Toll Gate Primary School Students Excel in PEP

Students of Toll Gate Primary and Infant School in Clarendon sitting the 2024 Primary Exit Profile (PEP) have excelled in their exams.

Of the 56 candidates entered, 38 were placed on Pathway One, representing a 68 per cent success rate, and the remaining 18 on Pathway Two.

The exam’s pathway system is tailored for the candidates’ level of competence.

Pathway One is for students deemed to be performing satisfactorily, the second Pathway is for children who have some form of delayed learning, while the third is for youngsters with special needs.

Toll Gate Primary’s Principal, Rev. Dr. Carol Brown-Clarke, who describes the results as “very excellent”, says the students performed well as a result of intervention strategies, where students are placed in learning groups according to their abilities or level of growth, and each week a teacher is mandated to scrutinise the cohorts that they are assigned to supervise.

She tells JIS News that staff development was also pivotal in this year’s PEP exam outcomes.

The Principal points out that teachers are engaged in regular development sessions.

Dr. Brown-Clarke says the students also participated in extra classes, which those sitting PEP are required to be part of during examination season, pointing out that this was also instrumental in the school’s success.

“I must commend my excellent teachers, who made time for extra lessons in the evenings, Saturdays, and even holidays. They dedicated themselves to the task, with support from parents,” she tells JIS News.

Dr. Brown-Clarke says the students exhibited the requisite application to their studies, which enabled them to perform well in their exams.

PEP provides a profile of students’ academic abilities and their readiness for grade seven.

It assesses their knowledge, placing significant focus on critical thinking and communication, among other skills.

According to the Ministry of Education and Youth, 30,302 students sitting the 2024 PEP exams have been placed in one of their preferred schools.

This year’s sitting marks the first time since its inception that a cohort of students transitioning from grade six will have a profile comprising the components from all 11 tests administered from grade four to six.

Toll Gate Primary’s top student, Aalliyah Pinnock, who was placed at Glenmuir High School, shares that her success resulted from her hard work and dedication.

She tells JIS News that her exam preparations entailed reviewing notes taken during classes, adding that the Principal and teachers provided a conducive environment for learning.

Aalliyah’s proud grandmother, Lorna Bell James, praises the teachers at Toll Gate Primary, who she says “have done their best”.

Top boy, Damion Cambell, who was placed at Denbigh High School, says he feels a sense of accomplishment with the outcome of his performance, adding that he is grateful to his teachers for their hard work in his exam preparations and believing in his ability to perform well.

His sister, Tanika Gaynor, says the teachers did a remarkable job in preparing Damion for PEP.

The overall 2024 PEP exam results saw a seven per cent increase in the number of students graded proficient and highly proficient in Language Arts to 67 per cent.

This was the highest percentage increase across all four subjects compared to 2023.

In Mathematics, 60 per cent of students were ranked in the proficient or highly proficient category this year.

Performances in social studies and science also increased by five and six per cent, respectively.

Social studies moved up to 72 per cent and science to 70 per cent.