CXC to pilot new exam in Dominican primary schools

The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) is this week holding consultations with stakeholders ahead of the implementation of a pilot programme in Dominican primary schools; the Caribbean Primary Exit Assessment (CPEA).

Over a three-day period, Maureen Grazette and Alsian Brown-Perry, Curriculum Development officers at CXC, will discuss with education officials, principals, teachers, parents and students, the implications of the CPEA at the Public Service Union Building on Valley Road.

The CPEA responds to calls from regional heads for a regional primary exit examination that assesses key areas of literacy common to all primary curricula including language, mathematics, civics and science.

“This assessment programme that we have developed focuses a lot on formative assessment. This is different for the very reason that it focuses on formative assessment and it allows for many more areas of students’ learning to be assessed.

“Students will be given credits in a continuous way instead of the one shot process that exists with the current assessment practices in schools,” Grazette said.

According to CXC, the CPEA will assist with “the quality measures in the education system and offer a common measure across schools and countries in the region.”

CXC says the new exam will also promote feedback to pupils which will improve learning and encourage greater parental participation in the education of their children.  The CPEA is also aimed at helping students achieve at higher levels of education by setting foundations for a seamless transition to secondary education.

“There is a recognition that sometimes students go on to that second level of education without the necessary pre-requisites in order to do well.

“So one of the essential ingredients in this programme is the identification of the core literacies that students must have in order to cope with the core programmes for the secondary level exams,” Grazette said.

Under the CPEA, teachers will not be required to teach a new curriculum but will follow the curriculum that is already in use in Dominican schools. The CPEA will, therefore, be based on the literacies that are common in the various curricula across the region.

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21 Comments

  1. Anonymous
    January 18, 2012

    Anonymous, have you been to the Public Service Training Centre? If no, I think you should take a tour. The picture is correct. Majority are principles and the venue is correct. THIS IS THE PUBLIC SERVICE UNION. Take a tour.

  2. Anonymous
    January 16, 2012

    DNO this picture is definitely wrong. 1. these are not principals and 2. I can clearly see that this picture was taken at the public service training centre and the venue of this meeting that you are writing about was at the Public service union building. please avoid using pictures from previous functions when you are unsure of who of what it depicts.

    • Og Kush
      January 16, 2012

      Good point …. but why dont you focus on the topic instead of a dumb picture

    • Oh my
      January 17, 2012

      Amazing the trivial things we can focus on.

  3. HMMMM
    January 16, 2012

    Another money making scheme for CXC. Just like the CCSLC they giving teachers more work for the same salary and CXC personnel gaining all the profits.. CXC needs to back off or do the work when they implement new exams

    • @ HMMM
      January 17, 2012

      We need to just ignore these ppl’s many proposal. We only need to take what is going to help our people and country.

  4. Exploiter
    January 15, 2012

    First CXC, then Cape, then CCSLC, now this; just an other ploy for CXC to exploit the Caribbean region. A money making shceme.

  5. joy
    January 14, 2012

    this picture does not include only principals. i recognised three secondary school teachers

  6. Hm!
    January 14, 2012

    DNO Please correct these are Grade 6 teachers and not Principals. Thanks

  7. vip
    January 14, 2012

    good idea providing that if the children are not competent at reading they cannot enter high school to frustrate teachers and other students . they need to be prepared.DOMINICA IS PRODUCING MORE ILLITERATES THAN IN THE 80’S AND 90’S. I HAVE NEVEWR SEEN CHILDREN LEAVING HIGH SCHOOL AND CANNOT READ THEIR OWN TEXTBOOKS.

    • @VIP
      January 17, 2012

      We need to blame it on the premature implimentation of the Universal Secondary School Program which was thrown on a society without teachers and/or resources to compliment the calibre of students who would be entering High School.

      Lord Have Mercy on Our People.

  8. shop rite
    January 14, 2012

    so now parents will be burdenede with an additional scool fee ie paying for the cxe version of the common entrance. thats sounds like a waste of money to me.

