2019 NGSA… Performance in Maths improves, English dips

Jul 04, 2019 News

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-Ministry yet to report on candidates who fail to meet benchmark

The results of the 2019 National Grade Six Assessment [NGSA] were announced yesterday. According to Minister of Education, Nicolette Henry, the performance in Mathematics has improved while that of English has remained stabled.

The results were publicly announced at the National Centre for Educational Resource Development in Kingston, Georgetown. The event saw the attendance of some of the top performers, their parents, education officials and media operatives.
A total of 14,300 candidates participated in the assessment this year. Yesterday the Minister shared an overall subject analysis of the four subject areas that made up the assessment – Mathematics, English, Social Studies and Science.
In presenting the analysis, Minister Henry said the results this year indicate that 42 percent of the candidates secured 50 percent and more in the subject area of Mathematics, a noticeable improvement from what obtained last year.
Last year 38.3 percent of the candidates gained 50 percent and more improvement in the subject area.
“All administrative regions recorded improvements in Mathematics, with Regions Two, Three and Eight showing significant improvement,” said Minister Henry of the subject area.
The previous year [2017] saw 45.6 percent of the candidates gaining 50 percent and more in Mathematics while in 2016 a mere 13.85 percent gained 50 percent and more.
It was in recognition of the daunting pass rate that President David Granger instructed that a tactical intervention be introduced to reverse the trend. Moreover, in order to prepare the candidates for the NGSA this year, Minister Henry said that the Ministry continued with the implementation of its Emergency Mathematics Plan which was introduced back in 2016.
“This plan entailed a number of aspects such as training for teachers in content and methodology, facilitating fortnightly cluster meetings in all Regions, recruitment of Mathematics coordinators and monitors, training of Officers and School Administrators to supervise the teaching of Mathematics, administering a diagnostic assessment of pupils in the hinterland regions prior to training teachers, enhancement of public relations and parental involvement in the education of children,” said Minister Henry.
Turning her attention to English, the Minister informed that stability in this subject area this year translated to 57.4 percent of the candidates gaining 50 percent and more while in 2018 60.6 percent of the candidates gained 50 percent and more. In 2017 45.6 percent of the candidates gained 50 percent and more while in 2016 41.62 percent of them gained 50 percent and more.
The other two subject areas saw candidates gaining 39 percent and more and 42.4 percent and more in Social Studies and Science respectively. The three previous years saw 46.1 percent [2018], 47.6 percent [2017] and 46.11 percent [2016] of the candidates gaining 50 percent and more in the subject area of Social Studies.
In Science 46.8 percent [2018], 46.3 percent [2017] and 27.55 percent [2016] of the candidates gained 50 percent and more.
Minister Henry, presenting a concise analysis of the results shared the percentage of candidates securing 50 percent and more in the various subject areas across the 11 education districts. In Region One this year, of the 978 candidates, 15.6 percent secured 50 percent or more in Mathematics; there were 29.8 percent in English, 11.6 percent in Social Studies and 14.5 percent in Science.
In Region Two this year, of the 913 candidates gaining 50 percent and more, there were 38.3 percent in Mathematics; 50.7 percent in English; 32.8 percent in Social Studies and 38 percent in Science.
In Region Three this year, of the 1,836 candidates who gained 50 percent and more passes, there were 51.7 percent in Mathematics, 65.7 percent in English, 48 percent in Social Studies and 52.2 percent in Science.
Region Four this year saw a total of 2,893 candidates and among them securing 50 percent and more were 44.2 percent in Mathematics, 60.5 percent in English, 42.1 percent in Social Studies and 45.8 percent in Science.There were 858 candidates in Region Five and those who gained 50 percent and more translated to 35.8 percent in Mathematics, 51 percent in English, 33.7 percent in Social Studies and 35.5 percent in Science.
Further, the Ministry revealed that in Region Six there was a total of 1,701 candidates and those who secured 50 percent and more was evident by the 37.7 percent in Mathematics, 52.1 percent in English, 33.8 percent in Social Studies and 37.2 percent in Science.
The Ministry also revealed that for this year too, there were 574 candidates in Region Seven and those who secured 50 percent and more were reflected by 26 percent in Mathematics, 45 in English, 21 percent in Social Studies and 25.4 percent in Science.
In Region Eight there were 350 candidates and those who secured 50 percent and more were evident by 19.1 percent in Mathematics, 33.1 percent in English, 13.7 percent in Social Studies and 13.4 percent in Science.
The total number of candidates in Region Nine amounted to 728 and those who gained 50 percent or more were reflected by 19.2 percent in Mathematics, 38.9 percent in English, 18 percent in Social Studies and 19.7 percent in Science.
In Region Ten there were 849 candidates and those who secured 50 percent and more translated to 47.1 percent in Mathematics, 65.6 percent in English, 47.4 percent in Social Studies and 52.7 percent in Science.
In Georgetown [district 11], a total of 2,620 candidates participated in the assessment and of those who gained 50 percent or more, there were 58.8 percent in Mathematics, 74.6 percent in English, 56.5 percent in Social Studies and 60 percent in Science.
The NGSA is an examination which guides the Education Ministry’s placement of pupils at secondary level schools.
Although the Ministry officials shared the positive performance of the pupils, they, however, were not at liberty yesterday to readily share information about the candidates who failed to reach the assessment’s benchmark.
However, Senior Education Officer, Ms. Carol Benn, who has the coordinating mandate to deal with pupils who failed to the meet the benchmark, said that information in this regard can be sourced from the Ministry at a later time.
Pupils who failed to meet the mandate are catered to through a six-year transitional programme.
Benn had revealed last year that more than 2,000 NGSA candidates did not meet the benchmark and as a result were inducted into the programme.
The Senior Education Officer was also asked yesterday to give an update on the programme to which she said, “we are going to review that programme and you will be informed.”

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