Remedial Summer School Programme for GSAT Students
By: , June 16, 2015The Key Point:
Photo: Yhomo Hutchinson
Education Minister, Hon. Rev. Ronald Thwaites (right), emphasizes a point to President and Chief Executive Officer, Victoria Mutual Building Society (VMBS), Richard Powell, during Tuesday’s (June 16) power breakfast at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort, Montego Bay, St. James, which was sponsored by the financial institution. The breakfast formed part of activities scheduled for the 2015 Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, being held from June 15 to 18, at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, under the theme: ‘Jamaica and the Diaspora: Linking for Growth and Prosperity’.The Facts
- Portfolio Minister, Hon. Rev. Ronald Thwaites, who made the announcement in Montego Bay, on June 16, said the programme is intended to better prepare the students for transition into high school, particularly in the area of Mathematics.
- Meanwhile, Rev. Thwaites encouraged members of the local business sector, and the Jamaican Diaspora, to assist in providing resources to further boost the teaching of Mathematics.
The Full Story
The Ministry of Education is targeting students who sat the 2015 Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT), for a remedial summer school programme, being proposed for implementation this year.
The programme is being developed to assist students who, although shortlisted to attend high school in September, were deemed not to have performed to their full potential.
Portfolio Minister, Hon. Rev. Ronald Thwaites, who made the announcement in Montego Bay, on June 16, said the programme is intended to better prepare the students for transition into high school, particularly in the area of Mathematics.
He was speaking at a Power Breakfast, at the Hilton Rose Hall Hotel, which formed part of the 6th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, being held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre.
The Minister said serious attention will also be placed on Grade Five students preparing for the GSAT.
“We have to help the Grade Five students who are in danger of having the same experience as some of their colleagues this year (reduction in the pass rate in Mathematics), and make arrangements for them to be remediated, while helping to educate new math teachers, in particular, as we go forward,” the Minister said.
Meanwhile, Rev. Thwaites encouraged members of the local business sector, and the Jamaican Diaspora, to assist in providing resources to further boost the teaching of Mathematics.
The Minister said while there was a “reasonable arc of performance” in all subjects, the results in Mathematics have slipped four per cent, when compared to 2014.
“That is very serious…(and) I call upon all of us, particularly those who are in business and the financial sector, to help us develop a Mathematics culture in this country. I call upon those members of the Diaspora who have a connection with their own school to see what you can do to help to encourage us to be able to teach Math better,” Rev. Thwaites said.
The 2015 Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference is being held from June 15 to 18, under the theme: ‘Jamaica and the Diaspora: Linking for Growth and Prosperity’.