We need new solutions for education’s problems

Here we are, once again, bemoaning the result of the Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education (BGCSE) examinations. This newspaper reported that only 22.3 percent of students who took the exams in five or more subjects got a C or above in mathematics, English, and a science. The vast majority of students are not meeting the mark in the three subject areas considered to be of critical importance and central to the evaluation of their academic capabilities and, given requirements for jobs, career prospects.

Year after year, students are branded as academically inept and teachers are considered to be ineffective and uncaring. Neither of these, however, is necessarily the case. The practice of administering these examinations seems to have continued just for the sake of it rather than there being an indication of any value to the students, teachers, administrators, or the country.

If we truly viewed the BGCSE examinations and results as a tool that allows us to measure the academic success, or potential for success, of the graduating students in any particular year, we would actually have learnings that are actively reported and used to make the changes that have obviously been needed for many years.

For so many students to attain grades of D and lower can only mean that something is wrong with the education system. While it may be difficult, we have to face that fact that the stellar performance of some students is not evidence of an appropriate, functioning system. It is irresponsible, lazy, and insulting to take the position that students do not want to learn or that teachers do not care enough or put enough effort into teaching. There are other possibilities to consider, recognising that we can develop a different system, a different tool, and a different outcome.

1. The BGCSE examinations are flawed. It may be that the content of the exams does not match the material delivered in classrooms. It is possible that the time allotted in the exams are insufficient. It could even be that the way the exams are structured and the questions posed are unhelpful.

Perhaps it is unrealistic to expect teenagers to adequately prepare for examinations across many subject areas, especially while continuing to learn new material in their classes, much less participating in extracurricular activities and carrying household responsibilities and the everyday stresses of a period in life in which many changes occur. Maybe back-to-back exams in different subjects, day after day, is not an acceptable way to assess the learning of high school students.

2. The curriculum is being delivered in an ineffective way. Even if the material is reflected in the exams, it is possible that the delivery does not foster learning for the students in the classroom.

More and more, students need to experience the material they are expected to absorb and have the aptitude to apply. How many times do students ask why they need to learn algebra, or when they will ever use trigonometry in their lives, for example?

Educators need to show them the relevance of the material beyond their classes and the need to pass a test. How does a baker who designs and builds elaborate cakes determine the exact amount of icing needed to cover it, or the amount of weight a 10-inch round cake can bear? There also needs to be variation in teaching style and the ability and willingness to adapt to different learning styles.

Copying notes from the board may be useful for study at a later date, but completely useless for learning. Reading aloud from a textbook may be a good way to reinforce information, yet not the best way to introduce it. What if students were presented with a problem, or presented problems of their own, and were introduced to the information and tools needed to solve them?

3. Students are not sufficiently prepared for the examinations, and many students simply do not test well. Using old papers and taking mock exams can help set students’ expectations, but it does not necessarily help to them to develop a strategy for taking the exam.

Exam preparedness does not begin with studying. It begins with engagement in the classroom, note-taking, application, and revision. Students can benefit from assignments that deviate from the usual question-and-answer and written projects.

Application of learning across subjects and leverage students’ interests and adeptness in using technology can lead to students producing incredible material that not only demonstrates their learning, but deepens understanding of the material and can serve as learning tools for others.

What if students produced a ten-minute animated video about the digestive system, following the journey of a conch fritter through the body? What if students produced a 30-minute podcast about Animal Farm, comparing it to a popular television show?

Create an environment for students to explain class material to one another, and encourage application to their real world experiences and areas of interest. When they understand the material, there is room to prepare them for the testing environment, from managing the allotted time to assessing their best chances to gain points and knowing which sections they should work on first. Test-taking is a skill on its own, completely separate from mastery of material.

4. The format of the examinations needs to change in order to align with the ways students learn and use their knowledge. The results of the 2025 BGCSE examinations showed better performance in the practical subjects such as food and nutrition.

It is quite possible that students perform better when they can put their learning to work in practical ways, ending with a product beyond answers to set questions. In what ways, outside of essays and hours of equations, can we assess the learning of students and their understanding of the material? The time has come to be more creative in setting the curriculum, delivering the material, and assessing students. The ways of decades gone by are clearly not the ways that will work for us now.

Published in The Tribune on September 3, 2025.