High Degree of Implementation of Education Transformation Recommendations – ETOC

The Education Transformation and Oversight Committee (ETOC) is reporting that 97 of the 101 short-term measures being implemented by the Ministry of Education and Youth to improve the education sector, are on track.

The measures are among 365 recommendations contained in the 2021 report produced by the Professor Orlando Patterson-chaired Jamaica Education Transformation Commission (JETC) to address the gaps and issues found in Jamaica’s education system.

The recommendations are being implemented over an eight-year period spanning 2023-2031, with ETOC monitoring the process.

ETOC Chair, Dr. Adrian Stokes, said the short-term measures are designed to yield tangible benefits.

“They are what I would call critical building blocks for other measures to be implemented down the road,” he noted.

“Overall, there has been a high degree of implementation of the recommendations for the current period,” he added.

Dr. Stokes was providing a progress report at a press conference at the Overseas Examinations Commission in Kingston on March 14, which was attended by Education and Youth Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams.

Citing the lagging initiatives, he said these are implementation of the Education Management Information System (EMIS), improving staffing and training in early-childhood institutions (ECIs), consultation on funding models for early-childhood and primary education, and making reports public on school financials and the National Education Inspectorate (NEI) school assessment.

Dr. Stokes said the EMIS system is slated to go live in April 2024, while the release of funds to the Early Childhood Commission (ECC) in the upcoming financial year should get the staffing and training in ECIs back on track.

“As it relates to consultation on the funding model, the Ministry has indicated that it is working to establish four working groups to deal with this issue, and again, I suspect that by the next reporting period this issue should be substantially advanced if not complete,” he said.

He informed that the initiative that relates to the NEI and other reports being made public should be finalised before the next reporting period.

Additionally, he said automation of the reporting process is being pursued and thanked the members of ETOC, the Ministry and other stakeholders for working in a collaborative manner to achieve success with the transformation effort.

Minister Williams, in her remarks, called on all Jamaicans to embrace education transformation.

“Everybody, not just the Ministry has to play their role in transformation… . It is all of our responsibility,” she said.