ASTEP, a test that was developed in 2011 for students who failed the grade four literacy test saw a high number of failures this year. The test , if passed aids transition into secondary schools for students.
A government report showed that less than 20% of the students who took the 2015 ASTEP test passed , 26% of the students were absent and which means that more than 54% of Jamaican students failed the test. The low scores are said to have sent the Jamaican Ministry of Education reeling as to how to place the students that have failed the literacy test for a second time
How dem fi pass test when dem parents can barely find lunch money fi send dem go school eeeh? The money dem use implement the test and conduct the survey can go to the school feeding programe fi help the same pickney dem. It come in like when you go a doctor and dem a tell you fi piss and full up a cup, some a dem never offer you something fi drink but dem a mek demands pon you pissing portion. Unno fi gwey man bout 50% fail
A di same type a test like grade 9 achievement test…. nothing wrong with testing..the government can’t feed everybody but most of the children have learning disorders that are not being addressed…that a di real story
Amen to that Met. You spoke the truth right there. They are not addressing the learning disabilities in students.
More than ever, Jamaican kids from poor backgrounds have access to free lunch and other meals. Therefore, what you are saying does not make sense. People like yourself is always looking at ways to shift the blame away from the parents and onto the “System” (Ministry of Education, Government, Politicians, etc.). In other words, people like yourself doesn’t know what personal responsibilities are and walk around with a chip on your shoulder, thinking that someone in a position of authority is to be blamed for your rotten state of life and someone owes you something. Is this what they teach you in the Ghetto of Kingston? Why should it be someone outside the home responsibility to provide breakfast/lunch/dinner for YOUR KIDS? Were these people there when you were making poor choices in bringing these children into the world, without knowing how YOU are going to feed them? I can’t wait to hear you silly comeback.
I see kids in a lot of rural community come home from school and quickly change their school clothes and off to do various activities not related to school (no homework, etc.). There is no parental involvement, due to various reasons, so the children are on their own with very little guidance. Again, people LIKE YOU always looking for scapegoats… it is always someones fault why your kids can barely read and write.
Unno fi gwey man bout bout “can barely find lunch money fi send dem go school” and free your mind of mental slavery and “ghettoism”.
Genesis, you are my kind of person. This reply is spot on! Thank you! :shakehand2 :cendol :2thumbup
Anon, you killing me! If you know before hand that your going to give piss for a test, you drink water before you to the dr. Heh? They’re not responsible for giving you water.
:ngakak :ngakak
It is safe to say Anon is part of the 20% that either fail the ASTEP or the 26% that just didn’t take the time to show up for the test. She fits the profile of the woman that give yuh a one f*k and two weeks later, after making many monetary demands, she decides that she wants back the f*K she gave you weeks earlier and gwaan the worst way outside yuh gate. :ngakak
Di Jamaican Ministry a Education always a reel a nuh nuttn new, diffrent day same reeling…like a dyam fowl widout head!!KMT
But Met if a di same test like grade 9 achievement test weh grade 4 pickney a tek it fah den? Or me misinterpret something weh dem say. Did they convert the GNAT to this one up top?
No grade 4 children do a test fi qualify fi GSAT..those who fail tek ASTEP..yes dem convert to this one
LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO @Anonymous and di doctor dem. The Jamaican public schools need to provide lunch to the children. The government can at the very least do that. They damn sure found money out of thin air to fix roads to impress Obama. If the population is illiterate and you can’t invest in education, then it will translate to high criminality. But that’s just assuming that it’s food why the children are missing.
It’s a fact that poor people are less involved in their children’s education. I’m sure they eat everyday, no matter how hard it is. So I’m not accepting that it’s lack of food why they are missing from school.
How many of our wealthy do philanthropic work in Jamaica? There should be food pantries and charities where children should be able to receive help, in addition to governmental places.
A country that cannot take care of it’s young and it’s elderly is no country at all.
We need more social service involvement. As Met stated, cognitive testing as well as vision and hearing tests needs to be mandatory.
It would be interesting to see where the schools are located that test the poorest…for instance, the garrison or rural areas.
Oh ok, well the stats no justifiable then 100%. No-show is automatically a failure..thats bs
Oh, so if you do not show up to take an exam, you automatically pass? Hahahaaaaaaaaaa….yuh know yuh foo-fool? Whey you want the MOE to do, given them a third attempt at taking the exam? You do realize that the act of preparing and giving exams has a significant cost penalty? I think you want the MOE to provide free lunch and transportation when sitting these exams too….right?
Some of these kids are to busy fight over man a bus stop, too much time on their phone on social media instead of studying ….if they put their mind to it they can pass these test.
I been saying it for years, many parents think as long as dem keeping a roof over the head, food in the belly and clothes on the body they had fulfilled their parental duties. No help with homework, no help with spiritual and emotional development, no parent teachers meeting, no visit on parent teacher meets, no help in developing the child to be a functioning member of society. Dem will sit back and cuss their child when they don’t perform like some other child; yet, they never took a moment to see what that parent was doing to help their child to excel.
