Executive summary
The Ministry of Education( MoE) is implementing the 2017 – 2021 Education Sector Plan( ESP) under the theme: Education for All: Embracing Change, Securing the Future. The plan builds on its predecessor, the White Paper on Education Development and Policy 2009 – 2019, and provides a strategic road-map for the MoE to follow to improve the provision and administration of education over the medium-term plan period. Guided by the MoE vision of providing holistic lifelong education for all, the ESP responds to the developmental priorities outlined in a number of national policy and strategy documents, and demonstrates the Federation’ s commitment to regional and global education imperatives, communicated, for example, through the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States( OECS) 2012 – 2021 sub-regional education sector strategy( OESS) and the United Nations( UN) Sustainable Development Goal( SDG) 4 for 2030.
Key policy issues 1 Access and participation
Achieving the MoE commitment to improve equitable access to high-quality early childhood development and care requires widening access at this level, especially for ages 0 – 2( NER 2 ages 0 – 2: 40 %, NER ages 3 – 4: 85 %). Levels of enrolment at primary are acceptable( NER: 94 %, GPI: 100); however, despite a 100 % transition rate from primary to secondary for both genders, retention at secondary level is unsatisfactory. Universal secondary education has been a cornerstone of the education system for decades; nonetheless, 19 % of secondary school-age children are not enrolled( NER 81 %), and the dropout rate from Form 4 is 30 % for males and 17 % for females. With respect to higher education, a GER of 20 % and 38 % for males and females, respectively, at the post-secondary level and 47 % and 86 % at the tertiary level indicates a need to improve access to higher and continuing education and to address gender disparities in participation at this level.
In accordance with the 2013 Technical Vocational Education and Training( TVET) Policy to mainstream TVET as a vehicle for human and sustainable development, efforts must be strengthened to improve access to TVET competencies and subjects throughout compulsory education, and redress gender imbalances in participation( e. g. enrolment of males and females in non-traditional skills areas at the post-secondary level is 9 %).
Additionally, the lack of comprehensive data on the participation of special needs students and other vulnerable populations is a gap to be addressed in order to safeguard equity in access and participation for all students. A need for clarity on the influence of automatic promotion and academic streaming practices has also been identified, as the former poses a challenge, where there are inadequate remediation supports in place, and the latter may contribute to the demotivation of students and high dropout rates at secondary level.
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Quality and relevance
Notwithstanding small class sizes( average primary: 16, and secondary: 21) and a large majority of trained teachers at the compulsory level, student learning outcomes remain inadequate. At the primary level, between 2011 and 2014, performance on Grade 6 Language Arts and Mathematics Test of Standards averaged 51 % and 61 %, respectively. At the secondary level, the national pass rate on Caribbean Examination Council( CXC) Certificate of Secondary Education Competence( CSEC) exams is 79 %, which is higher than the regional average of 61 %; however, approximately only 71 % of students sit CSEC exams, leaving 29 % of secondary students without an opportunity to attain this standard of achievement. Given this reality, approximately 50 % of secondary school students achieve accepted literacy standards( English A), 35 % attain passes in Mathematics, and only 18 % are successful in at least five CSEC subjects, including Mathematics and English. With respect to key TVET areas, approximately 2 – 6 % of students sit subjects such as Mechanical Engineering, Agriculture, Electrical and Electronic Technology, and Building Technology( CDB, 2015).
Several contributory factors compromise the quality and relevance of education. There is need to increase the number of trained teachers and improve the gender balance in the teaching force. At the early childhood development( ECD) level, only 8 % of teachers and 25 % of supervisors are trained. At the public primary and secondary level, 71 % and 54 %, respectively, of teachers are trained and the lion’ s share of the teaching force is female( 100 % at ECD, 90 % at primary, and 69 % at secondary level). Additionally, the 2016 UNESCO Education Policy Review highlighted challenges with:
1. The ESP responds to key policy issues pinpointed through several sector studies, both internally and externally managed, that were conducted between 2013-and 2016. Unless otherwise indicated, statistics are from the St. Kitts and Nevis MoE Education Management Information Systems Statistical Digest 2013 – 2014.
2. NER = Net enrolment ratio, GER = Gross enrolment ratio.