Jones’ say on 11-Plus

MINISTER OF EDUCATION RONALD JONES will not be rushed into changing the Common Entrance Examination (CEE) or any form of assessment for children going into secondary schools.
Against the backdrop of recent calls for the abandonment of the Common Entrance or the introduction of continuous assessments in schools, Jones said that there must be “sensible conversation” which should ultimately lead to some pursuit of what can work”.
Speaking to the media yesterday, after the launch of a preschool in Hastings, Christ Church, he explained that “sensible assessment” could not happen because different schools were “doing different things based on the proclivities of teachers”.
“An assessment has to be sensibly done. If we have 60 plus schools in Barbados, every school does its own test right now, so tell me how you are going to be able to create a particular value on what is done at school X as opposed to what is done at school B,” he said.