The compulsory arithmetic test which all secondary school pupils have to take is not only too difficult but the questions involve too much text, according to a committee set up to assess the new standard.

From the next academic year, pupils will have to pass the test in order to take part in their final exams.

So many pupils have failed the test during trials over the past two years that teachers have expressed their concern, Nos television reports. A committee set up to look at the test and its aims has now concluded their fears are justified.

The test is not only long but questions are formulated in vague terms, the committee says. The digital formulation also makes it impossible for pupils to check their answers or to skip a difficult question and return to it later.