A TOTAL OF 587,471 CANDIDATES REGISTERED FOR THE 2025 PRIMARY SCHOOL LEAVING EXAMINATION (PSLE), REPRESENTING AN INCREASE OF 8.17 PERCENT FROM 2024. AMONG THESE, 587,320 CANDIDATES WERE FROM ZAMBIAN SCHOOLS, WHILE 151 CANDIDATES WERE FROM ST. JEFF COLLEGE IN JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA.
IN TERMS OF SEX, 47.24 PERCENT OF THE CANDIDATES WHO ENTERED FOR THE 2025 PLSE EXAMINATION WERE BOYS, WHILE 52.76 PERCENT WERE GIRLS.
OUT OF THE 587,471 CANDIDATES WHO REGISTERED FOR THE 2025 EXAMINATION, 538,824 CANDIDATES REPRESENTING 91.72 PERCENT SAT THE EXAMINATION. THIS REPRESENTED A 0.16 PERCENT INCREASE FROM 2024. OF THESE, 256,859 (47.67%) WERE BOYS, AND 282,096 (52.33%) WERE GIRLS. IT IS WORTH NOTING THAT, LIKE THE 2024 EXAMINATION, MORE GIRLS REGISTERED AND SAT THE 2025 EXAMINATION.
THE ABSENTEEISM RATE FOR THE 2025 EXAMINATION DECREASED BY 1.18 PERCENTAGE POINTS, FROM 9.44 PERCENT IN 2024 TO 8.26 PERCENT IN 2025.
IN TERMS OF PERFORMANCE, A TOTAL OF 384,592 CANDIDATES, REPRESENTING 71.36 PERCENT, PASSED THE EXAMINATION BY OBTAINING DIVISIONS ONE TO THREE. THIS REPRESENTS A 0.17 PERCENTAGE POINTS IMPROVEMENT FROM THE 71.19 PERCENT IN 2024.
OF THE 384,592 CANDIDATES WHO PASSED THE EXAMINATION, 201,362 (47.64%) WERE BOYS, AND 183,230 (52.36%) GIRLS.
ON THE OTHER HAND, 154,373 CANDIDATES, REPRESENTING 28.64 PERCENT, FAILED THE EXAMINATION AND, THEREFORE, SHALL NOT PROCEED TO FORM ONE.
ALL THE 384,592 CANDIDATES WHO PASSED THE EXAMINATION HAVE BEEN SELECTED TO FORM 1 IN 2026. THE PROGRESSION RATE IN 2025 IS THEREFORE 71.36 PERCENT.