Minister of Education Glenys Hanna-Martin said yesterday that Free National Movement (FNM) Chairman Dr. Duane Sands' classification of the 2023 BGCSE national exams as "the worst results in history" is "obscenely opportunistic", and "misrepresenting the facts".

In a recorded statement released on Monday, Sands said, "Education has produced the worst results in history, yet instead of strengthening the team at education, the prime minister decides to weaken the leadership by removing the [minister of state, Zane Lightbourne]."

Hanna-Martin fired back pointing out that the worst results in the past five years were under the Free National Movement (FNM).

"I have read the obscenely opportunistic comments of the chairman of the Free National Movement. His comments misrepresent the facts," she said.

"These are not the worst results in history. The worst results in the last five years in fact occurred in 2020 and 2021 when the chairman sat in Cabinet, and it was during this tenure that the nation saw the worst era of neglect in the history of education.

"Indeed, this year's results show some encouraging improvements in foundational skills. The examinations were accessible to more students with more students taking BJC (Bahamas Junior Certificate) exams than has been seen in previous years.

"This year's BJC results A to C passes improved by 4.11 percent, A to D passes improved by 5.19 percent. English Language and Literature improvement were some of the best results in the 10 year period."

However, BGCSE (Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education) results got worse when compared to last year when results were already poor.

A total of 544 or 10.9 percent of candidates received a grade C or higher in five or more subjects.

This is a 14.06 percent decrease when compared to last year, officials reported.

Nine hundred and one students obtained a minimum grade of D in at least five subjects, a 5.36 percent decrease when compared to last year.

Officials also reported that 303 students received at least a grade C or better in Mathematics, English Language and a Science subject.

This represents 5.62 percent of the overall candidature and a 22.7 percent decrease when compared to 2022.

At a press conference last week, education officials said the decline in performance was likely due in part to the substantial learning loss suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic, which exacerbated legacy issues.

"I wish to applaud the leadership of the Ministry of Education and our hardworking and dedicated teachers nationwide," Hanna-Martin said yesterday.

"They have worked admirably in the aftermath of the years of lockdown to help to get our children and young people stabilized in learning and in recovering psycho emotional health. These professionals deserve the respect and gratitude of the nation.

"As most will know, the extended closure of school campuses in this country led to significant learning loss - a fact which has been empirically established through universal testing and also as a result of the extended absenteeism of thousands of children, which necessitated the launch of the campaign 'Find Every Child' and now resulting in unprecedented levels of attendance.

"The ministry has now implemented reforms not only to address the disastrous effects of the prolonged shutdowns and extensive learning loss at all levels, but also to redress legacy issues in an educational system which has been underperforming for decades."

Hanna-Martin also suggested that poor results are a more global trend.

"These reforms will ensure that never again will children leave school unable to read and write: no longer will children facing challenges be pushed through the system without appropriate interventions.

"The learned chairman, I am certain, is aware that declining results have been experienced in both the UK and USA, including this year, and it would be more helpful that he would provide intelligent dialogue which honestly represents the serious nature of the crisis in education faced globally.

"And it is unfortunate that his comments come when he sat in the Cabinet whilst children fell off the radar for years and no [steps were] taken to seek to rescue these children."

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian