Maldives to Introduce International Benchmark Exams for Key Stage One Students

Students in Key Stage One across the Maldives will sit for an international assessment in November 2026 to benchmark their academic performance against global peers. The announcement was made by the Minister of Education, Higher Education and Skills Development, Ismail Shafeeu, during the release of the Key Stage Three National Assessment of Learning Outcomes report. Minister Shafeeu emphasized that the government is shifting toward an evidence-based approach to shape the national education system. While previous national assessments for Key Stage One and Two were conducted, the Minister noted that past results were not sufficiently utilized to implement meaningful changes. The ministry is now leveraging historical assessment data to drive comprehensive curriculum reforms and policy shifts. Aligned with President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu’s presidential address, the Ministry of Education is currently revising thematic textbooks and evolving teaching methodologies. These updates aim to improve outcomes for both students and educators, with the Quality Assurance Department's national assessments serving as a critical guide for these improvements. Recent data from the Key Stage Three assessments, which covered five subjects, indicated that students performed relatively well in Islam and Dhivehi. However, Mathematics remains a significant area of concern, with consistent underperformance noted across previous assessments. This trend has prompted the ministry to prioritize teacher training and curriculum overhauls specifically for Key Stage One Mathematics. To address the gap in numeracy, the ministry is working to make mathematics textbooks more engaging and is increasing the total classroom time allocated to the subject. The upcoming November assessment will specifically measure student proficiency in Mathematics, Science, and English against international standards, providing the data necessary to validate these interventions. In addition to academic reforms, the Minister revealed that the ministry has implemented a new monitoring system since last month to more accurately track student attendance rates across the country.