Some 14,551 students will today sit the final examinations of the two-day National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) across the length and breadth of Guyana. The NGSA is a placement examination offered at the end of the primary school cycle to determine which secondary school students will be allotted. As students across the land were anxiously awaiting the start of Wednesday’s sitting, their colleagues at Rama Krishna, North Georgetown and St Margret’s Primary Schools in Georgetown were visited by Education Minister Nicolette Henry and Chief Education Officer (CEO) Marcel Hutson.
Henry and Hutson not only met with children but teachers and parents, all of whom showcased varying levels of emotion as some students appeared nervous, resting
Education Minister Nicolette Henry giving encouragement to a seemingly worried St Margaret’s Primary School student on Wednesday
their hands on their faces as though they were pondering, while parents were on hand to provide the extra support to their offspring. The Education Minister expressed to the candidates that they must do their best to make their parents and teachers proud of their achievement.
Minister Henry had last year underscored that 2017 was an improvement over 2016 and she once gain observed on Wednesday that efforts will be employed to ensure that this trend continues. The Ministry’s CEO meanwhile said on Wednesday that the students should thoroughly read their question paper before putting answers. The NGSA performance is calculated by adding five per cent of each candidate’s Grade Two scores in Mathematics and English, and 10 per cent of the Grade Four score in the same subjects. This was then added to a further 85 per cent of each candidate’s score in those subjects at the Grade Six Assessment. The combined scores in Mathematics and English were then added to the scores gained in Science and Social Studies
On April 12 and 13, 2017, about 13,657 students from across Guyana wrote the National Grade Six Assessment in four subject areas: English Language, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies – two on each day. Each subject consists of two papers – Paper Two was the first paper written and consisted of essay-type questions while Paper One consisted of multiple choice questions.
However, prior to this, the students had to write the National Grades Two and Four Assessments back in 2012 and 2014 respectively. A percentage of the marks from all three assessments will be calculated to determine the overall performance of each student.
After the exams conclude, students for the next few months will be anticipating where they will be placed when the results are released by the Education Ministry. The NGSA replaced the age-old Common Entrance Examination which was a one-off assessment at the Grade Six level.
