#BTSpeakingOut – Credibility of CXC at stake

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author(s) do not represent the official position of Barbados TODAY. 

by Paula-Anne Moore and Khaleel Kothdiwala

CARICOM’s students, parents and teachers anxiously await the public release of CXC’s 2022 grades, the third of the pandemic era.

This academic year has been traumatic for these students, many of  whom have  had to endure three sets of exams and their education  in pandemic conditions. Too many feel that their voices are unheard.

We note the following challenges experienced by these children, reported to the Ministries of Education and CXC, and hope CXC lives up to its commitment that grading has been adjusted to reflect the disadvantages experienced by the affected students:

*1. Errors on far too many  2022 CXC exam papers. *

An experienced principal of one of our most acclaimed CARICOM schools has said that she and her team have never seen so many errors in so many exam papers.

*2.  Results  not being released earlier for CAPE Unit 2  (Upper 6)* ie those students seeking to enter university this year. We acknowledge that the delay in the exams by 3 weeks, requested a year prior, was finally granted. This was particularly helpful to the CAPE Unit 1 (Lower 6) students whose academic year was shortened by two months with no reduction in syllabi.

We appreciate  that there are competing needs and what is beneficial for one group of students might be less so for another group, but find it disappointing that there was no communication on any offer to help the Upper 6 students by selecting and marking their papers first so their results could be issued prior to the rest of the papers.

A display of this student-centred flexibility, responsiveness and consideration, or at the very least a public dialogue in this connection,  would been important ‘damage control’ (which PM Mottley stated in Oct 2020 was essential) to mend the damage to public trust and confidence in CXC inflicted by its last 2 years’ grading performance, including its lack of public communication and accountability.

*3. the e-testing fiasco at too many  schools in Barbados. *

Again, there was inadequate public commitment by CXC, to alleviate the anxiety of negatively affected students, that grading would be adjusted so they would not be disadvantaged by errors in exam questions, and/or e-testing problems.

We note the sad contrast with the Cambridge exam body, which had immediate public communication regarding their 2022 exam errors.

Cambridge also provided exam topics in *Feb 2022 (!)* and publicly committed to adjusting their grading to account for the detrimental effect of two years of the pandemic on learning. Our children deserved no less consideration.

4. *Student confidence shaken* Students would have had some trepidation and confidence shaken re their 2022 exams, having seen their friends endure largely unresolved grading problems in 2020 and 2021. This only adds to the pre-existing stress of education during the pandemic.

What are the plans for 2023 exams? Will it be another attempt at ‘business as usual’, as if COVID no longer existed, which appears to be the initial approach by CXC to the 2022 exams? The past heavy impact of COVID will continue to affect that 2023 student cohort, and another wave of infections is predicted  later this year.

There is no expert independent external regulation of CXC  (eg OFQUAL UK). This would ensure that its management and product offering accords with international best practice. Former Minister of Education Bradshaw endorsed in 2021 our nearly three-year-long call for such regulation, unique amongst CARICOM Ministers.

*Fear of  privitisation of education*

We understand that at least one CARICOM country has pursued  other options to CXC 2022 and future exams, and its national CXC candidates have dropped 50 – 75 per cent over the last two years, due to the largely unresolved 2020 Grading Crisis.

The ‘1 per cent’ are pursuing non-CXC alternatives for their children  in far greater numbers.

We continue to sound the alarm and advocate for our nation and region’s children re education matters generally, but here specifically re CXC’s performance,  not out of negativity, but because it is our duty to do right by our children, and out of care and concern for our region’s future development, to ensure that the institutions of CARICOM, including CXC,  continue to accord with global best practice and demonstrate accountability  to the people they supposedly serve. We are proud of the past globally-competitive reputation of CXC, particularly  as a home-grown institution, and want to ensure that that reputation is maintained.

The public perception is that CXC is more focused on profits than on providing a fair and responsive exam product. If the fundamental challenges re CXC’s governance, quality assurance, stakeholder engagement and communication are not addressed urgently, parental and student confidence will be irreparably damaged, leading to negative consequences, including the acceleration of privatisation of CARICOM  secondary school education.

We cannot afford to lose our children, on whom our national and regional  future depends, to brain flight, due to disillusionment over their treatment by the ‘powers that be’ during the pandemic era. This is a particularity timely concern, in the midst of the current  NIS discussion and governmental attempts to grow the economy by attracting immigrants.

We hope that CARICOM will not wait until public confidence in and the credibility of CXC have been irreparably damaged, to execute the requisite, long advocated for, remedial change of the governance and public accountability of CXC.

Public confidence in and the credibility of CXC’s exam certification is an incredibly important element of the national development of our people and we have every expectation of Barbados’ continued regional leadership in this regard.

The stakes are too high for anything less.

Paula-Anne Moore, Parent Advocate Spokesperson/Coordinator The Group of Concerned Parents, Barbados The Caribbean Coalition for  Exam Redress.

Khaleel Kothdiwala, Student Advocate and Liaison The Caribbean Coalition for  Exam Redress.