The Ministry of Education, Science, and Innovation provided a positive assessment of the recent completion of the final exams for the 9th grade in Mathematics and Portuguese, marking their debut in a digital format.
“Overall, the exams proceeded smoothly and calmly, with only minor issues that schools managed to resolve promptly, causing no impact on the conduct of the exams,” stated the MECI press office.
One noted issue involved a malfunction in the IAVE platform during the Mathematics exam, prompting the authorities to cancel item 2, which accounted for five points out of 100, to ensure fairness and that “no student is disadvantaged in their final score.”
“The problem related to associating elements from one column with another. Although not widespread, some students were technically unable to complete item 2 at the time, which they managed to complete later. Only 4% of students, including those with specific educational needs, completed their exam beyond 120 minutes, utilizing the supplemental time as planned,” explained the MECI.
Additionally, the ministry revealed that, at the exam’s conclusion, “the sharing of exam items was recorded,” despite efforts to keep questions confidential for future comparisons of student progress.
“This situation is regrettable but does not affect this year’s exam or student results. It will only impact the preparation of next year’s exam,” the ministry stated.
The final exams, held for the first time digitally, saw 97,352 Portuguese exams administered on June 25, representing 99% of the scheduled exams. 99% of students began on time, with only 2% exceeding 120 minutes, using available supplementary time.
On June 20, five days earlier, 97,450 students took the Mathematics exam, comprising 99% of expected exams, with 97% starting within the scheduled timeframe, according to official data.
For the digital exam implementation, the ministry conducted four surveys among Directors to identify and address needs.
“A total of 15.4 million euros was allocated to schools to overcome challenges and ensure exams proceeded normally and calmly,” added the press office.
The MECI also approved the hiring of 27 specialized IT network technicians for the 27 school groups and individual schools that reported this need in the last survey conducted in May.
“These technicians were present in schools to accompany and resolve any technical issues during the 9th grade final exams,” the statement noted.
