ABU DHABI // The number of pupils who have sufficient English skills to go straight into university has risen by 13 times to almost 5,000 in 12 years.
The head of the common educational proficiency assessment, or Cepa, said 4,970 students were this year ready to go into higher studies without a foundation year, which will be scrapped in 2018.
“When we held our first nation-wide tests in 2003 there were only 383 high school students who had the English to go directly to college, without the need for preparatory courses,” Ryan Gjovig said.
Applicants must sit Cepa tests and those who score 180 and above qualify without a remedial course. Success rates have risen to 29 per cent of the population this year from 11 per cent in 2010.
Wayne Jones, director of foundation at Zayed University, said there had been “big improvements” from high school applicants. Five years ago, only 20 per cent of students would qualify for direct entry into his university. That rose to 30 per cent last year and 40 this year.
The number of pupils starting in the lowest of the three levels in the course, needing more remedial English, is declining. Five years ago it was about half; now it is only a third.
Mr Jones said reforms had helped at the ZU campuses in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. There was more English instruction and extra tuition was available where needed.
But many pupils still struggle with the shift from high school to university and will need help after the foundation year is scrapped, Mr Gjovig said.
“What do we do with the 60 per cent of high-school graduates who have applied for higher education but don’t have the English-language ability to be accepted into college?” he asked.
He said increasing the push towards vocational education might be one option, and “I would also hope that a few Arabic-medium programmes be introduced some time in the future”.
Mr Jones agreed that less capable students would need continued support beyond 2018.
“It would be useful in the future to have some kind of language centres to make sure students’ language development continues, not only in the start but through their course at university,” he said.
“We have to support their development. A reduction in foundations is natural but we have to make sure we support the students in their academic programmes as well.”
Mariam Al Taher, 17, from Ajman, was entered directly into UAEU’s medical programme this year after studying at the Applied Technology High School System, which has had huge improvement in the number of students achieving direct-entry grades.
With 16 campuses around the country and about 8,000 students, the school has put more emphasis pupils arrive in Year 9.
In 2009, only 22 per cent of pupils made direct entry, compared to 58 per cent last year and 66 per cent this year.
Ms Al Taher said she could see the benefits.
“I can specialise faster and younger than many of the students going through the foundations,” she said. “Skipping that year helps because I want to spend more time specialising in surgery.”
mswan@thenational.ae
