The first batch of students writing the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations through the Secondary Schools Reform Project (SSRP) pilot schools have performed creditably, administrator Walter Alexander said.

Of the 2,655 subjects entered at the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) CSEC general and technical vocational examinations, 46.1% passes were achieved in Grades I to IV and 81% inclusive of Grade V, according to statistics released by the SSRP.

The results indicate that 43.3% of the students attending community high schools and primary tops have the ability and can attain Grades I to IV at the level of the CSEC general and technical vocational subjects, whilst some 77.2% have the ability to succeed with Grades I to V. At the national level, the percentage of students achieving Grades 1-IV and Grades 1-V is 74.7% and 96.8% respectively.

With the exception of Mackenzie High, Annandale Secondary and to a lesser extent the New Campbellville Primary, all the other schools were community high schools and primary tops.

Twelve schools are involved in the project but one, Belladrum, did not submit entries. All the students who are now in fifth form repeated the fourth form last year.

Statistics were not available for Grades I to III passes but in a brief telephone interview with the Stabroek News, Alexander said that because of the background of most of the schools involved in the project, the SSRP felt that Grades One to Four, which are considered for employment purposes, were a good assessment of the schools.

Had the students not written the CSEC examinations they would have had to sit the Secondary Schools Proficiency Examinations (SSPE) offered at the community high schools "which has no employment value," Alexander said.

With the exception of Mackenzie High, a sixth form school, and Annandale Secondary, a fifth form school, all the other schools were community high schools and primary tops.

According to the statistics, Mackenzie High recorded a 16.7% improvement in Grades One to Three passes over 2000 but the percentage passes in Grades I to III for the years 2000 and 2001 were not provided. Grades One to Four passes for Mackenzie High were 98.3%. Mackenzie High submitted 636 entries in 21 subject areas.

Annandale Secondary, according to the SSRP, recorded a 6% improvement in Grades I to III passes from the previous year. Like Mackenzie High, comparative figures were not available for Grades I to III over the previous year. In Grades I to IV, Annandale recorded 84.5% passes from 691 entries in 21 subjects.

The New Campbellville Secondary, an amalgamation of the Campbellville Secondary and the Campbellville Community High achieved 67.5% in Grades I to IV passes, a percentage headmaster of the school, Anandram Mangru told Stabroek News was the best in recent years. The school submitted 452 entries in 13 subject areas.

Dolphin Secondary, Tucville Secondary, Vryman's Erven Secondary and L'Aventure Secondary, all former high schools and primary tops recorded over 50% passes in Grades I to IV.

Dolphin Secondary which secured 66.7% in Grades I to IV submitted 76 entries in seven subjects; Tucville gained 53.8% and submitted 26 entries in five subject areas; Vryman's Erven gained 53% and submitted 51 entries in five subject areas; and L'Aventure gained 52.2% from 67 entries submitted in five subject areas.

Fort Wellington Secondary obtained 45.1% passes in Grades I to IV from 80 entries in nine subject areas; Uitvlugt Secondary gained 44.3% from 61 entries in seven subjects; Cotton Field Secondary got 31.7% from 495 entries in 13 subjects and Manchester Secondary got 19.2% from 78 entries in six subjects.

The lack of trained teachers, particularly in the rural areas, in many of the subjects, was among the main constraints facing the schools, Alexander noted.

He singled out the performance of the students at the Fort Wellington Secondary who in spite of constraints sat Food and Nutrition, Clothing and Textiles and Home Management and performed creditably. For tutoring in these subjects, the students had to travel to the Practical Instructional Centre (PIC) at Hopetown, a few villages away.