Education director-general Azman Adnan said the reasons cited by these students included their family’s financial difficulties and lifestyle choices, Bernama reported.

Other reasons that led to candidates skipping their SPM included family-related issues (35.5%) and health problems (4.7%).

Azman said there was also a rise in candidates who failed all of their subjects, from 1,467 in 2023 to 1,789 last year. He said the contributing factors included students working night shifts.

“One of the causes for this (failing all subjects) is a lack of focus on learning, as many of these students work night shifts, especially those in urban areas,” he said.

Unresolved literacy and numeracy issues and the absence of a supportive home learning environment were also contributing factors, he added.

However, Azman said the number of candidates who skipped their SPM went down from 8,676 in 2023 to 6,246 last year.

“This is a positive development, and we will continue intensifying efforts to bring this number down to zero.”