Two subjects continue to show unsatisfactory results in G-SAT

Language Arts and Social Studies continue to show less improved results in the annual Grade Six Achievement Test (G-SAT).

This was revealed at a press briefing on Tuesday, June 21, where the Ministry of Education provided a statistical breakdown of student performance.

With the exception of Language Arts and Social Studies, the ministry's data show an improvement in all other subject averages over the previous years.

In Mathematics, the pass rate stood at 61.9% compared with last year's figure of 56.9%.

Science had a pass rate of 63.3%, while last year the figure stood at 59.6%.

Communication Tasks showed an improvement of 70.4% compared with last year's 66.1%.

In all three subject areas, the girls out performed the boys.

The pass rate for Social Studies this year is 58, which is point one less than the figure for last year while in Language Arts the current pass rate of 57.8 8 compares with 58 for last year.

The ministry said special attention will have to be placed on these two subject areas and in particular, Language Arts.

  The curriculum covers reading, comprehension and parts of speech, and according to the ministry, students at the primary school level continue to perform poorly.

The G-SAT was conducted in 797 public and 207 private schools.

Eleven children were home schooled.

Forty three thousand four hundred and seventy nine students were registered for the exams and of that total 1,833 were absent.

Parents still prefer tradition high schools

Meanwhile Andrew Holness, the Minister of Education, is lamenting that parents continue to show a low level of interest in non traditional high schools.

The ministry's data show that out of 167 schools there is an overwhelming preference for only 50 high schools. 

"Every year at G-SAT time, (there’s) weeping and wailing (because students) can’t get into the school of (their) choice. For every place that is there (in one school), seven persons apply for it (while) one school putting up 700 spaces, (but) there’s zero application for those spaces. This minister will not allow that to continue," Mr. Holness said at Tuesday’s press conference.

He is in agreement with calls to upgrade the management of some schools.  

"With the National College for Education Leadership, no teacher will be appointed (to the post of principal) unless they have gone through this training and they received the professional qualifications of being able to manage a school. We intend to rescue the other 110 high schools and make them schools of choice," Mr. Holness stated.