The results of the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) written on May 03 and 04, 2023  were yesterday released to schools and there has been a significant improvement in the results for maths.

Fifteen thousand, two hundred and seventy-three candidates wrote this assessment.

The Ministry of Educa-tion has continued its collaboration with the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) to improve the quality of all national primary grade assessments. Teachers, subject specialists, and test development officers developed the test items with the technical guidance of the CXC, addressing key areas such as item construction, weighting of items, sampling and other psychometric elements. Candidates were tested in four subjects namely, Mathematics, English, Science and Social Studies. The examination in each subject area consisted of two papers. Paper One consisted of 40 multiple choice items while Paper Two consisted of essay type or open ended items.

Areas tested for each subject were: Mathematics – knowledge, algorithmic thinking, and reasoning; Science – knowledge, comprehension, and application; Social Studies – knowledge, conceptual understanding, use of knowledge; English Language – reading, comprehension and vocabulary: structure and mechanics; content, focus, language and organization.

The highest possible standardised scores obtainable were: Mathematics – 132.2; English – 124.7; Social Studies – 125.1; and Science – 125.7. The highest possible total score obtainable was 507.7.

Improved performances were recorded in Science and Mathematics at this year’s NGSA, CXC’s Teddy Rajan yesterday announced. Performances in English saw a marginal improvement while there was a slight decline in Social Studies performance.

Rajan, who is CXC’s Senior Manager of Exami-nations Administration and Security, said students performed well in Mathema-tics, showing a significant improvement in passes when compared to 2022. Mathematics performance stood at 39.87 per cent, when compared to 34.77 per cent in 2022.

“The performance of mathematics aligned better to 2020 over 2022. The reliability of the mathematics exams was assessed to be 0.91. A positive trend is shown is 2022 and 2023. In comparison 2023 shows a significant upward mobility in candidates obtaining full marks,” Rajan said.

The CXC official gave the synopsis of the NGSA results which were announced by the Ministry of Education yesterday at the Pegasus Suites exhibition room.

Since 2016, CXC has been contracted by the Government of Guyana to develop, administer, and mark the annual examination/assessment.

In his presentation, Rajan highlighted that female pupils continue to outperform males in every subject area.

For English, he stated that in 2023 there was a 64.47 per cent pass rate as against passes in 2022 which were recorded at 64 per cent. He added that the trend of attaining zero remained relatively flat over the last four years.

Turning his attention to Science, the CXC official stated that 55 per cent of students secured a score of 50 per cent or more passes in the subject when compared to 2022.  According to the data presented, scores shifted upward from 46.45 per cent in 2022 to 55.11 per cent this year.

“…An upward trend is noted to 2023… the reliability of the exam needed to be 0.96 per cent. The performance in 2023 must be applauded as the mapping of zero scores has been reversed in a very significant way in 2023,” he disclosed. Rajan went on to state that 2023 is the first year in a four year period where more candidates attained full marks compared to zero marks in science.

Comparing the 2022 Social Studies performance to 2023, Rajan announced there was a dip by 0.3 per cent. Social Studies performance in 2022 was recorded at 58.9 per cent while 58.57 was recorded this year.

Some 15,273 pupils from the 11 educational districts wrote this year’s NGSA on May 3 and 4. Of this amount, 287 were Spanish-speaking students.

Source: https://www.stabroeknews.com/2023/07/08/news/guyana/significant-improvement-in-maths-at-ngsa/

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, yesterday commissioned the De Willem Secondary School in Region Three. Also present were Region-al Executive Officer, Jagnarine Somwar; Regional Education Officer, Akbar Chindu; Assistant Chief Education Officer (Secondary), Tiffany Harvey; and Assistant Chief Education Officer (Primary), Rabindra Singh.

The opening of the new school means that as of Monday, the Primary Top students attending Saraswat Primary School will no longer have to attend a Secondary Class in a Primary School but from Monday will be attending a discrete secondary school to receive a complete secondary education.

The new school will accommodate over 350 learners.

