People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, on Thursday extended congratulations to National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) pupils who received their results, giving special recognition to those who attained perfect scores in the various subject areas.
He also applauded the broader group of high achievers and saluted educators and parents whose efforts, he said, have been instrumental in this year’s improved performance.
Speaking at his weekly press conference at Freedom House, Dr. Jagdeo described the 2025 NGSA results as a reflection of the government’s sustained investment in education.
“The number of children who performed exceedingly well this year is very encouraging. It’s a clear indication that the hard work of our students, teachers, and education professionals is paying off,” he said.
The former president reflected on the state of education when the PPP took office in 1992, noting that only 35 per cent of children who sat the Common Entrance exam were placed in secondary schools. The majority were relegated to community high schools or kept in primary-level classrooms.
“At just 10 or 11 years old, many of these children were effectively judged as failures and denied a pathway to write CSEC (Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate) or access further opportunities,” Dr. Jagdeo stated.
He declared that those days are over, citing key policy shifts that have changed the educational landscape.
“Through the construction of more secondary schools, removal of corporate tax on private education, and improved access, every child who wrote the NGSA this year will have the opportunity to write the CSEC examination,” he said. “That is not just a statistic. That is transformation.”
Dr. Jagdeo announced that the government is on track to achieve universal secondary education and revealed that the state will continue covering the cost of up to eight CSEC subjects for each student in both public and private schools.
He also stressed that the NGSA should not be seen as a final judgment of a child’s potential.
“For many years, it was the lack of space—not a child’s ability—that dictated outcomes. That era is behind us. Every child deserves a fair chance to succeed,” Jagdeo said.
The national education budget grew from $53 billion in 2020 to $185 billion in 2025, and the recruitment of over 3,000 additional teachers has brought the national total to nearly 15,000.
This expansion has lowered the student-teacher ratio from 13:1 to 12:1—among the lowest globally—enabling more personalised attention for students.
The government also plans to introduce digital schools in its next term.
This initiative, he explained, will incorporate artificial intelligence and online learning platforms to develop tailored educational programmes for each student.
“This will allow us to deliver truly personalised education that caters to individual strengths and addresses weaknesses,” he said.