    • @shop rite
      January 17, 2012

      We need to start taking a stand as a democratic nation and stop making people impose things on us. Dominican governments tend to believe that once voted into office, they can take decisions, as diverse as they can be, during the firve year period, including decisions never discussed in their manifestos. To imagine that we even vote for persons who do not have a manifesto/ plan for the next five years. I don’t know anymore what is going on in Dominica. My people are too bright to be pawned like this.

      LORD HAVE MERCY ON DOMINICA.

  9. Nudibranch
    January 14, 2012

    Some of the children reaching secondary education have obviously fallen through the cracks. So long as the “everyone passes” regime is in place education will always suffer here.
    Now there’s a potential exam for primary, will teachers be told teach towards passing the exam. If a child can’t do the required academics to progress from one grade to another, HOLD THEM BACK.
    What we really need are school(s) for special education cases, and the return of vocational schools. Preferably specialized. eg. Grand Bay for welding, Pottersville car mechanics, (arbitrary examples). We have so many school buddings lying dormant or partially used.
    Give those who are not academically suited a career start and training. But no one goes forward without the academic basics.

    • Nkrumah Kwame
      January 16, 2012

      Dear Nudbranch,
      Please tell me what you mean by “academics”; I may help you in responding. Put another way, is being able to manipulate the computer “academic” or “vocational”? You see we have been making this error for too long. There is NOBODY who, once properly taught and at his/her pace who will not excell. Sometimes I think that individuals hide behind expressions as “academic” and “vocational” to show their biases.
      The issue with the education system here is that we continue to place UNTRAINRD, POORLY PAID teachers in the classrooms with too many children and since our system (and by extension the public)rates schools not on the VALUE THEY ADD, but rather on the students perceived potential to give the school a scholarship or bursary, teachers wil CONTINUE TO TEACH TO THE TEST.

      Is this new assessment going to improve students’ performance? If so, how? Dominica already has assessments at entry, at the end of grades 2, 4, and 6,so what NEW and BETTER will latest assessment bring to the table?

      Quality will be obtained ONLY a system is in place to recruit, train and hold teachers, pay them salaries comensurate with their importance,planned opportunities for UPWARD MOBILITY and good PARENTS.

      That is what is needed!!!

      HOTEP

  10. Enzy
    January 13, 2012

    SMH You guys want to follow other nations and ‘give credits’? Don’t the current report cards show credit of their work? Students sometimes do not have the necessary pre-requisites because the government and the education system are too cheap! Hire some teacher’s aides and Special Ed teachers to work with these children instead of giving teacher (both trained and untrained) the brunt of the work for the same salary! You want them to modify lesson plans, do this, do that…all for the same salary. You’re right. You will not introduce a new curriculum. Just adjust it and have teachers doing more for two or three different ‘levels’ of students for THE SAME SALARY!

  11. Enzy
    January 13, 2012

    I find the education system is taking a downward spiral. You guys are trying to emulate other nations too much. Our education system was great until a decision was made to have a Grade Six Assessment instead of the Common Entrance Exam. With the latter the students were determined. They knew that in order to attend high school they had to put in the work. Right now they show a lack of interest in their work because they will go to high school anyway. They attend high schools unprepared and waste time and money. The Junior Secondary Program was also a great idea! These kids had the chance to learn at a slower pace and the less academically inclined ones at least learnt a skill!

    • BRAIN DAMAGE
      January 15, 2012

      Enzy, support you on this. The JSP was such a good program. There are so many fruits out there that made it successful.. academics and skills.

      • @Brain Damage
        January 17, 2012

        We need to start reimplimenting the programs which have worked for our people. The JSP has helped and would continue to help many a people, esp in developing technical vocations. Looks like we are still going horse and bugie, just having the bigger islands suggest the “good” that we need.

        Lord Have Mercy On Our Civil Servants Who Look More at Their Pay Packets Than National Development.

  12. Travaile
    January 13, 2012

    the method of assessment they offer is remarkable. It encompasses the whole child and it targets the various learning styles of our children. No child is left out. but dread mi travaille

  13. Dominican
    January 13, 2012

    DNO, it is not just one exam, it is an ongoing assessment with the exam coming in only at the end. Schoolwork is 40% of the grade while exam is 60% of the grade.

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