The minister explained that there are secondary-aged learners in Lanaballi, Saxacalli, Omorashi, and lower and upper Bonasika, who are unable to access a secondary education and who have been enrolled into Primary Tops. As such, either next week or the following week, those students will be attending a discrete secondary school, the Leonora Secondary School. Further, they will be housed in dormitories that have been built and are now ready to accommodate students.

“So, when we say getting a secondary education is important, it’s more than just words. When we say to you that we believe education is important, you will see our actions accompanying that building out of schools, training teachers, helping parents get their kids into school, giving textbooks, giving school grants. You will see that in our action.”

According to the release, in addition to the De Willem Secondary School, new secondary schools will be built at Crane, Tuschen, and Nismes, to accommodate all of the secondary-aged learners in the region.

However, Manickchand took care to point out that in addition to constructing new schools, there needs to be a trained teacher in every classroom. She noted that   

She said that prior to 2021, the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) accepted about 530 teachers but can now accept a few thousand teachers into the college that is now offering both online and in person instruction. And because of the online offering, CPCE is now going to graduate 2,500 students for the first time.

Headteacher of the Uitvlugt Secondary School, Keith Sampson, who also spoke at the commissioning, said that today, “we commissioned renewed purpose.” In the past, he explained, the old building which the new structure has replaced housed the Zeeburg Secon-dary School. Further, he said that in 2016 a new Zeeburg Secondary School was built leaving the old structure wanting for purpose. The building was later refurbished to serve as an annex to the Uitvlugt Secondary School.

Meanwhile, Regional Vice-Chairperson, Omesh Satyanand, noted that only a few weeks ago the region commissioned a new primary school in Tuschen. He said that the region is experiencing wholistic growth especially in the education sector where more children are attending school.

Reference was made to the School Feeding and Breakfast Programmes, with the Vice-Chairperson expressing his pleasure that children can attend school and receive breakfast or a snack. He noted that the RDC is happy with the work the Ministry is doing in the region along with its officers and teachers in the classrooms. “You guys are doing a great job and that is why we are partnering with you to ensure that the delivery of education is second to none in this country,” he remarked.

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand (right) and Regional Executive Officer, Jagnarine Somwar, revealing the plaque to mark the commissioning. (Ministry of Education photo)

Source: https://www.stabroeknews.com/2023/09/16/news/guyana/new-93m-secondary-school-commissioned-at-de-willem/

A total of 15,268 pupils are expected to sit the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) that got underway on Wednesday.

Though this high-stakes assessment determines what secondary schools the pupils will be placed in, Education Minister Priya Manickchand posited that they will all benefit from a sound secondary education regardless of the school they eventually attend.

On Wednesday and Thursday, Grade Six pupils will be tested in four subject areas: Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and English. By July 17, their scores will be available and they will know what secondary school they will attend.

Minister Manickchand insisted that a sound secondary education will be delivered to each child regardless of their score and placement.

“… whatever school you get, it is our duty and I feel it very strongly to make sure that education is delivered at a high quality in every school,” the Education Minister said while speaking to reporters at the Peter’s Hall Primary School on Wednesday.

She added that emphasis is being placed upon supporting children’s development because they are seen as an integral part of Guyana’s development, especially now that the country is experiencing significant growth.

“Guyana is really moving and we’re making sure that we’re not just moving with high-rise buildings and hotels and roads but that we are developing our people, our children, so that they can actively participate in this thriving country that we are building out,” she said.

Previously, Manickchand said she would endeavour to make all secondary schools equal; this means a student would have access to the same resources and opportunities at what is considered a “top school” or another school.

Though Manickchand gave these assurances, many parents hope that their children will do their best at the assessment. But many parents are also conscious of the impact school closures and disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic had on their children.

Puneet Jaigopaul, a parent at the Peter’s Hall school, said his son was among those affected by disruptions during the height of the pandemic because of limited interactions in school.

Nevertheless, he said educational resources provided by the Education Ministry, unconventional teaching strategies and additional parental guidance are among the responses rolled out to help pupils.

