With the SPM 2009 results now out, students scoring straight ‘A's have every right to celebrate the culmination of their herculean effort in preparing for the exam.

However, the time has come for the way the SPM exam papers are marked to be changed. The current opaque grading system is ripe for manipulation, where the number of ‘A's awarded are not based on basic statistical techniques.

For example, in 2009, 7,897 students scored straight ‘A's. Merely four years ago, only 4,997 did.

Since the number of students sitting for the SPM exam has not increased by 60% in that time and it's unlikely that the level of education improved significantly, the only conclusion is that the cut-off pass level mark for an ‘A' has been lowered.

The better alternative to the current arbitrary grading system would be to grade the students on a curve with a certain fixed percent of them obtaining the appropriate grade.

In addition to an alphabetical grade, students should also be told what percentile they rank in relation to everyone else. For example, getting a ‘B' but ranking in the top 10% is a much better achievement than an ‘A' but only being in the top 20%.

It's time for straight-‘A' students to be able to stand proud and know unambiguously that they are in the top percentile of Form 5 students; the creme de la creme of the country.