Education minister wants to boost math, English scores

Education Minister Favyal Williams said there is urgent need to strengthen the fundamentals in literacy and numeracy to boost mathematics and English scores.

Focus is being placed on increasing teacher quality and effectiveness, enhancing the relevance of curriculum, assessment, and the teaching and learning experience, and providing inclusive teaching and learning environments and appropriate support services.

"So far, the Ministry of Education has fully funded software licences for students to use, the Book Fusion app, the Learning Hub platform for grade four and the Cheetah platform for grades four to six," she said. Williams was providing an update on the implementation of the recommendations of the Jamaica Education Transformation Commission (JETC) in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. She further informed that 8,000 laptops are being procured for primary schools and 810 interactive whiteboards for infant, primary and secondary institutions, and colleges. Williams said there has also been a strong focus on training in partnership involving the Jamaica Teaching Council (JTC), the ministry's Core Curriculum Unit and Inter-American Development Bank partners.

"Nine additional courses have been onboarded to the JTC's Learning Management System and more than 12,000 teachers trained across various topics," she informed. Turning to the early childhood sector, Williams said that the ministry is 15 per cent through the process of conducting a comprehensive review of the existing legislation. She informed that the early childhood policy is 45 per cent complete.

"But, of importance, is that since the start of this financial year, some 1,642 early-childhood practitioners have been trained, with 300 of that number undergoing training between July and September 2024," she noted. She indicated that the ministry is currently working on formalising a parallel pathway for in-service early-childhood practitioners to obtain a first degree, and that this is approximately 15 per cent complete.

"Children with special needs are at the forefront of our plans and actions. Through the Legacy Project, we are retrofitting more classrooms in infant schools to ensure support and that we meet the needs of all children. These classrooms are not only in Kingston and St Andrew but are spread across the island to include parishes in the north, south, east and west," she added.

The JETC recommendations seek to address the gaps and issues found in Jamaica's education system. A total of 365 recommendations are contained in the 2021 report produced by the Professor Orlando Patterson-chaired Commission. The recommendations are being implemented over an eight-year period spanning 2023-2031, with the Education Transformation Oversight Committee, chaired by Dr Adrian Stokes, monitoring the process. Williams reported that 130 of the measures are largely on track.