11-Plus to go

Government is moving forward with its plans to abolish the Common Entrance Examination, and Minister of Education Santia Bradshaw says they are hoping that this year will see the last cohort of students sit that exam.

Speaking during day one of the Estimates Debate, as the budget allocated for the Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training came under scrutiny, Minister Bradshaw, as she sat in the well of the House at the temporary location at the Worthing Corporate Centre, indicated that the days of that examination are numbered and if all goes well, 2021/2022 is expected to see a new initiative being rolled out. The disclosure came as she made it clear that the decision on the way forward will not be the Government’s alone, noting they intend to consult with the public from as early as next month to determine the type of model that will suit this country.

Her comments came as she explained that the goal of eliminating the Common Entrance is to not only improve the education system, but the future of students and society in general.

“We have recognised that at many of our institutions, students feel as though in many cases when they hit 10, 11, their future has already been predetermined and we are seeing a significant fallout, where students when they go into secondary school, are exiting school without the relevant qualifications. It is an area, Ma’am, that I don’t think any of us can continue to ignore... I think a lot of what we are seeing across the society in terms of the fallout of crime and the number of socio-economic issues confronting the society, all make their way back to a very frustrated student population, which emerges into an adult population unable to have the requisite skills to be employed and also be employers themselves,” she said.

Speaking more to the process of doing away with the 11-Plus Exam, Minister Bradshaw said they are in the process of looking at various systems to see what would be best for Barbados. That, she indicated, has included the idea of middle schools and high schools, looking at the best practices internationally and regionally as it relates to such.

“A few weeks ago I established an advisory education committee to be able to delve into not reform in relation to the 11-Plus, but to dig deeper into whether our system is working for us in terms of teacher training and evaluation, continuing education, tertiary education – what is it that we need to now project in terms of the type of educational system that we want to see. And a large part of that transition obviously starts with the 11-Plus Examination, whether a decision will be made in terms of extending the age for primary, so that you would extend it for a longer period – those are all considerations that we are making,” she stated.

Bradshaw spoke also of developing specialist schools in areas such as the arts and agriculture, indicating that the ministry has been engaging the principals and boards of some of the schools regarding the students’ academic performance. She said they have been looking at the deficits that exist and the interest students have so as to shape the school plants accordingly. The Minister also broached the topic of zoning, explaining that one of the recommendations made is for children to attend schools closer to where they live. (JRT)