Amid region-wide concerns about declining Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Mathematics grades, Trinidad and Tobago on Monday announced the introduction of an after-school mathematics remedial programme
Finance Minister Colm Imbert announced the TT$3.5 million (approx: US$515,380) programme in his 2025 Budget Statement to the Parliament of that twin-island nation.
“This programme will be implemented by the Ministry of Education as an After School
CSEC Mathematics Tuition Project at 26 Secondary Schools of Focus as a strategic
intervention to address the declining pass rates,” he told the House.
Saying that student performance in CSEC Mathematics has been a “growing concern” in that country, he noted that over the past five years there has been a general decrease in the percentage of students passing that subject that supports problem solving and develop
analytic and reasoning abilities.
Mr Imbert told the Parliament that there had been a general decline in the quality of grades, with fewer students receiving grades I and II in Mathematics over a
5-year period. Correspondingly, he added, there had been a notable rise in the number of
students obtaining lower grade categories. The Finance Minister said that in 2024, a significant 5,312 students received Grade 4 while 4,799 students received Grade 5.
Guyana’s President, Dr Irfaan Ali said the low performance in CSEC Math would be on the agenda of the next summit of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders slated for next February.
Guyana recently launched a special CSEC Mathematics improvement programme in 4th and 5th forms in 50 secondary schools with the aim of improving the pass rate to 40 or 50 percent, up from just over 30 percent in 2024.
