Minister of Education Philip Jackson has issued a policy directive to dismantle the nation’s long-standing “up and out” practice of automatic grade promotion in schools. Speaking during a live call-in on the New Times radio program—where he addressed ongoing tropical storm relief efforts and national development—Minister Jackson outlined strict literacy and writing prerequisites that students must meet before being permitted to advance to higher grade levels. The policy overhaul aims to eliminate systemic academic deficiencies and curb the cycle of student frustration that leads to secondary school dropouts.
The policy directives coincided with public shock over the death of Tafari, a Form 3 student at West St. George Secondary School who succumbed to multiple stab wounds in the intensive care unit at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital following a Friday attack.
“I’m still trying to wrap my head and my spirit around this whole thing,” Jackson stated, observing that public reaction to youth violence had reached a troubling “new low.” He expressed alarm that some public commentary appeared “almost rejoicing… as if they saying he deserve to die,” emphasizing that society must collectively confront and take ownership of the crisis facing vulnerable youth.
In response to the incident, the Ministry of Education deployed an immediate crisis support team to West St. George Secondary School. The intervention contingent included:
- The Chief Education Officer
- A Senior Education Officer
- Two additional senior education officers
- A specialized team of school counselors
Minister Jackson confirmed he initiated direct personal outreach to the school principal, as well as the deceased student’s grandmother and mother, to coordinate ongoing psychological and emotional assistance for the school community and grieving family.
Addressing structural flaws within the public education framework, Jackson argued that automatic promotion undermines student development and long-term social stability. The Ministry is enacting the following policy mandates:
Elimination of Automatic Promotion: Education staff have been formally instructed to terminate the “up and out” policy, ending the practice of advancing students through grade levels without requiring academic mastery.
Academic Prerequisites: Students must demonstrably read and write at their designated grade level before receiving authorization to progress to higher forms.
Socio-Economic Link and Mechanism of Failure: Jackson outlined a clear causal chain, explaining that automatic promotion pushes illiterate and unequipped youth through the system. Struggling with unaddressed academic deficits, these students experience intense frustration that ultimately drives them to drop out of secondary school, leaving them exposed to crime and “pretty all sorts of evil forces.”
To alleviate financial pressure on households and encourage maximum examination sit-ins, Jackson highlighted the government’s full state coverage of regional examination fees for secondary and post-secondary students. Communicated under a standardized framework, fee coverage applies to school-approved Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) subjects:
- Standard CSEC Subject Coverage (5 to 9 Subjects): For secondary students registered by their institution for five to nine subjects, the government pays 100 percent of the examination fees.
- Extended CSEC Subject Coverage (More than 9 Subjects): For students sitting more than nine subjects (e.g., 10 or 11 subjects), the state covers the first nine subjects, while parents are responsible for funding any additional subject beyond the nine-subject ceiling.
- Post-Secondary CAPE Subject Coverage: Post-secondary college students sitting CAPE examinations—who typically register for two to three subjects—fall well beneath the nine-subject maximum threshold and receive full government fee coverage.
Addressing caller reports that parental confusion persisted despite prior policy announcements at a town meeting with school principals, Jackson acknowledged the need for aggressive public information dissemination. He committed to stepping up communication efforts, including issuing dedicated flyers and maintaining continuous radio updates leading up to exam registration deadlines, to counter lingering doubt and political “mischief.”
