Teachers Hailed for Role in Country Exceeding Literacy Mastery Target

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Elaine Foster Allen, is lauding the nation’s teachers for the critical role they played in the country exceeding the target for mastery in literacy at the grade four level.

The grade four cohort achieved 86.5 per cent mastery in this year’s sitting of the Grade Four Literacy Test. This represents a 1.5 per cent increase over the target of 85 per cent.

Mrs. Foster Allen, who was addressing a ceremony to launch the 2015/16 school year at the Fidel Castro Campus of the Anchovy High School in St. James on Friday, September 11, said the achievement ensures that the new academic year has started on a high note.

She noted that the 86.5 per cent mastery translates to “100 per cent achieving mastery when we take into account that an estimated 15 per cent of our students have one or another learning challenge.”

Mrs. Foster Allen, in the meantime, expressed confidence that the country will attain the 85 per cent mastery in numeracy by the 2018 date set. We are going to do it,” she expressed.

There was significant improvement in the number of students, who acquired mastery in numeracy, with the results showing a rate of 65.7 per cent mastery, which is an 8.1 per cent increase over last year. Almost 18 per cent achieved ‘almost mastery’ and 16.4 per cent received a numeracy level of ‘non-mastery.’

Mrs. Foster Allen said the literacy and numeracy test results combined with outstanding student performances in the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) and the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations, prove that the education system is capable of responding positively to the strategic inputs.”

“As we commence the new school year, my challenge to teachers and principals is to strive for the gold standard. The only way is up! We must aim for all students in the grade 11 age cohort being ready to sit CSEC examinations. They must all pass the subjects sat at Grade 1, 2 or 3…and we want them to score A’s in the subject profiles,” Mr. Foster Allen said.

She urged parents to continue to support their children and the schools they attend.

“Teachers and children alone cannot do it. We invite parents to walk with us…to support their children,” she said.