Viola Marshall, another parent, also related that her son had difficulties accessing electronic devices as needed for his classes but they made full use of other resources provided.

Source: https://newsroom.gy/2023/05/03/grade-six-pupils-promised-sound-secondary-school-education-regardless-of-school-attained/

On Tuesday, the Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand visited the marking centre for the recently concluded National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) which was conducted and is being marked by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC).

The visit of Minister Manickchand to the marking centre was done in keeping with the long-established tradition for the sitting Minister to show support and appreciation for the Markers and encourage the Markers to be extra careful during the marking process.

She explained that the marking process for the National Grade Six Assessment is conducted in several stages to ensure that each child’s examination papers are marked correctly and that several layers are in place to minimize any probability of inaccuracy.

Firstly, a marker is exposed to only a single question of the entire exam and then that marker’s work is reviewed twice for quality assurance. The Markers are tasked with marking Paper Twos only since the Paper Ones have been taken abroad by CXC to be graded electronically.

Approximately 15,268 pupils wrote the National Grade Six Assessment 2023 which was conducted on May 3 and May 4.

Source: https://newsroom.gy/2023/05/16/education-minister-visits-ngsa-marking-centre-2/

Following several construction challenges and delays, a new $515 million building that can better accommodate students of the St Rose’s High School was Tuesday commissioned.

The new block has been named the Sister Hazel Campayne Block.

The block includes the auditorium, classrooms, offices and some labs.

Parts of the school, known for its wooden charm, was in a dilapidated state. Though the new block is concrete, consideration was given to the architectural style.

“It must be noted that much assurance was given that the replacement structure will incorporate many aspects of the original design and would integrate the design of the Marian [Academy] wing,” the Acting Principal Rayon Tobin said at the commissioning ceremony.

In maintaining the unique features of the school, the famous green area where the school’s lavish garden parties are held had to be considered before construction was greenlighted.

On July 9, 2018 the demolition started and there was an initial construction deadline of 19 months. But after several issues, the original contractor was replaced by Shandong Dejian International in September 2021.

This, Education Minister Priya Manickchand said, caused the students who entered the school in 2017 to endure having a dilapidated building.

Without a fully equipped auditorium, concerts and other cultural activities could not be properly conducted but were maintained to some extent; this fact was bemoaned by the Education Minister.

“They [students enrolled during the construction period] will never be able to recount the concerts that they saw in the hall…or the place that they gained their confidence or played steel pan or exhibited any other talent.

“Schools are far more than places to learn about Math and English and Social Studies and Science.

“We have to have common spaces,” the Education Minister said.

The new facility provides these students with those spaces.

Also, noting the significance of the St Rose’s Ursiline convent of the school, Minister Manickchand thanked the convent for its role in building the country.

“I want you to know how very grateful we are as a country for your input not only here at St Rose’s.

“The nuns who gave up their lives not only to religious advances but to education and medicine. Our country is richer for your presence,” she stated.

Source: https://newsroom.gy/2023/09/26/new-515m-block-commissioned-at-st-roses-high-school/

Guyana has once again topped the region at this year’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand announced during a broadcast on the Ministry of Education’s Facebook page on Friday.

“Our students have performed excellently once again…This is evident that our education system is thriving and doing better and better as we go along,” Minister Manickchand was quoted as saying by government’s Department of Public Information (DPI).

Alex Muntaz of the Anna Regina Secondary School, who copped 23 Grade One’s and four Grade Two passes, topped the entire Caribbean at this year’s CSEC examination.

Muntaz also earned himself the most outstanding Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) student award for the region.

Meanwhile, Naresh Jagnanan is this year’s top Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) student. Jagnanan, who attended Queen’s College, also nabbed the most outstanding award in Business Studies.

Other CSEC top Caribbean performers are Abigail Stephanas who copped the award for most outstanding Science student and Nailah Rahaman, who was the most outstanding student in Humanities. Both students attended Queen’s College

Siddiq Gafar of the ISA Islamic School nabbed the accolade for most outstanding student in Business at the CSEC.

