Schools to remain closed until September; CXC exams change could affect NGSA

All schools, except for those levels that have already been reopened, will remain closed until the month of September, according to Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand.

“We have taken a decision based on the advice of the Ministry of Health to remain closed for the rest of the school year (or) academic year, which ends around the end of June (or) the first week of July,” Minister Manickchand said while providing an update on her Facebook page.

Schools have been closed since March last year, due to the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2020 however, Grades 10, 11 and 12 were reopened to allow students to prepare for their upcoming Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) examinations slated to be written in 2021.

On Friday, Minister Manickchand highlighted that with the advent of widespread vaccinations facilitated by the government, the ministry expects that all schools will be reopened by September 2021.

CXC CHANGES

Meanwhile, the minister also noted that the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA)- slated to be written on August 4 and 5- could be impacted by a possible shift in the date of the CXC’s examinations.

The CXC body is currently re-examining the date it will host its examinations; currently, the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE) are slated to be held between June to July.

She explained that the date of the NGSA was chosen so that it falls outside of the CSEC and CAPE period.

As such, on Friday, the minister said, “If CXC changes their date, it would impact significantly on the date of our NGSA.”

However, she underscored, “As it stands now, I encourage NGSA students, teachers and parents to prepare as though the exams are going to happen in August.”