Dhaka, July 11 -- The Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent exam results have registered their sharpest decline in 15 years, and observers are pointing to two broad explanations: a steep drop in pass rates in English and mathematics, and the drastic downturn in results from the Barishal and Mymensingh education boards.

A closer look at the data reveals severe underperformance in key subjects. Yet some education experts say the biggest shift this year may lie not in what students wrote, but in how their answer sheets were evaluated.

For years, they argue, SSC results were artificially produced by inflated marking, a policy unofficially pursued under the Awami League government to show progress in education.

This year, with a...