Improving the Education Landscape
(ZIZ News)– The Minister of Education has revealed the government’s plan to radically change the landscape of education In St. Kitts And Nevis in the medium term.
The Hon. Nigel Carty said this plan will ensure the Federation continues to lead the entire region on the education front.
At the primary school level, Minister Carty said they are looking at replacing the annual Test of Standard System.
“This plan starting at the primary school level involves the introduction of a mode of continued assessment of our young boys and girls. The time has come for the rigid once per year, part or fail model of Test of Standards to be phased out and for us to engage in a new model of continued assessment throughout the school year,” he said.
He explained how students stand to benefit from this proposed change.
“Our children will gain in confidence, as they see their performance dramatically improved in all academic disciplines, as their faiths will not be tied to one end of the year exam. Evaluation exercises will involve group work which teaches collaboration instead of interpersonal competition and incorporation of age appropriate projects will encourage entrepreneurship, build attributes of personal initiative and ground students in civic mathematical, language and scientific literacy. We will therefore introduce a Caribbean Primary Exit Assessment, the CPEA, starting at grade 6 in the upcoming school year,” he said.
According to the Education Minister, changes will also take place at the secondary school level.
“For our secondary education system, our plan includes a re-orientation of our curriculum to provide a component for technical and vocational training and the arts for all of our students. To ensure very high quality, each secondary school will become a centre of excellence for a range of technical disciplines in the arts. Classrooms and other work spaces will be self contained, workshops will be state of the art, teaches in technical disciplines, Science and Mathematics will be systematically recruited. Schools will be further upgraded to meet the requirements of this new vision,” he said.