VERY good results by Malay students in 2005 in key school exams skewed trend figures, giving the impression that last year's batch did not fare as well.

Self-help group Mendaki said this on Friday, adding that there is no cause for concern as, 2005 apart, the trend was upward.

From data released by the Ministry of Education (MOE) last week, Malay students showed a dip in results at the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), and the O- and A-level exams.

For instance, the data showed the percentage of Malay students passing the PSLE dropping from 94.4 in 2005 to 93.5 last year.

But, issuing its own analysis on Friday, Mendaki chief executive officer Zuraidah Abdullah said the 2006 results were similar or better than 2004's.

In the PSLE in 2004, 93.5 per cent passed.

She said the 'apparent dip from the 2005 results is not large enough to indicate a major shift,' she said, adding that the dip was within the year-to-year variation.

It was the same case with regard to the 'seemingly worrying trend' in the O levels. Ignoring the 2005 results, 'the trend line from 2004 towards 2006 is an upward one,' she noted.

Data from the MOE had shown that the percentage of Malay students with at least three O-level passes had declined from 89.7 in 2005 to 87.1 per cent last year.

But when compared with 85.6 per cent in 2004, the trend was upward.