2. Education sector diagnosis
A clear understanding of the background and environment in which the education sector operates, along with sound analyses of the strengths and weaknesses of the system, are critical to developing a relevant education development strategy. Accordingly, in 2015 the Ministry of Education conducted and validated an education sector diagnosis( ESD), which contextualized education provision in the Federation and then examined the education system in terms of:( i) access and participation,( ii) quality and relevance,( iii) costs and finance, and( iv) governance and management, with equity as a cross-cutting angle of analysis, as applicable. This assessment, which was informed by several complementary sector analyses, both internally and externally driven, 5 brought key policy issues to the fore, which are now taken up in this ESP. A truncated version of the ESD is presented below.
2.1. Context Historical background
St. Kitts and Nevis( SKN) was colonized by Great Britain in the 1620s, 6 and remained a British colony until 1983 when political independence was achieved, making the Federation the youngest sovereign nation in the Americas( Bekkers, 2009; Inniss, 1983, 1985). 7 However, education provision has been the responsibility of the nation since 1967, when St. Kitts and Nevis became an Associate State with internal autonomy to govern local affairs. The Saint Christopher and Nevis Constitution Order 1983 holds the GoSKN as the highest governing authority in the Federation, yet also grants the island of Nevis, governed by the Nevis Island Assembly, significant autonomy with respect to local governance, including the delivery and management of education( Bekkers, 2009; GoSKN, 2014a). Understanding the constitutional responsibilities assigned to the two levels of government is important, as developing education policy is a federal undertaking; yet policy implementation, if it is to be effective, must be sensitive to the contextual specificities of each jurisdiction that have developed because of autonomy between the islands in managing the dayto-day provision of education.
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Geography and demography
SKN is a small island developing state( SIDS) in the Caribbean Leeward Islands Chain. The islands are separated by a 3-km channel, known as The Narrows. The combined total land area of SKN is 261 km 2( St. Kitts: 168 km 2 / Nevis: 93 km 2), 19.2 % of which is arable. Each island is divided into administrative parishes with nine in St. Kitts and five in Nevis. The Federation, like many of the neighbouring islands, is home to beautiful beaches and vibrant ecosystems that are increasingly threatened by climate change. Additionally, the islands are susceptible to natural disasters such as tropical storms and hurricanes, which have caused significant infrastructural damage over the last 20 years( CDB, 2009). Such disasters can negatively impact the delivery of education, and as such potential hazards should be planned for and mitigated through the implementation of appropriate crisis / disaster risk reduction strategies.
Population growth has been negligible over the last century and 2011 census data indicate that the total population of the Federation is 47,149( 49 % male and 51 % female), with 34,872 persons, or 74 %, living in St. Kitts( 16,869 males and 18,003 females) and 12,277, or 26 %, living in Nevis( 6,126 males and 6,151 females)( see Figure 2). In St. Kitts, the largest share of the population lives in the capital city of Basseterre( 36 %), followed by the rural parishes of St. Peter( 13 %) and St. Mary( 10 %). In Nevis, the largest share of the population lives in the rural parish of St. Johns( 31 %), followed by the rural parish of St. Georges( 20 %); only 15 % lives in the capital of Charlestown. In terms of ethnic composition, 90 % of the population are of African descent, 3 % are of East Indian origin, 2.7 % are Caucasian, and 2.6 % are registered as‘ mixed’. The 2001 census was the first to incorporate the category of‘ Hispanic’ in the list of ethnicities, with 1.2 % of the population identifying as such. 8 Although still a small share of the population, this reflects the growing number of persons from the Dominican Republic immigrating to SKN, for whom English is not a first language. Given this reality, the education sector must be prepared to accommodate learners with potential language barriers.
5. Internal analyses included the GoSKN Ministry of Education Education Sector Situation Analysis( 2013e) and the Education Sector Policy Review Country Background Report( GoSKN, 2014a). External analyses included the UNESCO St. Kitts and Nevis TVET Policy
Review( 2014), the 2016 UNESCO Education Sector Policy Review on Governance, Planning and Management( including M & E, curricula, academic staff policies, and teaching and learning), and the World Bank Functional Review of the Ministry of Education( draft)( World Bank, 2015a, 2015b).
6. St. Kitts was colonized in 1624 and Nevis in 1628. 7. Anguilla was a member island of the Presidency of St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla until 1967.
8. 1.9 % of the Nevis population reported being born in the Dominican Republic, making this group the second largest immigrant group following the Guyanese, who comprise 8 % of the island’ s population. No federal data are available.