Education Minister Petter Saint Jean has said that despite the challenges faced in the wake of Hurricane Maria, which devastated the island on September 18th 2017, students performed exceptionally well at the Grade 6 National Assessment (G6NA) Exams.
He was delivering remarks at a press conference during which the results of the exams were made public at the Dominica Public Service Union (DPSU) Building on Wednesday.
According to Saint Jean, the education system received a massive blow following Hurricane Maria and several schools were completely destroyed and others were damaged beyond use.
And so, he said the Ministry of Education was overly concerned about the likely implications on student’s performances at both the internal and external levels.
“Our constant fear was that our children would encounter difficulties in preparing for their exams because of their trauma that is associated with hurricane, or that the lack of electricity would impact on their ability to study and to work at home,” he stated. “We were worried that the absence of the usual comfort at our schools would distract them from their studies and their teachers grappling with the stress of Post-Maria Dominica would be further challenged to deliver their best in the classroom.”
Despite the challenges, Saint Jean said the results this year were similar to previous years.
“I am however happy to note that our concerns, though they were well rooted have not come to bear. Instead, this year we are witnessing similar results to what obtained in previous years,” he remarked.
Saint Jean mentioned that in some cases his ministry note improvement in performance while some schools continue to struggle.
He went on to say that the students have displayed their own brand of resilience and have persevered with the support of their parents and the wider community.
More importantly, he said, students have demonstrated that the future of Dominica is in safe hands.
“Their performance in this year’s exams is a cause for celebrations,” he remarked.
Meantime, Chief Education Officer Melena Fontaine said as the ministry examined the results and analyze the information, “we can only come to one conclusion that the education system in Dominica is made up of a group of committed and dedicated individuals.”
“Our students worked hard, our teachers worked hard and our parents were really supportive,” Fontaine noted.
Furthermore, she stated that the Ministry of Education has also been doing some monitoring of students who left to continue their education in the other islands immediately after the Hurricane.
“Reports coming in indicates that students who would have been in Grade 6 are also doing well in the schools in the other islands,” Fontaine revealed. “They and their families are to be commended and we are happy to report that some of them are coming back to continue their secondary education in Dominica.”
She said the Ministry of Education will continue to grapple with post-Maria challenges.
“We already have programmes being implemented to address some of the concerns that we have identified,” Fontaine remarked.
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