Diagnostic Testing of Basic School Children in Jamaica

Rose Davies

          In the past, the curriculum in Jamaican primary schools tended to be knowledge based with an emphasis on factual information to be learnt by rote rather than a learning-how-to-learn approach. The one-size-fits-all method of imparting information does not allow for differences in learning styles and rates by different children. The result of this approach has been that some children get left behind and turned off education, so at the end of 11 years of schooling too many end up with no qualifications. Some drop out of the system without having basic literacy and numeracy skills.
To address this problem, the Ministry of Education introduced the Grade 4 literacy test to identify children not performing at that level. They were required to have mastery in that test before being allowed to take the Grade Six Achievement Test. Because some children did not do so before being of age to enter secondary school, the Alternative Secondary Transitional Education Programme (ASTEP) was introduced. (See my blog post of March 22) It became obvious to those administering ASTEP that an earlier intervention was desirable. Then came GOILP – Grade One Individual Learning Profile, with children who were deemed not ready for Grade 1 being placed in a separate class.
        With the work of the Early Childhood Commission  over the last 10 or more years, there has been a great improvement in the standards of Jamaica’s Basic Schools. The great importance of early childhood education and early detection of learning difficulties has come to be recognized. After several years of preparation, the ECC on May 10 and 11, 2016, administered its first diagnostic testing of 4-year-olds in over 2000 Early Childhood Institutions, with the purpose of finding out whether a child has a specific learning disability or learning disorder with another cause, or even a behavior disorder, so that appropriate interventions can take place at the earliest possible time.  Interventions will be made by Regional Special Needs Coordinators and Regional Assessment Teams consisting of 2 psychologists and 2 diagnosticians. There is ongoing training of teachers in the area of special education. (See my blog post of April 14)

In the Sunday Gleaner of May 22, 2016, Rose Davies expressed her concerns about the methods of testing 4-year-olds, in an article entitled Cautions on Early Childhood Assessment. I share those concerns. I can understand the aim of the Early Childhood Commission that the assessment be as objective as possible, but as Mrs. Davies points out, that is hard to achieve with young children. Surely it would be reasonable to have in addition some subjective assessment also by the teachers who work with these children every day? Mrs. Davies also expressed concern about the absence of public information leading to the rollout of this assessment.

          In an article entitled  “Pressure For Primary School Students - Pupils Face Four Prime Tests In Six Years” by Deika Morrison in The Gleaner of April 25, 2012, she wrote: (highlighting is mine).
   

Deika Morrison

      “The Early Childhood Commission (ECC), mandated to supervise and regulate the early childhood sector, is about to begin working on a national-evaluation tool for four year olds. They need to be evaluated for real readiness in the main developmental areas - gross and fine motor skills (gross means big movements like running, fine means small movements like picking up things with finger), speech, social skills, emotional skills, brain development and their approach to learning.
          According to the ECC, this evaluation tool will be specifically designed for Jamaican children and meant to identify what kind of support children need to go forward in the primary-school system. The idea is to be able to identify, before they enter primary school, which of the three categories children fall into: 1) need no additional support in the regular school environment 2) need additional support in the regular school environment or 3) need a specialised school environment.
           Chance for intervention
           The evaluation will be timed to allow for a full year of intervention for those lagging developmentally, as well as specialised attention if needs be. The bottom line is that four year olds don't need a four-year-old version of GSAT. If we are to get the maximum return for the necessary investment in early childhood education, then we must have appropriate tools - which we agree on as a nation - to identify the problems and deal with them appropriately.
          It is time for child-centric interventions, like evaluations that can best help children. We don't know when the ECC evaluation tool will be implemented, but we know we don't have 18 years to 2030 for all of our children to fully master the basics.”

In addition to carrying out diagnostic tests with the best of intentions, the ECC and MOE need to educate parents on the purpose of the testing – it is not to label a child as dumb or bright, nor is it to punish a child who performs poorly in a test. It is to find out the best way of helping children to learn and to grow up to become productive, healthy, well-adjusted members of society.

