshold for discrimination, uncontrolled effects in the administration of the exams, or a combination of both. Furthermore, the 26.1-point gap in the percentage of students achieving "Excellent" marks between the two sections reveals that overall excellence is not uniform across all sections, but rather is subject to the logic of the subjects and the nature of their marking. This research study is a new analytical evidence supports this conclusion: the performance of Libyan students abroad (their near-average success rates despite a stable educational environment point to local determinants in the structure of the results); the simulation of the gradual decline in assessment variance (the reduction of estimated dispersion in the science section to 0.60); an international comparison showing that the Libyan rate exceeds that of well-structured Arab systems (the Jordanian Tawjihi at 65.3%, the Egyptian secondary school certificate at approximately 64%); and a documented immediate impact on the Libyan university scholarship system, which opened registration one day before the results were announced. The study concludes that the discriminatory nature of the secondary school certificate and the impoverishment of its classification function undermine the academic credentials upon which universities rely for admissions and scholarships, and weaken the certificate's informational value in the job market. The study concludes by presenting a matrix of practical recommendations directed to the National Examinations Center and the Ministry of Education, foremost among them the adoption of quality control standards for tests (difficulty and discrimination indicators according to item response theory) and the implementation of the normalization curve in the coming years to move towards a more equitable distribution. Moderation without actually harming those who succeed.
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