2023 teaching exam failure rate not unusually high

Despite public outcry that the exams to enter teaching were too hard, exam results for the appointment of new teachers exhibited a similar pass rate to other years, the head of the examinations Demetris Chandriotis said on Thursday.

The results of the November 2023 examinations announced last Friday present a similar picture to the three previous series of examinations in 2017, 2019 and 2021, with the overall success rate of teachers during these four series ranging from 37 per cent to 42 per cent, Chandriotis said.

“The results were more or less the same as the previous series of examinations. The absolute number of teachers who have succeeded during the 2023 examination is significantly increased, it was more than 20 per cent, as the total participation was also increased [from around 2,280],” he added, saying that this proves its success.

This year exams were held for the fourth time since 2015, when a system of placement based on a list of all those who desired a position began to be legally dismantled.

However, in some subjects, notably in philology and maths, the pass rate this year was just seven per cent. This translated to a total of 31 Greek teachers and 23 Maths teachers qualifying in total.

The current plan is that by 2027, only teachers who pass a biennially-offered exam in their teaching subject will be eligible for appointment.