Too many children still feel they are being condemned to low-quality schools when they are not placed in their first and second choices. Their feelings of rejection often manifest in indiscipline and failure, retarding or halting their progress to higher education.
More than 14 years after T&T achieved universal secondary education, the promise of a quality, child-centred and seamless system remains elusive.This was painfully clear on Wednesday, when the results of the 2014 Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) exam were released and celebrations focused on the few students with the highest grades.While it is important to celebrate excellence, the heavy focus on three outstanding students, who were personally congratulated by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Education Minister Dr Tim Gopeesingh, highlighted the problem of inequitable attainment that is so deeply engrained in the system.
In the absence of fair and inclusive policies from the Ministry of Education, every year thousands of SEA candidates and their parents endure unbelievable stress because of the fierce competition for places in a handful of prestige schools. A system that requires extra lessons just to do well is unacceptable.The reality is that for thousands of children, there is the awful experience of feeling they have been written off as failures at ages 11�13. No youngster should have to go through that.Too many children still feel they are being condemned to low-quality schools when they are not placed in their first and second choices.Their feelings of rejection often manifest in indiscipline and failure, retarding or halting their progress to higher education.
for your Free Trial of the Digital Guardian.
No payment details required, for your Free Trial.