High Court calls for system to support advanced students

The High Court has ruled that the education system should include a mechanism to ensure that students who perform above their age level are not held back in their studies and are given the opportunity to move to a higher grade.

The ruling was issued in a case filed by a parent of a student at Kangaroo Kids, who challenged a decision taken under a circular applied to a child who had already entered the school system.

One of the issues raised in the case related to the student’s age and academic ability.

In its judgment, the High Court said the Ministry of Education had not sufficiently considered the child’s development or the extent to which the child’s academic ability exceeded his or her age.

The court said that under the Education Act and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which the Maldives is a party, the state has a responsibility to shape a child’s education by taking into account individual circumstances.

The court said the education system should allow a child to reach his or her potential through a learning process that matches the child’s level of ability and does not cause disengagement.

The judgment said the ministry should develop uniform policies, standards and procedures to assess children who are performing above their age level, instead of relying only on assessments conducted by parents.

The court noted that there are students in the Maldives who have completed A-level examinations before reaching the usual age limit, indicating that some children progress faster than others.

The High Court said the current system often moves students through each level without adequate flexibility and, in some cases, without properly taking into account the child’s ability and need for adjustment.