� BUDGET PRESENTATION BY THE HON JEFFREY LLOYD MINISTER OF EDUCATION 2017/2018 BUDGET DEBATE AT THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY THURSDAY, JUNE 15, 2017 AT � 1
10 A.M � 2
EDUCATION FOR THE MODERN BAHAMIAN ECONOMY (Title Taken from the Education Section of the DPM’s Budget Contribution 2017) Mr. Speaker, I stand in the firm established awareness of the Mighty I AM Consciousness in whose Being I live and move and have my own. It is on the authority of the magnificent electors of South Beach, who graciously endowed me on May 10 past with the privilege of being their Member of Parliament. I have experienced a charity, welcome, hospitality and gracious regard that exceeds my greatest deserving, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am further grateful to a host of beings without whose intimate and extensive support this day would not have been possible. I was born and raised in Kemp Road, reared by my paternal grandmother, who was a large strapping woman, with an equally large disposition and strident no-nonsense attitude. I was brought up, Mr. Speaker, in a disciplined, rather austere environment exceeded only by the faithful assurance at all times of the love and encouragement of my grandmother and father. I was the first in my family to attain and accomplish many things, a high school diploma, college degree and so on. � 3
So, this day stimulates a sense of deep gratitude To my Grandmother, Leta Lloyd, my parents, Eltoy and Stanford, I owe my life and all that has flowed into it since birth. To my wife, Michelle, my rock and steadying barometer, my children: Aisha, Kendra, Shiva, Shakti and Sanjay – Grandchildren – Alvante, Alexiou, Alex, Andreas, Drew, and the one yet unnamed still in the oven, MY BROTHERS, Charles, Rodney, My sister, Christina, cousins like siblings, Yvonne, Daphne, Deborah, Juppy, Sheba, Adrianne, and their families: I am forever grateful for their unwavering admiration and encouragement. Mr. Speaker, my dedicated South Beach Team, led by Dr. Elizabeth Darville, and the Associations executive Team, led by Chairman Luther Rolle, Tony Albury, Sherry Albury, Verdell Williams, Adrianne Smith And Lindsay Williamson are a Candidate’s and Now MP’s dream. They have extended a benefit to me that I could never repay. Consequently, today, through their unselfish and experts efforts, I am their Member of Parliament. I thank them. � 4
Mr. Speaker, my former SAC high school colleague is today the Prime Minister of the Bahamas. In his singular discretion, I was chosen by appointment on May 15 th , 2017, to be his chief advisor in Education as the Minister responsible for that portfolio. Mr. Prime Minister, I thank you for your confidence in me, and I promise never to disappoint You. Mr. Speaker, I am reminded each time I see the Hon Member for Englerston of the days of yore when her father and my mother were LOCKED ELBOW TO ELBOW, AS patriots in the fight for liberation, and the advancement of our people. You see, Sir, I was born into a political household as it were. My Mother was an original member of the PLP, and she championed the causes of enlightenment of our people for many years before her eventual passing. So, I'm not entirely new to political warfare. Mr. Speaker, It is no secret that the established education system in The Bahamas is unable to meet the needs of a 21st Century society; one that is in a constant state of flux and evolution - and it is clear that we still � 5
battle against outdated and outmoded educational methods. We say "one size does not fit all" but we often teach that way; we value knowledge more than we value skill and creativity; we are too focused on a so called "D" average without an understanding of what that "D" average indicates and generally, as a people, we are not involved enough in the process of education and the lives of our children and student population. Mr. Speaker, it is the goal of this government to transform our country into a knowledge-based society. By that, as defined by the Organization for American States, we mean to treat knowledge as a commodity that can be traded for our country’s economic prosperity. Knowledge based societies rely on the knowledge of their citizens to drive the innovation, entrepreneurship and dynamism of that society's economy. This is the focus of this government as we seek to revamp the Bahamian education system in the next five years and in perpetuity. � 6
Like the old adage states; the first step in solving a problem is admitting that you have one - Mr. Speaker, when it comes to education, we have a problem. The deficiencies of our education system in FAILING TO effectively equipping our young people to meet the needs of a 21st Century economy are well documented. National examinations, specifically the GLAT, BJC and BGCSE examinations coupled with graduation rates from the past few years reveal that at every assessment level and at the point of exiting school, too many students are failing to meet basic requirements of knowledge and skill. EXAMINATION RESULTS The year 2016 marked the twenty-fourth sitting of our three national examinations. The Grade Level Assessment Test or (GLAT), the Bahamas Junior Certificate (BJC) and the Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education (BGCSE). GLAT � 7
In 2016, Five thousand, four hundred and twenty eight (5428) third grade students across The Bahamas, sat the GLAT examination, in English and Mathematics. 63.48 % of the grades awarded were A-D passes, whereas 36.5% of the grades awarded were between the E-U range. At the sixth grade level, approximately five thousand and fifty three (5053) candidates registered to sit examinations for four subjects offered (English, Math, Science and Social Studies). 59.56% of the overall candidates who wrote the examination received A-D grades, whereas a startling 40% were awarded failing grades between E-U. At both the third and sixth grade levels, female students continue to outperform male students, achieving higher percentages at the upper grade levels while our young men continue to achieve higher percentages at the lower grade levels. BJC In 2016, approximately 11,703 candidates from a total of one hundred twenty (120) centers registered to sit the BJC examinations for eleven � 8
subjects offered. Candidates came from sixty-eight (68) independent centres and fifty–two (52) public schools. Mr. Speaker, 64.3% of the grades awarded were in the A-D range, which indicates that 35.7 % of the grades awarded were in the E-U or failing range. In 2016, a mere 2,240 candidates, just 20%, achieved a minimum grade of ‘D’ or higher in five or more BJC subjects. BGCSE In 2016, six thousand four hundred and fifty (6,450) candidates were registered from a total of one hundred four (104) centres to sit the examination. Sixty five (65) centres were independent while, thirty nine (39) were public. Although the total number of subjects offered is twenty seven, the average number of subjects written per candidate in 2016 was four (4), and in 2015 it was five (5). � 9
� English Language, biology, mathematics and religious studies have remained the subjects of choice for the vast majority of candidates, for the past few years; note however, no subject has a 100% subscription rate. In 2016, a total of one thousand four hundred fifty-nine (1,459), or a mere 23% of the candidates, obtained a minimum grade of ‘D’ in at least 5 subjects. A total of 903 candidates received at least ‘C’ in five or more subjects in 2016. In other words, 14% of the candidates that registered to take the BGCSE examination received at least a 'C' in five or more subjects. In 2015, 65% of the 5400 students sitting English Language failed; 75% of the 5200 sitting maths failed. 2016 did not see a much better outcome. 10
� Some will argue that when compared to 1992, the last sitting of the General Certificate Examination (GCE), when only 10% of the exit population received five or more subjects with A-C grades that this is an improvement. The question that is echoed however is this, after twenty- four years is it good enough to have achieved a mere 4% increase or a yearly increase of 0.16%? I think we all know the answer to that question. Mr. Speaker, with 37% of our third graders and 40% of sixth graders failing the GLAT examination, a mere 20% of our 9th graders achieving relative success at the BJC level with five or more subjects with a 'D' pass and above, and only 23% of BGCSE candidates achieving a grade of 'D' and above in 5 or more subjects, we cannot pretend that things are going well in education. GRADUATION RATES In reference to the graduation rates of our students, in 2015, the Department of Education collected the graduation rates from all public 11
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