UWI professor wants PEP abolished

WESTERN BUREAU:

Professor Canute Thompson, a senior academic at The University of the West Indies, is calling for the abolition of the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examination, saying it is undermining student confidence and failing to reflect the diverse realities of the Jamaican school system.

Thompson, pro-vice-chancellor for undergraduate studies and professor of educational policy, planning and leadership at UWI Mona, made the observation during an interview with The Gleaner following his address at Thursday’s annual general meeting and symposium of the Jamaica Association of Education Officers in Montego Bay, St James.

“The way we test students in Jamaica, as in other Caribbean countries, does not take account of the diversity in their learning and the challenges they face in different contexts,” Thompson said. “We have schools in rural Jamaica that are resourced differently from those in the Corporate Area, yet we test them using the same instrument.”

PEP, introduced in 2018 to replace the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT), was designed to assess higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills. However, critics have argued that it remains a high-stakes exam that reinforces ranking and placement over student development.

This year, 33,462 students across 964 institutions registered for the PEP examinations. Of those, 89.5 per cent were placed in one of their seven preferred schools. Fifty-six per cent of students achieved overall proficiency, while seven per cent were deemed highly proficient. Subject-specific results showed 67 per cent proficiency in language arts, 56 per cent in mathematics, 61 per cent in science, and 58 per cent in social studies.

SHIFT FOCUS

Dr Dana Morris Dixon, minister of education, skills, youth and information, reported a 25 per cent reduction in absenteeism and announced the launch of a new School Results Publication to help institutions analyse performance and improve outcomes. She reaffirmed the ministry’s target of 85 per cent proficiency by 2030.

Still, Thompson is insisting that Jamaica must shift its educational philosophy and adopt individual learning plans (ILPs), similar to models used in Finland and Singapore.

“In those countries, each child is provided with a learning plan for the year, developed in collaboration with parents or guardians. Progress is measured against that plan, not against other students,” he explained.

Thompson also warned against the dangers of ranking students, describing the practice as detrimental to self-esteem and academic growth.

“I find it most unhelpful and inconsistent with the support for learning to have these children ranked. What does it mean to come first or 21st? That undermines the child’s confidence and threatens their ability to lift themselves and do well,” he said.

The professor emphasised that meaningful reform would require a comprehensive overhaul of Jamaica’s education system.

“We’ll have to reconstruct classrooms, re-prepare our teachers, and reframe the entire education process. We should not be evaluating children by comparing them to others, but by enabling them to grow along their own path,” Thompson said.

For the 2025-2026 academic year, the education ministry has announced changes to the PEP schedule. Mathematics and language arts assessments will be condensed into single-day sittings, held in April and May instead of February. The Grade Five Performance Task will be removed from the formal PEP framework, though schools will continue their own assessments. No changes are planned for grade-four evaluations.

albert.ferguson@gleanerjm.com