Gov’t crafting plan to fix ‘unacceptable’ maths pass rate

President Dr. Irfaan Ali on Tuesday announced that the Ministry of Education is creating a new plan to improve mathematics pass rates in Guyana because the country has grappled with some “unacceptable” rates recently.

The Head of State spoke at the commissioning ceremony for the new Victoria Lily Primary School at Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo.

“We cannot continue with the existing pass rate in mathematics, it is unacceptable and we must change it and we will change it,” he told those gathered.

Dr. Ali said he took note of the country’s performance in the mathematics subject area recently but acknowledged that Guyana, for a number of years, grappled with low pass rates in this subject.

As his government seeks to improve education delivery, he believes some additional classroom time would help children learn mathematics better.

“… I am of the view that perhaps, we need to, in a very targeted manner, create additional hours for mathematics at the secondary school level, especially at the exam level,” Dr. Ali said.

The President also said the government must also think about infusing artificial intelligence into the teachings of this subject.

Any consideration to infuse technology will, however, be part of a “comprehensive strategy” meant to improve students’ mathematics scores.

A total of 15,360 candidates sat the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) this year and based on an analysis of the results, there were improvements in the pupils’ performances in Science and Mathematics. In Mathematics, the pass rate jumped from 34.72 per cent in 2022 to 39.87 per cent this year.

At the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Examinations level this year, the pass rate for mathematics was pegged at 34 per cent.