Director of Planning: Probe CEE low scores

Director of Planning in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning in SVG Laura Anthony-Browne is of the opinion that the low percentages gained by some students in the 2012 Common Entrance Examination (CEE) should be a national concern.{{more}}

This was expressed by Anthony-Browne, as she gave the feature address at the Thomas Saunders Secondary School Graduation ceremony on June 19 at the Kingstown Methodist Church.

Anthony Browne stated that it is a matter of concern that in the recent CEE, more than 100 students scored as low as 25 per cent overall, for the examination, while some students scored as low as 5 per cent.

“In some cases students scored as low as 5 per cent, on some papers…11 per cent, 13 percent,” Anthony Browne stated.

Anthony Browne said that the issue should be discussed and investigated by the Ministry of Education and the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Teachers Union. Adding that the issue should concern the entire country, she added that parents should play a part in the discussion as well.

According to the preliminary press release for the 2012 Common Entrance results issued by the Ministry of Education, there was a 53.09 per cent pass rate this year, compared with 51.18 percent in 2011.

Of the 2,141 students registered for the June 1 examination, 2,119 wrote the examinations with the highest average score of 95.16 percent matching the figure from last year.

Of the 1,076 males writing the exams, 486 (45.16 per cent) met the required standard which showed an increase over the 2011 figure of 43.63 percent or 463 males. Of the 1,043 females, 639 (61.26 percent) met the required standard, which also showed an increase over last year’s results of 59.01 percent.

Speaking at the ceremony on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Senior Education Officer with Responsibility for Secondary Schools, Carlton Hall stated that he acknowledged the concerns of Anthony-Browne. He added that the Ministry is concerned with the performance of students in the science and mathematics subject areas.

Hall noted that there was difficulty finding teachers in these specific areas, as students who graduate in these areas tend to pursue the more lucrative areas, and most don’t stay to teach.

Giving examples of persons who have studied and given back to their country, he encouraged the students present to develop a sense of patriotism and to contribute to the development of their nation.(OS)