Patterns can change, focus more on mastering the content

THE EDITOR, Madam:

“Wha kinda exam that CSEC really send? The students were not prepared for this type of paper!” This is one of the few comments I have stumbled across since the sitting of the exam May 12. But, why was there such an outrage?

Was it that the 2026 paper was difficult or is it that candidates rehearsed the wrong structure? No longer are candidates taught to appreciate variation in language and question structure. Instead, they are engaged in sessions of regressive pattern practices. Candidates should not be trained to expect a particular topic to appear first or in a specific format. It is evident from the 2026 reviews that any deviation from the practised ‘template’ severely affects how candidates perceive an exam's difficulty.

Too often, students engage in marathons using previous exams as a rigid guide. While this should by no means be frowned upon, as it has proven to be fruitful to some degree, the concern lies in making it the foundational approach. The practice of pressuring students to focus only on certain topics based on the patterns observed in recent years should be discontinued. 

Instead, measures must be employed to ensure the curriculum content is fully understood, digested, and successfully applied. Candidates should be able to comfortably sit in an exam, such as this sitting of Paper 2, and successfully dissect each question, irrespective of how the paper itself is structured. It is the content and its application that must take precedence. But, will this gentle nudge be well received to ensure that cognition and the application of content are prioritised?

To the facilitators who ensure candidates are exposed to various forms of questioning and who consequently were not thwarted from success when presented with the 2026 paper, job well done!

MEGAN SAMUELS-WEBB

Educator

St Ann