Guyana nabbed four out of the seven available awards, as a result of its outstanding performances.

“And that is not including the most outstanding student. We did not receive Visual Arts II and III or the short stories. So, I am challenging students and teachers to go after those awards. It would be the first time that we are winning them if you get them next year,” Minister Manickchand highlighted.

The education minister congratulated all the students who performed exceptionally well with the assistance of their teachers.

“I want you to remember that we were always performing well at CSEC. But we struggled a little bit with copping the top awards at CAPE…In the last three consecutive years, Guyana has topped the CAPE in the region…I couldn’t be happier. So, to all the students who did well and to all those who are not named here but did excellently, I congratulate you warmly,” Minister Manickchand stated.

Meanwhile, Virendra Dookie from the Saraswatie Vidhya Niketan Secondary School who raked in passes in 19 Grade Ones and One Grade Two has been adjudged Guyana’ssecond top CSEC student.  Meanwhile, Joshua Gulab from Queen’s College is the country’s second-top CAPE student.

Source: https://demerarawaves.com/2023/11/17/guyana-takes-top-spot-at-csec-cape/

The results of the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) are set to be announced on Friday, July 7, 2023, Education Minister Priya Manickchand announced on her Facebook Page on Wednesday.

The results were scheduled to be released on July 17 but that has now changed.

“I am very pleased that we are able to do this at this time.

“I know parents and teachers are very anxious about what September will look like for them and getting prepared for that date,” Minister Manickhand said.

She implored that whatever the results are, “you are going to be taken care of in high school. We really are on an aggressive push to make sure all schools are equal.”

Manickchand related that the ministry is working to ensure all schools are equipped with textbooks, adequate lab facilities, a library, teachers, and excellent monitoring to ensure teaching is happening.

“While it would be reckless of me to say every single school will have that come September, what I can tell you, is we are working very hard to ensure most schools have facilities in place to deliver a quality education.”

A total of 15,268 pupils were registered to write NGSA this year.

This year, for the first time, the assessment papers have been translated into Spanish to help Spanish-speaking pupils, many of whom are migrants.

Source: https://newsroom.gy/2023/06/28/ngsa-results-to-be-announced-on-july-7-manickchand/

Children from riverine communities along the Essequibo Coast in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) will now be able to access a sound secondary education without having to travel long distances with the establishment of a new dormitory at Leonora, West Coast Demerara.

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand commissioned the $75M facility on Monday.

The dormitory, which is situated aback the Leonora Secondary School, will be beneficial to students coming from the riverine areas on the Essequibo Coast and those desirous of seeking higher education.

The modern facility consists of living quarters for boys and girls, a kitchen, a dining area, a sick bay, washroom facilities and sleeping quarters. It will be supervised by a dorm mother and father.

Manickchand said the dormitory was constructed in keeping with recommendations made in a report conducted on dormitories across the country to ensure they are up to standard.

This, she said, includes the installation of fire prevention measures.

“We set about getting a report on all the dorms in the country, the status of the dorm and what would be ideal for these dorms…And so that report…that engineer assessed all the dorms and he told us what he needed and he also told us about the gaps at each dorm,” Manickchand said.

She added, “Immediately upon getting that report, I shared it with my other colleagues…and I laid it before Cabinet and Cabinet took a  decision that the dorms would be bought up to standard in accordance with this report but, of course, these things take time.”

The Education Minister said the intention is to ensure that every child is in a comfortable space where they are being accommodated while being able to learn.

Meanwhile, Regional Chairman, Inshan Ayube said before the dormitory was constructed, a number of factors were taken into consideration to ensure that parents would be able to visit their child/children at any time. The facility was also built in close proximity to a hospital, fire station and police station.

“…We believe in the environment, we believe that your children or child must be comfortable…That is why all this investment is being done and above all with the rapid development that is ongoing in our country…we have to educate our own to take up all these opportunities that is unfolded,” Ayube said.

