Evidence has accumulated about the fact that a large number of children enrolled in schools in Latin America and the
Caribbean do not learn to read adequately and on time. This is a major root cause of learning deficiencies consistently identified by assessment tests. National assessment tests at the primary education level indicate that in most of the
Caribbean countries, some students have not acquired the basic competencies in literacy and numeracy and hence are not well prepared for the transition from primary to secondary education and might have later on difficulties in finding gainful employment. These students master mathematics skills and are reading below their grade. Furthermore, evidence shows that boys more often underperform in these assessment tests than girls, particularly in language arts.
As the majority of
Caribbean countries have advanced with universal secondary education, the students who do not perform well on the secondary education entry examinations are nevertheless placed in secondary schools. However, most of the schools are not well prepared for these underperforming students and do not have appropriate programs in place to provide the needed additional attention and instruction (remedial programs) and teachers are not well prepared to deal with students in need of extra support nor are materials. As a result many secondary school graduates fail to attain the age-specific literacy and numeracy levels and are often not well prepared for work. Employers throughout the region state that many young people do not possess the pre-requisite skills for entry-level jobs, lacking basic skills in reading, writing and mathematics.
Cognizant of the challenge, a number of countries (if not all) have initiated and implement projects that aim to improve literacy and numeracy, however, information about their content and success is not widely known and easily accessible.
The reasons for the underperformance of students in literacy and numeracy are not well understood; including the causes for the underperformance of boys. Some of the most common arguments advanced to explain the problems are: a) language issues pertaining to the fact that children might speak a dialect (Patois) at home however are asked to speak and learn Standard English; and teachers are not well prepared to deal with the switch between the two languages; b) lack of parent involvement, c) much competition with other activities that distract from reading (technology, TV), and d) employment of teaching methods that “favor” girls. However, up to date, little systematic research and data is available about the
Caribbean situation.
To get a better understanding of the current situation pertaining to literacy and numeracy in the Caribbean and to provide a basis for comparison (both regionally and internationally), both the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) commissioned a joint Regional Study on Literacy and Numeracy with the following objectives: (a) compile an inventory of interventions targeting literacy and numeracy in both CDB and IDB supported education projects and other donors and identify ‘successful practices’; (b) undertake a literature review about latest research on literacy and numeracy, including teacher training, new methodologies and technological solutions; (c) develop detailed case studies for Jamaica and St. Lucia, and (d) undertake a diagnostic of the current status of literacy and numeracy competencies (i.e. Mathematics and English) among primary and secondary students in the Caribbean Region, and benchmark the results to comparable countries, and identify ‘bottlenecks’ or issues that could explain the problems experienced.
The CDB and IDB are organizing a two-day meeting/seminar as part of the Caribbean Sub-Regional Policy Dialogue on Education where participants will have an opportunity to discuss the importance of the basic literacy and numeracy skills for young people as they move through primary and secondary education and beyond, and how to improve the underlying reasons for the failure of education systems in this respect. In this occasion the discussion will be centered in the conclusions of the Regional Study together with the latest issues raised on literacy and numeracy and its implications and best practices for
Caribbean countries
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