There are fresh calls for greater accountability after more than 10,000 Jamaican students failed to show up for this year's regional examinations, potentially leaving taxpayers to foot a bill of up to five million dollars for Mathematics and English Language exams that were never written.
The bill could increase when the fees for other subjects covered by the Government are considered.
The absenteeism has triggered concern among stakeholders that public money is being wasted on examinations that some candidates simply do not turn up to sit.
Data from the Ministry of Education showed that 10,481 Jamaican students did not show up for the Caribbean Examinations Council's (CXC) May/June 2026 sitting. Of these, 6,046 were public school candidates.
For the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), 1,517 Jamaican public school candidates did not turn up, while 4,529 public school students taking the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) missed their exams.
Among those missing the CSEC papers were hundreds of students who failed to sit two of the most important subjects in the secondary school curriculum: 447 public school students missed mathematics, while 559 did not show up for English language.
Regionally, 35,000 candidates did not turn up for CXC exams in the latest sitting. But, while some students may have had legitimate reasons for missing the exams, educators and parent advocates say absenteeism has become part of a wider culture of weak accountability.
For taxpayers, however, the issue is also a financial one.
The Government subsidises the examination fees for key subjects, including Mathematics and English Language, meaning every unjustified absence represents public money spent without the intended educational benefit.
A total of 20,459 public school students were entered for English Language, at an average cost of $4,947.50 each. This amounted to J$101,220,902.50. Similarly, 18,309 students entered for Mathematics at the same average cost, for a total of $90,583,777.50.
Using the raw absentee figures, the bill for the missed Mathematics and English Language examinations alone could have reached up to $5 million.
Cannot be ignored
The ministry noted, however, that some students may not have benefited from the subsidy if they did not meet the qualifying grade. Still, Dr Kasan Troupe, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, says the waste associated with unjustified absenteeism cannot not be ignored.
In an interview with the Gleaner, Dr Troupe argued that "Every unjustified absence from examination is a loss of taxpayers' money and a disregard for the investment being made in the ministry, generally, and the readiness for a successful future for Jamaica.
She added that the success of the education system is a partnership, which requires “all hands on deck,” including the students.
Not new
Linvern Wright, Principal of William Knibb Memorial High School, says the high rate of absenteeism is not peculiar to this year. He blames it on what he describes as the cavalier attitude of some students towards education.
According to Mr Wright, the absence from exams is a symptom of many students not taking the process of education seriously.
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