National Grade Six Assessments Cancelled Says Education Ministry Officials

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Former Education Minister Michael Browne

The annual evaluation of Grade Six students, along with the Grades Two and Four Assessments, has been cancelled.

Ministry of Education officials are now examining ways in which to proceed during the new school year, and at the same time addressing promotions and the National Grade Six Assessment.

Instead the Grade Six Profile Sheets will be tweaked and completed electronically, and a spreadsheet will be provided for the placement of students to the Antigua Grammar School and the Antigua Girls High School.

However, recommendations for improvement are still being discussed, and they highlight that the placement of students is still just a proposal.

In the final analysis, however, placement based on the health and safety of students is at the discretion of the Director of Education.

In the meantime, Education officials have concluded that after the coronavirus pandemic has passed, there will be a “new normal,” in which blended learning will be utilized in the classroom.

“COVID-19 taught us that teachers need to be able to deal with remote instruction… . We do not know what’s coming next,” Browne is reported to have said.

Finally, officials are also hinting that students may be required to wear masks upon their return to school – now scheduled for mid August.

However, the Education Director says he will not support any call for the re-opening of schools until the medical experts say it is okay to do so “and until we have worked out social-distancing protocols for schools.”

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15 COMMENTS

  1. Opening school right now it’s impossible getting children to wear mask for a whole day it’s impossible.i can hardly breath when I go to work daily much less to kids.

  2. I hope this is a transparent process because putting students that cannot cope with the pace of these schools would be very unhealthy and tragic for those students. Please let good sense prevail

  3. Please take into consideration when you reopen schools, COVID19 or not, that certain things must be implemented.
    1. Cleaners must have adequate supplies of bleach and disinfectant to regularly clean and sanitize high touch areas in school i.e EVERYWHERE!
    2. Provision of SOAP at all times for teachers and students to wash their hands. (Very often schools do not have soap for staff and stidents to use.)
    3. Hand washing facilities strategically placed around schools and not just in the bathrooms. This is especially needed in secondary schools with students in the hundreds.
    4. Help for teachers with paying their monthly internet bills for remote learning.
    5. Consideration of students who have no internet access and since the closure of schools have been unable to benefit from online sessions.
    6. Reduce class sizes where students are packed tighter that sardines in a can.
    7. Increase staffroom space where teachers are also packed on top of one another.
    8. Stricter school policies for sick students to remain at home and not risk infection of teachers and classmates.

  4. Watching and waiting made valid points. Concerning the masks, some children are claustrophobic. This is going to seriously affect them. I have no idea how them are going to attack this problem , but definitely opening schools any time soon is a recipe for disaster! I don’t know about anybody else, but I don’t want my children dying like flies!

  5. Children are not going to remember that they are not suppose to touch their face or dont speak in each other faces. Adults are struggle with this muchless for our children

  6. Mr minister before u open school please consider implementing stand pipe located by each class room in both public and private schools so children can wash there hand before entering the class.Also now would be the time to fix the school and any thing else that need to be done

  7. My asthmatic child is safer at home. If he catches Covid-19 at school, no amount of “Sorry” or ”Accept my condolences ” will suffice. It’s way too soon to reopen schools. It’s 2020. Come up with effective solutions.

    • Yep. I agree. Homeschooling is looking pretty good right now vs tossing my children out to get sick & possibly die, taking family members with them…Educators, please get some empathy & logic. All I know is my kids are much safer at home.

  8. Despite this crisis, ALL grade 6 students need a FAIR unbiased chance at scoring on exams for secondary school placement. Please trod carefully when making decisions that effect the youth of this nation.

  9. Why?! It’s too soon to reopen schools. Keep them shut for the remainder of the school term/year for that matter. Online instruction can work just as well, if not better, when implemented correctly. Provide the students & teachers with all the right tools, such as training, Internet etc., so that it’s effective and no child is left behind.

  10. Throw in some customer service training because we are really seeing which teachers have an interest in their students and which ones are rude and indifferent. This is highlighted in their communication with both students and parents. Thanks to all the good teachers who are shining in this pandemic. We really need a lot more of you.

Comments are closed.