ABSTRACT
Teacher perceptions of the National Continuous Assessment Programme in a primary school in the St. George East Education District in Trinidad and Tobago.
The study sought to report the views of primary school teachers as implementers of an innovative National Continuous Assessment Programme, a reform initiated by the Ministry of Education. A qualitative case study was employed to explore the following research question. “What specific concerns do teachers have about the implementation of the National Continuous Assessment Programme?’’ Seven teachers were chosen through purposive sampling. The semi-structured interview was the instrument used to collect data. Member checking and peer-debriefing were strategies used to help to assure validity.
Major findings revealed that the success of the innovation depended to a large extent on training, leadership, collegial relationships, administrative support, parental involvement and resources. Recommendations for more effective implementation of the Continuous Assessment Programme included .The need for more administrative policies and structures both at the school and district level.
Continuous training and staff development
The procurement of resources
Effective monitoring and evaluation of CAP by school personnel as well as by Ministry Officials
Sensitizing and educating parents about the CAP.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the problem
Assessment and particularly the assessment of students’ learning achievement has become the object of a great deal of attention an activities all over the world, in industrialized countries and developing countries alike (Kellaghan, 2001).
The World Conference on Education for all in Jomtien, Thailand in (March 1999) stated that the focus of basic education should be on “actual learning acquisition and outcome”. Additionally, The Dakar Framework for Action (2000) stressed the importance of having a clear definition and accurate assessment of learning outcomes.
A plea for formative assessment in classrooms has become a common denominator in academic publications in all sorts of forums across different countries, and so across different educational cultures (Remesal, 2001).Continuous Assessment was implemented in countries such as Malawi and Honduras .It was noted that there was great improvement in student achievement.(USAID, ,Missions 2003 Vol 1 No.1.)
However, Black and Wiliam (2005) cited in Remesal, 2005 presented a comparative reflection, in which they did an analysis of four national cases- England, France, Germany and the United States. The analysis of the cases revealed the difficulty (if not impossibility of establishing general guidelines for all countries to implement formative assessment Pennycuick (1990) cited in Lubisi & Murphy 2002 argues that the failure of continuous assessment in Sri Lanka was due to serious lack of capacity among teachers. He also noted that there appear to be similar concerns in the South African Context.
The major changes in the area of assessment of student progress and achievement that have taken place worldwide have also impacted on countries in the Caribbean region as well. The assessment policies and practices of the primary phase of education in Jamaica has responded to these global developments by revising assessment for primary schools in tests and exams .They have shifted their focus from summative instruments to formative and diagnostic tools (Joint Board of Teacher Education , 2003).
Similarly, Barbados has also moved away from relying on a one shot examination and is engaged in a continual incremental system of measuring knowledge, skills and attitudes that students have gained from pursuing the primary school curriculum over a period of time. It has been proposed that the continuous assessment scores should be used in conjunction with the score gained in the Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination to allocate students to secondary schools (Ministry of Education). Other Caribbean islands which have adopted the Continuous Assessment Programme include Belize, Anguilla, the Cayman Islands, Guyanna, Monsteratt, St Kitts and Nevis and Trinidad and Tobago (Caribbean Exams).
The Educational landscape of Trinidad and Tobago is highly examination oriented .The 1980s and 1990s have seen reforms in education geared towards the improvement of teaching and learning. Notions of the teacher as transmitter of knowledge have given way to the constructivist view of teaching and learning.
Over the years the Common Entrance has been a course of concern for all stakeholders. The Common Entrance examination was considered to be a high risk exam because of the high stakes involved .This examination led to intense stress on the part of some students causing school phobia, demotivation, underachievement and failure. The weaknesses of the low achieving student were compounded as they moved –up through the school system. The Ministry of Education in its response to these concerns embarked on implementing a comprehensive plan, which replaced the much debated and heavily criticized Common Entrance Examination.