While reading the letter 'Distressing Low Literacy Rates', published in The Gleaner on June 25, I reflected on the myriad discussions surrounding education after the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) results were published in early June. One recurring theme was the more than 30 per cent of students leave primary school after sitting the GSAT without having acquired basic literacy skills. One proposal put forward by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to address this problem is to pay more attention to what happens in the literacy test done at grade four.

The MOE hopes to divert the focus of achievement and assessment from the GSAT to the grade four literacy Test. Students would have up to four chances to sit the grade four exam in an attempt to be certified literate. If students fail to acquire literacy, they would not be allowed to register for or sit the GSAT. The MOE believes that if such a proposal were implemented, parents would pay more attention to what happened at grade four and invest to the same degree in preparing students for the literacy test as they do for the GSAT. This thought is commendable. However, I believe that this proposal would not solve our literacy woes.

literacy development

Studies that have been done on literacy development emphasise the need to address students with poor literacy skills as soon as they are identified. If you check the top-performing primary schools in Jamaica, you will see that these schools have remedial programmes from as early as grade one. I taught at the primary level for almost 10 years and observed that the same students who fail to master the requisite skills on the grade one readiness inventory are the same students, assessed at grades three and four and again at grade six. These are the same students who make up the 30 per cent of students who leave primary school without acquiring basic literacy skills. If these students can be identified from as early as age six - grade one - why should we wait until grade four to address the problem? Why wait until grade four when research has shown that students who leave grade one as poor readers are more likely to also leave grade four as poor readers?

grade 1 readiness inventory

I have spoken to the minister of education about paying special attention to the students who fail to master the grade one readiness inventory and about implementing a programme similar to what currently exists at the grade four level. His response was that teachers who teach grade one are instructed to plan special programmes for those students who fail to master the grade one readiness inventory.

Again, this is commendable, but what is done to ensure that special programmes are actually put in place for these students? Why not have these students resit the grade one inventory until they are certified ready for grade one?

We need to tackle the problem as it becomes evident. If we wait, the problem will only become harder and more expensive to treat.

I am, etc.,

TENNISHA A MORRIS

literacyadvocate@gmail.com

Kingston 17