Regional examination body, the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC), has delayed its suite of exams by three weeks.
Following a special meeting today of CXC’s Council, the governing board made the decision to postpone the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), in light of the preparation challenges faced by regional students as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, an extension of two weeks has been granted for the submission of the School Based Assessment (SBA) projects.
Dr Wayne Wesley, CXC registrar and chief executive officer. (FILE)
Speaking at a virtual press conference today, CXC Registrar Dr Wayne Wesley said: “After careful deliberation and consideration of all the pertinent issues, Council agreed that the revised strategy for the 2022 regional exams shall be as follows – a delay in the sitting of the regional exams by three weeks. This will provide candidates with additional time to prepare for the examinations. Therefore, exams will commence on Monday, May 23,, 2022 and the results projected to be released in late August or early September.”
The decision represents a departure from CXC’s original stance to hold exams from next week.
This was amidst pressure from the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT), Caribbean Coalition for Exam Redress, Barbados National Council of Parent-Teacher Associations (BNCPTA) and Minister of Education in Jamaica, Fayval Williams, all of which have called on the regional body to be flexible with the time frame as students were “ill-prepared”. (CLM)