 

 

Learning Disorders Symposium UWI WJC Part 1

 When I volunteered to assist grade 2 students at Chetwood Memorial Primary School with learning to read, I became aware that some of them had specific problems which I was unqualified to diagnose and treat.  Mrs. Campbell, the principal, told me that, even if they were diagnosed, there were insufficient facilities to accommodate them, so the school had no choice but to move them through the grades.  It is heartbreaking that many children gain very little from their experience at school, and in the process become frustrated and alienated. However, efforts are now being made to give these children assistance.
I was pleased to hear more about this in a Symposium “Learning Disorders – the Struggle is Real” put on by the Association of Future Psychologists, a service club at the Western Campus of the University of the West Indies. This symposium addressed learning disabilities in addition to other reasons why children don’t learn.    
     The need for this symposium was highlighted in a video in which the following questions were posed to students on the campus: “What are learning disorders? Can you name them? What schools in Western Jamaica cater to students with learning disorders?” The responses showed that many students knew very little about this subject.

Anita Baker,
President, Association of
Future Psychologists

In her welcome, Anita Baker, President of The Future Psychologists service club, stressed that learning disorders affect not only the children with these disorders, but also their parents and families. Pointing out that a learning disorder may not always be detrimental, she quoted from the actor Orlando Blume, who labelled dyslexia “a very great gift, which is the way that your mind can think creatively”.

Dr. Ann Shaw-Salmon

The first speaker was Dr. Ann Shaw Salmon, D. Phil (NCU); MSc in Educational Leadership (Conn State University); BA. She began her teaching career with a diploma from Sam Sharpe Teachers’ College. She is now the dynamic, optimistic, Principal of Mt Salem Primary and Junior High. She spoke about “Our Journey with ASTEP”.

ASTEP – Alternative Secondary Transitional Education Programme was introduced in 2011 to cater to students who had failed 4 attempts at the Grade 4 Literacy Test and were therefore ineligible to sit GSAT (Grade 6 Achievement Test) to qualify for a place in Grade 7 in a secondary programme. 163 schools were designated as ASTEP centres, which were supposed to be staffed with extra teachers and physical resources. At Mt Salem Primary and Junior High 73 students were tested and ranged from remedial to requiring special education. 14% were below pre-primary level, 36% were at pre-primary level, 36% were at primary level (i.e. ready for grade 1) and the others at grades 1 and 2.
     The reasons for the students’ poor performance were not only learning disabilities – dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyscalculia, but some also suffered from disruptive behaviour disorders such as ADD, ADH and conduct disorders; and some were emotionally disturbed. Their learning problems included learned hopelessness, defensiveness (making excuses), fear of failure, anxiety and alienation. They had difficulties with remembering, had poor social interactions, were easily annoyed, “giddy in the head”, disruptive, loud and boisterous. They used indecent language, they played truant and were involved in fighting, stone-throwing, gambling and stealing.
     They had no parental guidance and had poor nutrition. They were in need of love and affection, patience and guidance. Some students were grieving the loss of parents or other close relatives; some were barrel children i.e. parents were abroad;  some were latch-key children with parents working, so not there for them; some parents were in prison. Some parents refused to cooperate with the school and were unwilling to get help with parenting. Given this scenario, it is a wonder that the ASTEP Centres were able to do anything.
     However, the Mt Salem centre turned out to be a model to be emulated. Dr. Shaw Salmon found that if the teachers show love, there is success. The students at this centre, in addition to being taught basic literacy and numeracy, were also taught skills, including how to make natural juices, and cooking, including making pizza. They had outside presenters and went to the craft market to learn how to make bracelets and necklaces. They also had an agricultural project, and a band. These activities showed the students the importance of being literate and numerate. Having received this special attention, they were encouraged to give back to those less fortunate than themselves.
     In spite of these achievements, the ASTEP  programme is being phased out and replaced by a series of tests in the lower grades of the primary schools, designed to allow for earlier diagnosis and intervention. Mr. Karl Watson from the Ministry of Education was the  speaker at the symposium who addressed this topic. I will write about this in a future blog post.