By Sue-Ann Wayow
THE Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) will now be held on July 1 instead of June 10.
The announcement was made by Education Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly at a post Cabinet media briefing on Thursday.
Dr Gadsby-Dolly said the health of the children should not be placed at risk as Covid-19 positive cases keep rising.
The decision was made after discussion with the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) and denominational school boards.
The minister said by July 1, hopefully the number of cases would have decreased as well as the number of persons who would have been vaccinated would increase. She added that teachers who have to interact with children would be given vaccination priority.
The ministry also issued a press release following the announcement detailing reasons for the date change.
Dr Gadsby-Dolly said during initial stakeholder consultations held on April 22, 2021, the Covid-19 seven-day average for Trinidad and Tobago was 89, with new cases at 81. When this decision was announced on April 28 to have the exam on June 10, the numbers had increased from 81 to 223 with a seven-day average of 136, up from 89.
She said, “As we speak today, there has been an even more rapid increase in the infection rate of the virus, with new infections reported at over 600 in recent daily updates, and a current seven-day average as high as 478. On August 20, 2020, when the last SEA examination was held, the number of infections reported was 81, with a seven-day average of 52.
“Compare that to our present numbers of 501 and a seven-day average approximating 478, and it is clear that the three weeks left to the scheduled June 10th date for SEA will likely not be enough to allow for the level of decrease needed to achieve an atmosphere of reasonable safety in which to implement the examination.”
The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) was written to on April 23rd to alert them of possible date shift, and the schedule was also, at that time, reworked to accommodate that possibility, the minister said.
Dr Gadsby-Dolly said, “The Ministry of Education is therefore on track with all preparations, and the results of the SEA are expected to be released in the second week of September to facilitate the placement of students in secondary schools by the third week of September.”
