Education in Guyana is provided largely by the Government of Guyana, through the Ministry of Education and its arms in the ten different regions of the country. Guyana's education system is a legacy from its time as British Guiana, and is similar to that of the other anglophone member states of the Caribbean Community, which are affiliated to the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC). School curricula, funding, standards and other policies are set by the central government and implemented through the Ministry of Education and related agencies. The Education System is divided into eleven districts, ten of which correspond to the national administrative and geographical regions of the country, while the capital, Georgetown, is treated as a separate education district, district 11.[4] With 8.3% of its GDP spent on education, Guyana sits with Cuba, Iceland, Denmark and Botswana as among the few countries with top spending on education.[5]
The statutory age for beginning compulsory education is five years nine months, and students are required to attend school until age 16. However, children who do not meet the statutory age to begin school are sometimes enrolled early or generally attend some kind of pre-school. To meet the requirements for compulsory education students generally attend public schools, but there are a few private schools which offer education at one or all stages of learning; home-schooling is virtually non-existent in Guyana. The academic year usually begins in September and ends in July of the following year and with the exception of President's College students have a five-hour school day.
Outside of the private sector, free education from nursery to university was the norm in Guyana until the mid-1990s. The current provision of education is subsidised from nursery through secondary schools, with students now having to pay for tuition at some tertiary institutions. This development reflected a change from the 1970s when Guyana became a socialist-inspired Cooperative Republic. The country's educational policy in the 1970s was intended to broaden access to education, as before that education beyond primary school was expensive and designed primarily for a small elite. In the 1970s single-sex schools were made co-educational; private and parochial schools were incorporated into the public system.[6]
The reform which occurred was part of a wider phenomenon in a post-colonial CARICOM aiming to provide an education that reflected the full heritage and aspirations of independent states. Today, as part of its obligations to the CXC, Guyana's educational specifications and assessment procedures are bound by regional guidelines.[7] Students wear uniforms to school.
Guyana has a reading literacy rate at 92% of the population over age 15.[8] Despite this high level of reading literacy, significant portions of the Guyanese population have functional literacy difficulties resulting in a lack of employability and other socio-economic disadvantages; this has caused government and charitable agencies to push education as a tool in poverty reduction.
Guyana is one of the highest ranked developing countries in the Education Index of the United NationsHuman Development Report. With a score of 0.943 on the Education Index, its overall rank is 37, but ranks third in the Caribbean after Cuba and Barbados, and second in South America after Argentina.[9] According to DFID, Guyana has achieved the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education but continues to struggle with the provision of increased access to satisfactory secondary education.[10] As one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, instruction in Guyana's schools makes little or no use of instructional technologies such as interactive whiteboards or other multimedia tools. Indeed, many schools are short on basic resources, especially in the areas of science and technology, and this sometimes puts students at a disadvantage when compared to their counterparts in the region.
As part of a continuous effort to tackle inequalities and inefficiencies in the system, the parliament of Guyana has been debating and redrafting the 2007 Education bill. The bill moves Guyana closer to a comprehensive education system, but retains the use of corporal punishment as a disciplinary measure, despite Guyana's obligations to international conventions such as the UN Rights of the Child.[11]
The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI)[12] finds that Guyana is fulfilling only 85.0% of what it should be fulfilling for the right to education based on the country's level of income.[13] HRMI breaks down the right to education by looking at the rights to both primary education and secondary education. While taking into consideration Guyana's income level, the nation is achieving 84.7% of what should be possible based on its resources (income) for primary education and 85.3% for secondary education.[13]
Nursery education in Guyana is not compulsory, though most children attend them. Nursery or kindergarten schools, sometimes referred to as play schools are provided by the government as well as private entities. It is essentially a formalised extension of early childhood education and is available to children who are age 3 years 9 months at the end of the first term of the school year.[14] The education section of Guyana's National Development Strategy (NDS), chapter 18, further indicates that the nursery education programme is a two-year programme which focuses on child development.
The introduction of a national nursery education programme occurred in 1976 as part of larger education reforms in the country. The programme is delivered in specially designed nursery schools or in primary schools. Some nursery schools function as feeder programmes for primary schools which are seen as high achievers - gaining entrance into those schools inevitably becomes competitive and sometimes exclusive.
Nursery schools in Guyana since the 1980s have faced serious challenges such as adequate numbers of trained teachers as well as adequate facilities.[15] However, as early childhood education takes on a higher level of importance in development and poverty eradication, efforts are afoot to address those challenges. UNICEF is one body that is involved in addressing nursery education challenges as it is a major funder of initiatives which further childhood development in Guyana and elsewhere.[16]
A primary school in Georgetown, Guyana.
