Non-Academic Performance of Students must be Given Credence – Monteith

Education and Youth State Minister, Senator Noel Monteith, has pointed to the need for more credence to be given to the non-academic abilities of students.He noted that while some students may under-perform in the core subjects of English and Mathematics, they may do well in sports and the performing arts.
Senator Monteith, who was contributing to the State of the Nation Debate in the Senate of Friday (Nov. 10), said that while “we in the Education Ministry are unhappy with the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) results and are making every effort to improve the performance in these areas.the challenge we have is how we recognise achievement in other areas such as sports, music and art”.
“Our nation has a strong legacy of sports and cultural achievements, many of which have their genesis in our schools.we cannot denounce the entire education system based on the performance in these two subject areas,” he added.
Meanwhile, Senator Monteith said that a review of the recent Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC) passes has showed mixed results when compared to last year, with marked improvement in some subjects and a decline in others.
“There was improved performance in 17 of the 35 subjects that were taken,” he said, citing Spanish and French, the Sciences, Caribbean History and Principles of Accounts as the most improved subject areas.
The results however fell down in English Language and Literature, Mathematics, Social Studies, Integrated Science and Information Technology.
In addition, the number of students passing more than one subject increased by seven per cent from 21,967 in 2005 to 23,504.
According to the Education State Minister, of the 30,063 public school students, who sat the CSEC in June 2006, approximately 56 per cent sat five or more subjects, with 102 students taking 10 to 11 subjects compared to 35 in 2005. In addition, 78 per cent of fifth formers sat one or more subjects.