Investments in education sector are always beneficial because improved standards of education delivery help significantly to lay a solid foundation for the socio-economic transformation of society. The economic realities in today’s world increasingly demand highly qualified and skilled personnel because of the movement away from labour intensive to capital intensive modes of production, therefore the continuous improvement of the education system is an imperative and this can only be achieved through appropriate investments.

Investing in secondary and tertiary education–and not just primary education- pays rich dividends. A study by UNESCO and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)* on 16 emerging economies found that investments in human capital over the past two decades may have accounted for about a half a percentage point in the annual growth rates of those countries.

This government since assuming office in 1992 has been increasingly investing in the education sector in terms of both infrastructure and human resource development despite limited financial resources which originated in a huge foreign debt of US$ 2.1 billion which it inherited from the previous government. However, because of aggressive and persistent negotiations for debt rescheduling and relief the country benefited significantly in this regard and today that debt has almost halved thereby allowing for more resources to be ploughed into the social sector. And this is exactly what the government has been doing. This policy has paid dividends because the performance of students at both the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) levels in recent years have shown a steady climb and this is indeed encouraging as it shows that the increased investments are not going down the drain.

The results of last year’s CSEC results amply demonstrate this and Minister within the Education Ministry, Dr. Desrey Fox alluded to this when she told this newspaper that generally she is satisfied with the results which have indicated that the government’s significant investments in the sector are bearing fruits.

The areas where grades one to three passes exceeded 75 per cent are Agriculture Science(Double Award), Agriculture Science (Single Award), Chemistry, Clothing and Textile, Information Technology, Food and Nutrition, Home Economics Management, Human and Social Biology, Music, Integrated Science, Physics, Principles of Business, Social Studies, Typewriting, Theatre Arts, Electronics Document Preparation and Management and Physical Education and Sport.

Satisfactory performances or grades one to three passes exceeding 50 per cent were recorded in Biology, Economics, English A, French, Office Administration, Principles of Accounts, Religious Education, Spanish, Technical Drawing, Visual Arts, Building Technology (construction), Building Technology (woods), and Mechanical Engineering Technology.

But overall, the performances in grades one to three in six subjects were below 50 per cent and deemed unsatisfactory.

These areas are Caribbean History 43.76 per cent; English B 38.4 per cent; Geography 44.75 per cent; Information Technology (General) 12.50 per cent; Mathematics 31.46 per cent and Electrical and Electronic Technology 49.81 per cent.

Notably, grades one to three passes in English A improved significantly from last year, moving from 27.97 per cent last year to 50.29 per cent this year.

Grades one to four passes in this subject also increased from 57.94 per cent last year to 78.86 per cent this year.

However, what is most welcome in this year’s performance is that grades one to three passes in English A improved significantly from last year, moving from 27.97 per cent last year to 50.29 per cent this year.

Grades one to four passes in this subject also increased from 57.94 per cent last year to 78.86 per cent this year.

English A performance over the years has been like a thorn in our education system, however, this significant improvement is most encouraging and would be hoped that this momentum would be sustained so that there would continuous improvement in this crucial subject.

The teachers, parents, students and those who are responsible for the stewardship of our education should be given the highest commendation for the very good results at the examinations, especially against the backdrop of difficult times.