Primary school
Primary education is compulsory and requires attendance for six years. Over the last five years education in Guyana has been undergoing continuous reform. The six-year programme is no longer organised as "Preparatory A and B, and Standards 1 to 4" - it is now Grades 1 to 6. Part of this reform has meant that the Secondary School Entrance Education (SSEE) 11+ or common entrance exam is no longer used to award places in secondary schools, instead primary school students now take the Grade Six (Level 6) assessment to gain a secondary school place.[17] One of the objectives of this reform is to tackle the problem of overcrowding at oversubscribed schools.
There are essentially three types of primary schools: the first and most common one is the primary school which provides a typical primary education - from Grades 1 to 6, then there is the primary school which has a primary and a secondary department, and the primary school which has a nursery and secondary department.
The curriculum of primary schools in Guyana is designed to impart basic literacy and numeracy skills, and also aims to prepare students for secondary education. This literacy and numeracy training is complemented with lessons in Social Studies and Integrated Science. Though Guyana is considered to have met its Millennium Development Goal for universal primary education, the challenge for primary education remains equity of access in terms of curriculum delivery, quality and relevance.[18] Equity of access is a problem largely as a result of how the primary education system is structured, as well as uneven resource availability based on geography - that is, schools on Guyana's coasts and in urban areas tend to be better resourced than schools in the hinterland or in rural areas.
Secondary schooling in Guyana is tiered. There are senior secondary schools, which tend to be more academic in orientation, junior secondary schools, Community High Schools and Secondary Departments of Primary Schools. Since the current reforms are phased, students who perform well in their primary school assessments are awarded places at top schools such as Bishops' High School, St. Stanislaus College, St. Joseph High School, St. Rose's High School, President's College and Queen's College rather than a school in their geographic catchment area.[17]
For the most part, the curriculum offered in secondary schools is that of the CXC geared towards preparing students to leave secondary school with subject passes at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) or the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE). CSEC is equivalent to the UK's General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and CAPE to A-levels. The senior and junior secondary schools prepare students for the CSEC and CAPE qualifications, but the Community High Schools and secondary departments prepare students for the Secondary Schools Proficiency Examination (SSPE); students who do well on this exam may transfer to senior or junior secondary schools. Students attending senior or junior secondary schools attend from Grade 7 to Grade 11 for CSEC and move on to Grade 12 if interested in the CAPE qualification. Community High and students in secondary departments of primary schools, attend from Grade 7 to Grade 10. GCSE and A-level examinations are still offered in some schools but they are expected to be phased out as part of the educational reforms system.
Since the 1990s Guyana has seen the return of faith schools, primarily in the secondary sector. There is one International School - the Georgetown International School.[19] The other private schools recognised by the Ministry of Education are: ISA Islamic School (Muslim), Mae's School, The New Guyana School, School of the Nations (Baháʼí Faith) and Marian Academy (Roman Catholic). These private schools have become highly desirable as they are seen to offer a better quality of education compared to public schools.[20]
In most cases, students are considered to have had a good secondary education after obtaining a minimum of five CSEC subjects at the CXC; depending on their career interests, students may spend a further two years in secondary school for CAPE offerings or proceed directly to further or higher education courses. Though the CSEC subjects are normally taken in Grade Eleven and the CAPE subjects in Grades Twelve and Thirteen, students may take them earlier if so prepared. Students are required to take a foreign language in some schools, but outside of core subjects, the curriculum generally allows students to focus on their interests. The International Baccalaureate programme is not available in Guyana, but parents and students interested in the Advanced Placement programme can pursue it at the Georgetown International School.Archived 2006-05-23 at the Wayback Machine
Students with disabilities or special needs are educated in schools specially designed for them. They follow the national curriculum, but this is supplemented or adapted where required. As in some places, there is still a stigma associated with attending a special school, as a result some parents avoid enrolling their children. Apart from that, there is no society-wide consciousness or campaign for improving facilities for disabled students. Some schools are partnered with mainstream schools as in the case of President's College and the David Rose School; in this partnership President's College students raise funds and provide other forms of support for the students of the David Rose School. Some special schools cater for the emotionally and socially deprived as well as students who have disabilities such as visual or auditory impairment.
Vocational school/Technical school
There are about ten technical/vocational schools across the country which are post-secondary in nature. Among the more prominent technical/vocational schools are the Government Technical Institute, Guyana Industrial Training Centre, Carnegie School of Home Economics, (formerly known as the Carnegie Trade School) which was founded on a grant by the Carnegie Trustee in 1933,[21]Guyana School of Agriculture, New Amsterdam Technical Institute (NATI) and the Linden Technical Institute. Private entities such as the Guyana Sugar Corporation and the Private Aircraft Owners Association also provide technical education.[14] In 2019, the Art Williams and Harry Wendt Aeronautical Engineering School became accredited to issue associate degrees and certificates in aircraft maintenance.[22]
Further education/Higher education
This sector includes teacher training colleges, advanced technical schools and the university.