Presently, 23 children will be housed at the dormitory – 18 boys and 5 girls.

Source: https://newsroom.gy/2023/10/23/75m-school-dorm-opens-at-leonora/

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand has announced that 33% of the $94.4 billion budgeted for the education sector will be used to construct new schools, upgrade others and provide other necessary infrastructure to facilitate learning.

She used part of her budget debate presentation to rubbish criticism from the Opposition, that there continues to be inequitable access to education in Guyana.

 “In 2019, $3.7B was allocated for the Education Capital Budget, the coalition sent back 58% of that – $1.6B – because they couldn’t spend it. They couldn’t spend it because it is not important. Access and building schools and institutions is not important, that is what the APNU Representative in this House said, so it’s a philosophy sir. In 2017, they allocated 8% of the Education Budget to capital works, in 2018, 6%; in 2019, 9%; in 2022, the PPP allocated 23%; in 2023 we allocated 33% of the Education Budget towards capital works,” Minister Manickchand told the House.

She said contrary to the utterances coming from the opposition benches, the PPP/C Administration is investing heavily in education to improve access to quality education. According to the Education Minister, the country is inching closer towards universal secondary education.

The National Assembly was told that the Education Ministry intends to spend $3.7 billion to procure textbooks for the more than 193,000 public school children across the country this year.

“Text books, in 2023, we are going to be spending $3.7B on textbooks and this would allow us to give every single student in this country, nursery, primary and secondary all the textbooks they need, except for the enrichment courses. All the text books they need,” Minister Manickchand said.

Further, the Education Ministry will be injecting another $2.1 billion into the school feeding programme, the Minister said.

And faced with a barrage of criticism over the Government’s failure to reinstitute free tertiary education at the University of Guyana, the Minister assured the House that the university tuition fees will be zeroed in the coming years.

“We heard what people wanted and we said very clearly, we are going to find a pathway to remove the debt that students had already incurred, former students and current students and we are going to make the University free in the first five years. And do you know why people are not worried? Because every other promise we made, every other promise we made has been fulfilled,” she said.

The Minister of Education said while the Opposition is pressing Government to provide free tertiary education, it was under the very Coalition that the University of Guyana Council hiked the tuition fees by 35% in August 2017.

The Government of Guyana through the GOAL initiative has been providing full scholarships for citizens to study at a number of international universities. The GOAL programme carries a hefty price tag.

Source: https://newssourcegy.com/news/manickchand-talks-up-equitable-access-to-education-and-free-university-plans-in-budget-debate/

The Spanish language will be a compulsory language in public schools from September and Education Minister Priya Manickchand said the government is in talks with Cuba, Mexico and other bilateral partners on the possible use of teachers from those countries.

The Education Minister told reporters that much work is underway to ensure that primary and secondary schools are adequately equipped to deliver this subject to all learners in the new academic year.

A majority of secondary schools (about 80%) already have teachers who work alongside students but Manickchand said the local education authorities recognise that more teachers z to be trained to teach the language.

“… we have paucity or dearth of teachers in particular places but we are also trying to work with some of our partners like Cuba and Mexico and so on to see if we can get teachers down while we train ours,” Manickchand said.

President Ali, at a recent press conference, said his government was in talks with “bilateral partners to loan human resources” in the period of transition until Guyanese teachers can fill the need across the country.

Whether foreign teachers are used or not, Manickchand said the Education Ministry is exploring several options to train more teachers in Spanish. Those options include online courses or studies at the University of Guyana (UG) and the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE).

She also noted that the National Centre of Educational Resources Development (NCERD) is overseeing the creation of Spanish material that could be used in schools, particularly where there are no trained Spanish teachers.

That material would be written and audiovisual content, similar to other packages created by the body. Tapping the services of retired teachers to help deliver Spanish classes is also an option, Manickchand noted.

Source: https://newsroom.gy/2023/08/11/teachers-from-cuba-mexico-could-help-guyana-with-new-spanish-focus/