The Ministry of Education’s recent press release, which attempts to dismiss legitimate questions raised by WIN candidate Tabitha Sarabo-Halley, is not only defensive and patronizing, it insults the intelligence of every parent, teacher, and citizen who has been paying attention.
Let’s begin with the obvious, the Ministry has offered no credible explanation for how, after years of steady academic decline, this year’s NGSA results have suddenly and dramatically improved across all subjects, conveniently, in an election year. Instead of transparency, we are offered finger-pointing, political smears, and tired rhetoric about “investments” that have been ongoing since 2020, during the same period the nation experienced consistent declines in academic performance.
If these so-called “investments” were the reason for improvement, why did they yield no measurable gains for five years? What changed? Where is the independent analysis that explains the double diget-percentage-point jump in performance in several regions? The Ministry offers none. Because it cannot.
And to accuse Ms. Sarabo-Halley of harming children simply for asking questions? That’s the language of political operatives, not education professionals. The Ministry’s job is to earn public trust, not demand blind faith. And right now, the public deserves answers.
Here’s what we do know;
•The NGSA is administered by CXC, but CXC is not immune to pressure or influence. No process is sacred when oversight is absent. When, for example was the NGSA exam released to Guyana and why are many students reporting that the mock exam was suspiciously similar to the actual exam?
•The Ministry refuses to release raw data, school-by-school breakdowns, or detailed marking explanations. Where are the transparency reports?
•The review request data is irrelevant to the core concern. The issue is not how many asked for reviews, it’s why thousands of parents and educators feel something is suspicious about the magnitude of the change.
To be clear, a double diget-percentage-point national improvement in just one year would be a monumental achievement, if it were real. But such progress would require a revolution in pedagogy, curriculum, classroom instruction, and school infrastructure. Instead, what we’ve witnessed are overcrowded classrooms, underpaid teachers, and inequities that still plague our rural and hinterland regions.
So we must ask, is this miraculous result the product of unseen genius within the Ministry, or is it political theatre dressed in academic garb? The burden of proof lies not with those who raise the questions, but with those who claim the miracle.