Colleges
Cyril Potter College of Education was established by law in the 19th century to train primary school teachers; today, its main campus is at Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown with centres at New Amsterdam and Linden, Rose Hall, Anna Regina, Vreed-en-Hoop and provides two and three-year programmes for nursery, primary and secondary teachers, the programmes are in-service and pre-service.[23]
School of Nursing (Georgetown, New Amsterdam) These institutions provide basic training for nursing assistants, professional nurses, as well as midwifery.
The Critchlow Labour College was established in 1967as the educational arm of the trade Union Movement. It provides pre-university courses in Industrial Relations, business, sociology and a CXC programme for school leavers who need to obtain those qualifications. It has plans to introduce associate degrees but has postponed that initiative because of funding problems.[24]
Kuru Kuru Cooperative College is accredited by the University of Guyana and the Association of Caribbean Tertiary Institutions. This institution lists its main aim as that of providing training on all aspects of cooperative business.[25]
Music studies
Guyana is home to many unique music traditions, but despite its importance for cultural heritage, music has tended to receive minimal support in schools. Music studies are offered as part of teacher training at CPCE, and a fledgling National School of Music was opened in 2012.[26]
Other colleges
There are also many small off-shore private universities.
University
The University of Guyana is the major university that operates on two campuses, Turkeyen (Demerara) and at Tain (Berbice) . It was established in 1963 after Guyana expressed its preference for a local university given the costs associated with Guyanese students attending the University of the West Indies (UWI) and other universities.
It provides a professional education in many areas, but students who want to pursue training in fields such as anthropology, astronomy or librarianship must travel abroad or pursue distance studies. Students who cannot afford university tuition fees may take a student loan from the state-run student loans agency.[27] The University of Guyana like the University of the West Indies is an associate member of CARICOM, it is also a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities.
Continuing/Adult education
The Adult Education Association and, the Institute of Adult and Continuing Education, the extramural arm of the University of Guyana fulfil this role along with many other private and government post-secondary institutions. The government of Guyana is administers a National Fast Track Literacy programme which aims to improve the literacy skills of young people and adults who did not complete formal education.[28]
†Physiographically, these continental islands are not part of the volcanic Windward Islands arc, although sometimes grouped with them culturally and politically.
#Bermuda is an isolated North Atlanticoceanic island, physiographically not part of the Lucayan Archipelago, Antilles, Caribbean Sea nor North American continental nor South American continental islands. It is grouped with the Northern American region, but occasionally also with the Caribbean region culturally.
The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) is an examination board in the Caribbean. It was established in 1972 under agreement by the participating governments in the Caribbean Community to conduct such examinations as it may think appropriate and award certificates and diplomas on the results of any such examinations so conducted. The council is empowered to regulate the conduct of any such examinations and prescribe the qualification requirements of candidates and the fees payable by them. It is now an examining body that provides educational certifications in 16 English speaking Commonwealth Caribbean Countries and Territories and has replaced the General Certificate of Education (GCE) examinations used by England and some other members of the Commonwealth. The CXC is an institution of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM); it was recognised as an Associate Institution of the Community in the 1973 treaty that created the Caribbean Community. Members of the council are drawn from the 16 territories and the region's two universities, the University of Guyana and the University of the West Indies.
The British International School of Washington (BISW) is a private, nonsectarian, co-educational British school located in the Georgetown neighborhood near the border of the Georgetown and Glover Park neighborhoods in Washington, D.C. BISW educates pupils between the ages of 2 and 18. BISW was originally founded in September 1998 by Dr. Lesley Stagg. In 2013, BISW joined Nord Anglia Education, an international education provider owned by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. As of 2019, Nord Anglia operated 66 international schools in 30 countries with over 61,000 students. BISW leases property from Georgetown University, yet GU's Green Building was purchased in 2009 by the entity that is now HUB Properties Trust.
North West Secondary School is a secondary school in Mabaruma, capital town of the Barima-Waini region in northern Guyana. The school was established in 1965, being the only secondary school in the region until the establishment of Santa Rosa school in 1992. The school is run by a local school board, having been led by a headmaster until 2005. Classes originally ran from forms one to five, though changed to transitional classes in 2015 to accommodate a rising population of school-age children in Mabaruma and its surrounding areas.