E-X-A-C-T-L-Y!!!!!!
I totally agree with Genesis and #13
Why are people having kids knowing they can’t afford them……I can understand one child and then maybe the second one but 3,4,6 and 8. Them same one not paying the little school fee that the school require. If they can’t afford to give them lunch money or taxi fare, send them to a school close by. Cook lunch or make sandwich give them to eat. Some qualify for free lunches.
Yesterday in the Star I saw an article of a woman who is 40 with 4 kids who are badly in need of a house…the structure is beyond living conditions and it’s only one room. However, she has been living there since she was a child…the (Fathers) don’t give her much.. Why when she reach child #2 she never say I’m done??? Most of them cause it on themselves… I may sound harsh but I can’t feel sorry them if they don’t feel sorry for their own self.
Mi doe mean fi sound no way but Jamaican people fret offa food more dan anything else mi nuh know a wha do dem eno .
Good Day Met
I am a teacher with intimate knowledge of the ASTEP & Bridging Programme. This is the programme that students who did not sit the GSAT examinations matriculate into.
I strongly believe that the government needs to reevaluate this programme. At my school, Almost all the students in this programme display severe maladaptive behaviours. They are very hard to control as they come with a lot of underlying problems. The farthest thing from their mind is schoolwork.
Met, can you imagine a child who has not learnt the letters of the alphabet in 6 years being willing and eager to do so in his/her 7th year? Neither can I! But the governemnt expects that these children will do an exam, pass it, attend high school and come out with five and six CSEC subjects. This programme should be teaching the children basic literacy and numeracy along with other skills such as plumbing, waitering etc. What some schools have actually done is to get instructors to come and teach these things. However the draw back is that the schools have to pay these individuals and money is tight. In another week or two there will be another sitting of this test. I know for a fact that the results will not be much different.
A few of my family members are teachers and they say the same..I was talking to my bff about the behaviors and him a try tell me say me a exaggerate so mi glad u comment I will show him
Every school after every 3 years should give students aptitude and intelligence tests in Jamaica, to see how they are learning and how they will learn..It makes no sense to put them through the system if they are not grasping not even the basics..Remember now a days we a filtering into the computer age so skills only will not cut it they need to find what fuels their capacity to learn ..
I THINK PEOPLE SHOULD STOP TALKING ABOUT HOW DEM FI FIND LUNCH $$ AND BUS FARE FROM FI SEND KIDS TO SCHOOL…STRAIGHT TALK FI DI PARENTS WHO DO NOT DO WHAT I AM ABOUT TO ADDRESS DEM MI CAN SAY CAN NOT AFFORD TO SEND DEM KIDS TO SCHOOL…BUT THE ONE DEM THAT CAN FIND DI $$$ FI GO DANCE 24/7 GET HOW MUCH TATTOO AND A DRESS LIKE FARRINA EVERYDAY…ETC NEED TO DO BETTER PLUS IT IS NOT JUST SCHOOL THE KIDS FI LEARN ABOUT EDUCATION A LOT OF PARENTS NEED TO TAKE THE TIME AND IMPROVE DEM KIDS LEARNING…INSTEAD THEY ARE TEACHING DEM ABOUT THE LATEST BRAND PHONE AND CLOTHES AND THE LATEST KARTEL SONG..YOU CAN GIVE DEM KIDS HOME SCHOOLING..A LOT OF JAMAICANS DO NOT TAKE BLAME FOR DEM MISTAKES ALWAYS BLAMING SOMETHING OR SOMEONE..AND MANY OF DEM REFUSE TO WORK DEM SAY DEM NOT WORKING FI $5000 A WEEK BUT DEM A CALL FARRIN A BEG,,,SO YOU NO WAN WORK BUT DI FARRINA FI GO OUT IN DA COLD WEATHER AND SEND COME A JAMAICA NOT EVERYONE A FARRIN SELL DRUGS…YES IT IS HARD IN JAMAICA BUT YOU HAVE TO DO SOME KIND A WORK OR HUSTLE SAME WAY..SO FOR THE PARENTS WHO TRULY CAN NOT AFFORD IT FINE….AND IF THESE KIDS IN GRADE 4 IS FAILING THERE SHOULD BE PROGRAMS AND HELP GIVEN TO WHO NEED IT
How can these children be poor and don’t work hard in school. I wasn’t the brightest student but the poverty made me work hard in school. Being poor alone should be their motivation. Maybe if they were going to their bed hungry like me, they would have passed. Hunger will motivate anybody so a full them belly full.
we the adults and parents should be blame for our future generation, our priority differ from our elders. I remember growing up i was coming home to a meal everyday. Now this generation differ. Some of us might not be financially stable to send your kids to school, however we are sporting the latest outfits,with the latest phone, expensive hairstyle,, footwear etc yet still we may find it difficult to tend to your youths. Nothing is wrong with wanting to look nice, nothing is wrong with having the latest phones and dinning at whatever restaurants, but some of us failed dramatically to analyze what is priority. Sacrifices by our forefathers may have led us to who some of us are presently; however some of us failed to make that sacrifice for our kids.