Harmon lauds stellar NGSA performance in Region 3

Director General of the Ministry of the Presidency, Joseph Harmon, has commended the Region Three Department of Education (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) on the high level of attainment and higher percentage of passes obtained at this year’s National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) examinations.

Of the 1,827 Grade Six pupils who wrote the NGSA in that region, 37 secured spots in the top one per cent of the country’s top performers.
In his feature address at that region’s second annual NGSA Awards Ceremony, held last Friday at the Regional Education Office at Vreed-en-Hoop, West Coast Demerara, Harmon said these developments are a direct result of Government’s continuous investment in the education sector.
He is quoted by the Public Information and Press Services Unit within the Ministry of the Presidency as saying that NGSA remains a critical point in Guyana’s education system, as it allows students to transition from primary to secondary education.
He posited that Government continues to implement reforms and other measures to enhance learning, among which are enhanced teacher training, curricular development, digitisation of the education system, the introduction of smart classrooms, and literacy and numeracy interventions.
Government has also provided access to education through the Public Education Transport Service (PETS), and in order to boost literacy of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the region, 39 schools and 40 ICT Hubs have benefited from internet access through the Schools Connectivity Initiative implemented by the National Data Management Authority (NDMA), Harmon said.
He commended parents and teachers for capitalising on these measures to enhance learning of children in Region 3, and noted that the exceptional NGSA results are evidence of the success of these measures.
Harmon, moreover, encouraged the students to remain focused on their education.
The students who were honoured at this ceremony are the following: Ruth Larson and Shrirish Persaud, who shared the top spot with 530 marks; Sarah Johnson, Aditya Sharma and Jaaya Shiwraj, each of whom obtained 528 marks; and Athaliah Joe, Yuvraj Tuklaram and Aryan Sugrim, each of whom obtained 527 marks. These were all students of the Academy of Excellence. Janae Boucher of the Genesis Early Childhood Education Centre, who also obtained 527 marks, and Chitra Parbhu of the Leonora Primary School, who gained 526 marks, were also honoured. Each of these 10 students has obtained a place at Queen’s College.
This ceremony was also attended by Region Three Education Officer Annesta Douglas.