Presentation College San Fernando is a selective, government-assisted Roman Catholic Boys’ Secondary School located in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago. It claims to be the first Catholic secondary school in South Trinidad, having been established around 1930 in the basement of San Fernando Presbytery. It relocated to the Colony Buildings at La Pique in 1931. Originally named St. Benedict's College, the name was changed in 1948 when management of the school was assumed by the Presentation Brothers.
St. Stanislaus College is a Grade-A senior secondary school in Georgetown, Guyana. It has a student population of 600 and a teaching staff of about 40. Admission to the school is normally through the Secondary Schools' Entrance Examination. It is the third highest school in the country, following Queen's College and Bishops' High School.
The Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) is a higher education institution in Georgetown, Guyana.
Education in Mauritius is managed by the Ministry of Education & Human Resources, which controls the development and administration of state schools funded by government, but also has an advisory and supervisory role in respect of private schools. The Tertiary education is maintained by the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science, Research and Technology. The government of Mauritius provides free education to its citizens from pre-primary to tertiary levels. Since July 2005, the government also introduced free transport for all students. Schooling is compulsory up to the age of 16. Mauritian students consistently rank top in the world each year for the Cambridge International O Level, International A and AS level examinations. Among sub-Saharan African countries, Mauritius has one of the highest literacy rates. The adult literacy rate was at 91.9% in 2022. According to the 2022 census, the proportion of people with higher education has increased to 8.8%. Mauritius was ranked 57th in the Global Innovation Index in 2023, 1st in Africa.
Before the arrival of European settlers, who introduced a formal education system addressed to the elites, education in Ghana was mainly informal and based on apprenticeship. Economic activities in pre-colonial Ghana were based on farm produce shared within households and members of each household specialized in providing necessities such as cooking utilities, shelter, clothing, and furniture, and trade with other households was therefore practiced on a very small scale. As such there was no need for employment outside the household that would have otherwise called for disciplines, values, and skills through a formal education system. After colonization, Ghana's economy became a hybrid of subsistence and formal economy.
Education in Jamaica is primarily modeled on the British education system.
Debe Secondary School is a co-educational high school first established in 2000 which offers forms 1-6. It is situated in south Trinidad in Debe. The school's motto is Seize the Day.
Provision of education in the UAE began shortly after the establishment of the federation with the inception of the first university in Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates University. Since then, the country has progressed with efforts of ensuring high literacy rates, modern programs and women's share in education. It works on improving its youths education which is why the agenda 2021 has been set. The UAE currently devotes approximately 25 percent of total federal government spending to education. As of 2019, the overall literacy rate is 96%.
The State of Kuwait, located at the head of the Persian Gulf, supports an educational policy that seeks to provide an opportunity to all children, irrespective of their social class, including children with special needs. Kuwait was ranked 63rd on the Human Development Index report for 2011 by the United Nations Development Programme, placing Kuwait above the regional average.
Education in Barbados is based primarily on the British model.
Education in Trinidad and Tobago is free and is largely and primarily based on the British education system, compulsory between ages 5 and 16. Trinidad and Tobago is considered one of the most literate countries in the World with a literacy rate exceeding 98%. This exceptionally high literacy rate can be attributed, in part, to free tuition from Kindergarten (Pre-School) to University.
Education in Montserrat is compulsory for children between the ages of 5 and 14, and free up to the age of 17. The Government of Montserrat developed an Education in the Country Policy Plan for 1998–2002 in conjunction with the United Kingdom. Under this plan, the government is supporting initiatives in the areas of curriculum development, student assessment and evaluation, professional development for teachers, post-secondary education expansion, and educational infrastructure and information technology.
Knox College is a co-educational high school for both day pupils and boarders in Clarendon Parish, Jamaica. The other institutions that form the complex are: the Neighbourhood Early Childhood Institute, Knox Junior School, and Knox Community College. It was co-founded by Rev. Dr. Lewis Davidson and Mr. David Bent in 1947 and is named after John Knox.
The Business School (TBS) is a career-oriented for-profit university and high school located in Georgetown, Guyana. It is a was founded in 1975 by Erma Bovell. The Business School – High School was established in September 1997. There is also a branch in Berbice.
The Georgetown International Academy is an American private international, coeducational day school in Georgetown, Guyana. Established in 1971, the academy offers an educational program compatible with the United States system from nursery through grade 12.
Texila American University (TAU) is an offshore private medical school, owned by the Texila American University Ltd – Hong Kong (TAU-HK). TAU-HK is a project of the ALLTERE Education Management Company. Texila's U.S. offices are in New Jersey. The University is located in Guyana, South America and offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in medicine, nursing, public health and allied sciences.
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