Letter of the Day | CXC mathematics and English in crisis

THE EDITOR, Madam:

It seems that Jamaica is in crisis mode with the recent performance of students in the 2024 May/June CSEC examination. Outside of the fact that the number of grade ones for social studies continues to be at a standstill, the core subjects of mathematics and English language (English A) have also declined for this examination sitting.

Whenever there is a crisis, a state of emergency is declared and the first responders are dispatched to deal with the situation. The Ministry of Education needs to declare a state of emergency in schools to address the challenges we face with math and English. If this is not done soon, we will continue to see a decline in the performance of our students at all levels.

It is not too late for us to put a lid on it and ensure that we fix the problems that are associated with teaching math and English. If we examine the letter grades on the recent examination sittings several students are struggling in the areas of expression for English A and reasoning for mathematics, receiving letter scores of D and E, respectively.

How do we fix this problem?

1. We need a practical approach to teaching and learning. The information being taught to students should be applicable and relevant so that they can draw from their own experiences to reason math problems and to express themselves adequately in English.

2. We need more math and literacy specialists. These are the first responders of our educational institutions and they are important in developing the competencies that our students need to take on the CSEC examinations. Literacy and numeracy are of top priority so let us get more specialists.

3. A targeted approach can be used to teach students how to answer CSEC questions. Let us try and address students who are struggling academically from an early age by ensuring that a solid foundation is set from the early childhood level. Let us not take it for granted that our children will naturally progress because they are taught.

4. We need more resources. Many schools simply lack the necessary resources to ensure that students are prepared and exposed to all areas of the syllabus. Schools need textbooks, access to past papers, computers, projectors and smart boards to make class fun, interactive, and engaging.

We are in crisis mode, not only are we losing our best teachers to foreign countries each year but we are now reaping the bitter fruits of not having stability in the education system. This is one of the primary causes of the decline in the percentages passes and quality of grades in mathematics and English A at the CSEC level.

RICARDO E SMITH

ricardo.professional.edu@

gmail.com