Ministry of Education defends 2026 PEP assessment amid Damion Crawford critique

Acting Chief Education Officer Terrion Thomas-Gale has rejected claims that the Ministry of Education’s reading of the 2026 Grade 6 Primary Exit Profile (PEP) results is misleading, speaking at the Region 7 School Leadership Conference.

According to the Ministry’s review, performance improved in mathematics and language arts. It reported that 72 per cent of candidates were proficient or highly proficient in language arts, with literacy mastery at 79 per cent and numeracy mastery at 75 per cent, while mathematics fell short of its mark by one percentage point.

Opposition education spokesman Damion Crawford has challenged that reading, arguing that exam adjustments made after Hurricane Melissa make it unreasonable to set this year’s outcomes against last year’s.

Asked for the Ministry’s response, Mrs Thomas-Gale said officials stand by the assessment figures and note that the data remain open to examination and scrutiny. She added that the education minister will, in due course, give a fuller reply to the Opposition if she chooses to do so.

She also urged parents and the public not to lose confidence in the PEP, describing it as grounded in the National Standards Curriculum and designed to produce primary graduates who are more resilient, better prepared for the modern world, and stronger critical thinkers — aims she said the curriculum is meant to deliver.

Meanwhile, she pressed Region 7 primary principals to lift literacy and numeracy to at least 90 per cent, noting that some pupils still leave primary school unable to read. High school leaders were directed to ensure leavers secure at least five CSEC subjects. On special education, she said the Ministry wants more inclusive environments, stronger programmes, and added support so students with special needs receive the help they require.

Region 7 covers schools in Clarendon. Regional Director Barrington Richardson said the area has 109 public schools and that this year’s PEP outcomes there sit just a few points under the national average.