Significant Improvements in PEP Exam Results

The Ministry of Education and Youth is reporting a significant improvement in student performance in the Mathematics component of this year’s Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examinations, compared to pre-pandemic results in 2019.

Figures from the Ministry show that 57 per cent of students were categorised as ‘proficient’ or ‘highly proficient’ this year, according to the National Standards Curriculum, as against 41 per cent in 2019.

Overall, this year’s Mathematics performance out-turns show that 54.4 per cent of those proficient are females, with males accounting for 44.4 per cent. A total of 18,451 males and 17,653 females sat this year’s exams.

“This pattern is what we have observed over the years in terms of girls out-performing boys in Mathematics. So that tells us that that is something we have to re-double our efforts in, to bring our boys up while we continue to support our girls,” Portfolio Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams, said.

She described the results as a “significant improvement [that] shows progress”, while providing details ahead of the release of the PEP results, during a press conference at the Ministry in Kingston on Friday (June 23).

Notable improvements were also recorded for the Language Arts, Science and Social Studies subject areas, relative to 2019.

A total of 19,330 students have been categorised as proficient in Language Arts, of which 61.6 per cent are females and 47.4 are males.

A little over 10,000 females top the Science proficiency category from an overall 18,832 students.

Social Studies account for 23,123 students as proficient, of which 12,651 are females and 10,742 are males.

Mrs. Williams said the figures can only be compared to 2019 when PEP was first introduced and students were able to sit the exams in similar settings to this year’s, after the sector faced a two-year disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, she indicated that more than 80 per cent of this year’s successful candidates were placed in their school of choice.

Of the 36,105 youngsters registering, 8,105 were placed in their first-choice schools, 5,432 in their second-choice, 4,378 for their third-choice, and the remaining number spanning to their seventh-choice.

Mrs. Williams said the Ministry is encouraged by the performances and will continue its emphasis on literacy and numeracy interventions.

“We’ll continue the coaching programmes that we have [and] all the strategies that our teachers use in the classroom to pull out students. We know that at the primary schools we have a lot of work still to do. [But] having done the [Grade Four] Assessment Test, we know individually the children we need to target,” the Minister further stated.

Parents and guardians can access their children’s report on the Ministry’s PEP portal