Caribbean Policy Research Institute

Despite relatively high levels of enrolment and education spending, there is a growing perception that a substantial proportion of the Jamaican labour force is unprepared for the demands of the global market. Low levels of learning and persistent inequalities in the education provided to low and high income children only exacerbate the problem. This leads to the conclusion that the Jamaican education system is operating below international standards. Jamaican citizens, including teachers, school principals, parents, students, business and education leaders, believe that at least part of the problem stems from the lack of appropriate accountability mechanisms to ensure better performance in Jamaica‟s education system.

This paper provides an overview of the current education context in Jamaica, considering how key groups perceive the education system in Jamaica and what they expect from it (based on stakeholder consultations). With that context in mind, it then discusses the role of accountability and more specifically, education report cards as a tool for raising accountability, and thereby improving the Jamaican education system.

Several stakeholders also raised the possibility of using a value-added assessment to identify and quantify changes in performance that can be attributed to a particular school or teacher as a potential tool for improving accountability in Jamaica. Consequently, the report also explores the possibility of incorporating value-added information into the discussions on education in Jamaica and considers the feasibility and relevance of conducting a value-added assessment as part of an education report card in Jamaica.

In simple terms, education report cards are summary reports, often produced annually, that assess the current state and progress of an educational system. They have the potential to improve accountability in Jamaica by equipping stakeholders with accessible and reliable data, thereby informing their positions on areas and policies for improving education.

In addition to presenting learning and other key indicators at the national or sub-national level, national education report cards compare results against regional and international standards. They also monitor key policy areas such as standards, testing, finance, teacher management and training, and authority and accountability at the school-level – crucial areas presently at the centre of the accountability debate in Jamaica.

Value-added assessments seek to quantify changes in performance that can be attributed to a particular school or teacher, taking into account each unit‟s initial starting point (e.g. school resources, socioeconomic background of students, prior levels of student learning). In some cases, report cards and value-added assessments can play complementary roles. A value-added study may, for example, find that certain schools are “adding value” at above average rates given their particular context, while a report card on overall performance might reveal that despite these accomplishments, schools are still failing to provide their students with some minimum level of skills deemed adequate to succeed.

This report examines how these tools might work in the Jamaican context and makes preliminary suggestions for moving forward.