assessment

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Exam series

Each year, the GM is held in two exam series: in Spring (May–June) and in Autumn (August–September). In March, Year 4 students sit the mock exam (only the exam in the mother tongue is compulsory) where they become acquainted with the technical side of sitting the exam but can also assess their level of knowledge in individual subjects. The dates of individual written exams and the publishing of exam results, etc., are determined by the Key Dates Calendar for the General Matura.

Compulsory and optional parts

Candidates sit the GM in five subjects. Note: Examination materials for the General and the Vocational Matura are compiled by different national exam committees and question papers are not the same (e.g. there are two different Slovene exams, two different Mathematics exams, two different English exams, etc.).

Subjects of the ‘core’ or compulsory part of the exam are:

Optional subjects are:

Ancient Greek, Art History, Biology, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Contemporary Dance, Economics, Electrical Engineering, Engineering Mechanics, English, French, Geography, German, History, History and Theory of Theatre and Film, Hungarian as a Second Language, Information Technology, Italian, Italian as a Second Language, Latin, Materials, Music, Philosophy, Physics, Psychology, Russian, Slovene as a Second Language, Sociology, Spanish and Theory of Art.

The rules on the selection of optional subjects are determined by the General Matura Curriculum.

Foundation and higher tiers

Ancient Greek, English, French, German, Italian, Latin, Mathematics, Russian and Spanish can be taken at either of two difficulty levels (tiers): foundation or higher. Each candidate can take no more than two subjects on the higher tier. Exams in the three mother tongues are one-tier exams only; however, there is a peculiarity in assessment (i.e. marks are converted into eight grades, the same as on the higher exam tiers).
 

Grade boundaries

Achievement in both the written and school-based parts of each exam is expressed in marks and in proportions defined by subject specifications and marking schemes. A candidate’s total score in each GM exam is the combined sum of marks achieved in individual parts of the exam. The highest score in any individual subject is one hundred percent (100%).

According to the proposals drawn up by each national exam committee, the National Committee establish criteria for the conversion of marks into grades (i.e. how many percent are required in any individual subject for each grade). These criteria are the same in both the Spring and Autumn exam series.

Achievement in the GM is expressed by a standard five-grade scale comprising the following grades: Insufficient (Grade 1), Sufficient (Grade 2), Good (Grade 3), Very Good (Grade 4) and Excellent (Grade 5). Candidates pass the exam if they get at least Grade 2.

Additional points for exams on the higher tier and exams in a mother tongue (Slovene, Hungarian and Italian)

In exams on the higher tier and exams in a mother tongue (Slovene, Hungarian and Italian), Grades 3, 4 and 5 are split into two parts (can be halves but not necessarily), i.e. the lower interval and the higher interval. Additional points are awarded in the following manner:

  • 1 point is added to the higher interval of Grade 3 and the lower interval of Grade 4 (3+1=4 and 4+1=5);
  • 2 points are added to the higher interval of Grade 4 and the lower interval of Grade 5 (4+2=6 and 5+2=7);
  • 3 points are added to the higher interval of Grade 5 (5+3=8).

As a result, there are eight grades on the higher tier (as opposed to five on the foundation tier).

General achievement in the GM

Candidates pass the GM if they achieve a positive grade in all GM exams.

Candidates are awarded a Near Pass (Grade 2) in any of the subjects of the compulsory part of the GM if they achieve:

  • at least 80% of marks required for Grade 2 in the subject in question on the foundation tier and
  • a positive grade in all other subjects, and at least two of these must be at least Grade 3.

Candidates are awarded a Near Pass (Grade 2) in any of the subjects of the optional part of the GM if they achieve:

  • at least 80% of marks required for Grade 2 in the subject in question on the foundation tier and
  • a positive grade in all other subjects, and at least one of these must be at least Grade 3.

A candidate’s overall achievement is expressed in points and is the sum of the grades awarded in all exams (the maximum number of points is 34 with two subjects on the higher tier, e.g. 8+8+8+5+5=34 or 8+5+8+8+5=34 where the first 8 is always the mother tongue).

Candidates pass the GM with outstanding achievement if they reach or exceed the number of points determined by the National Committee for any individual academic year. To date, the so-called ‘Golden Matura Candidates’ have had to achieve at least 30 points.

Protection of candidates’ rights – online access to scripts and review of results

On the day exam results are issued, candidates can check their results online and can then access their scripts in all of the subjects at http.//matura.ric.si. During the period set for access to scripts (three days) as determined by the Key Dates Calendar for the General Matura, candidates may access their scripts an unlimited number of times.

The deadline for submitting a request for a review of the results is the day following the three-day period allowing access to scripts. There are two reviews of results available:

  • review of marking if they believe the examiner has marked the paper incorrectly, or
  • clerical re-check if they believe marks awarded on the paper were summed up incorrectly, or that the data were improperly transferred to the computer database etc.).

Until the deadline for submitting a request for the review of results, candidates can submit and resubmit their requests any number of times. Candidates must pay administrative fees for access to scripts and any subsequent review of results. If the review of marking ends in a raised subject grade, the fees are reimbursed.

Reviews of marking are decided on by the National Committee no later than 60 days after receiving the review request. Their decision is final.

If they believe that during the administration of school-based parts of the exam the required procedures were not followed, candidates are allowed to submit a request for a review of results to the exam office in accordance with the rules and the Key Dates Calendar for the General Matura.

The decisions of exam offices regarding requests are final.

Resitting exams and improving grades

Candidates who pass the GM but wish to improve their grade in one or more subjects are entitled to a single resitting of the exam(s) up to two years after their first sitting of the GM. They are also entitled to change tier. The higher of the two grades is awarded.

Candidates fail the GM if they fail one or more exams. Candidates with at least three passes are entitled to resit failed exams up to two years after their first sitting of the GM. They are entitled to change tier when doing so.

Candidates who sat the GM in two parts (e.g. candidates with special needs, candidates who compete in high-level sports competitions, etc.) are entitled to resit failed exam(s) or improve the grade in the subject they took in the first part while taking the second part of the GM. This means that these candidates have already used this exam series for resitting and/or improvement of grades in the following exam series.

 

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