The 2022 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) will be written on August 4 and 5, Education Minister, Priya Manickchand has disclosed.
During an update today, she noted that candidates will be required to write papers one and two. There will be two mock examinations administered leading up to the official examination dates, she added.
The Minister said that her ministry will help guide students and teachers in the lead-up to the exams by ensuring that safety measures are in place and that the requisite resources are provided.
“We at the Ministry of Education will not leave our students and teachers alone during this process. We understand that we are living in a different time and we need to support our learners, teachers, and parents as much as possible to ensure students remain in school and education is delivered effectively.”
She noted that a year has passed since COVID-19 was discovered in Guyana, and was reminded about the toll the pandemic has taken on the education sector in the country.
She added that from the start of the pandemic in March 2020, when schools were closed to August 2020, there was “no effective strategy” in place to address the needs of learners and teachers to ensure education delivery continues.
“We lost a lot of time there. As of August 2020, the Ministry of Education adopted several approaches to address these needs as best as we could. As we remain proactive, after repeated consultations with teachers, parents, and students countrywide beginning as early as the week after I entered office with the most recent one being this morning, the Ministry has yet again adopted measures this time to ensure the safe and effective sitting of the 2021 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA).”
Manickchand said that the Ministry plans to implement a well-thought-out strategy that includes the distribution of a consolidated curriculum which will allow teachers to be trained immediately to prepare students to write the NGSA.
Consolidated Curriculum
The consolidated curriculum intends to ensure equity and equality in our education system. The curriculum is a resource document for Grade six teachers. It is extracted from the existing curriculum and does not introduce any new concepts. It is crafted by experts including international consultants and officers at the National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD). It distills the core skills and competencies appropriate for learners at the Grade five-level.
Care Packages
Each Grade six student will receive a care package from the Ministry of Education containing several learning resources to help them prepare for the NGSA 2021. This package will contain:
1. Social Studies Notes
2. Science Notes
3. Worksheets – Mathematics, English, Social Studies, and Science
4. NGSA Past Papers from the last five years
Books
1. Let’s do Mathematics Book 5
2. Fun with Language Book 5
3. Science Around Us Book 5
4. Social Studies for our Children Book 5
5. Graded Math Book 5
6. A Process of Learning – Mathematics Book 5
7. A Process of Learning – English Book 5
8. Mastering Vocabulary – Book 5
9. Understanding English Grammar – Book 5
10. Social Studies Made Easy Grades 5 and 6
11. Science Made Easy Grades 5 and 6
12. Guyana Our Country, Our Home
Manickchand noted that systems will be put in place to have these books returned following the examinations. All the resources mentioned above that are not copyright protected will be available on the Ministry of Education’s website for students and parents to access. Link: www.education.gov.gy.
