Judge orders ministry: Give student her script

It is time the mystery of how primary school students are placed in secondary schools, after writing the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) examination, be brought to light. And just how 20 percent of primary school students are placed continues to be a mystery to most citizens.

Making these observations yesterday was High Court Judge Ronnie Boodoosingh who, on behalf of the parents of a 11-year-old former student of a primary school in Orange Grove, Tacarigua, ordered the Ministry of Education to demand from the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) that they provide the girl with a copy of her mathematics and language arts scripts.

The girl wrote the exam last year, but despite scoring marks in the 90’s in various class tests, she obtained marks in the 80’s and failed to get her secondary school first choice.

Her parents queried her score and requested the ministry to allow them to see her mathematics and language arts scripts. They made the request under the Freedom of Information Act, but the ministry told them it did not “own” the examination scripts. They were told they belonged to the CXC.

Attorney Colin Selvon, instructed by Delicia Bethelmy, took up the matter and filed a lawsuit in the High Court seeking judicial review of the ministry’s decision.

In his ruling, Boodoosingh declared the issue was not whether CXC owns the scripts. He said it was also irrelevant whether CXC was a public authority within the meaning of the Freedom of Information Act, since all such authorities must provide information requested by the public.

Referring to the child’s mother, he said she indicated her child was averaging 90-plus in the run-up to the examination and got 96 in mock exams. However, in the SEA exams, she got 88 in mathematics, 80 in language, 46.51 in writing and 89.86 in other subject areas.

Boodoosingh said while the ministry did not have physical custody of the scripts, the question is whether they could have had control or power over it. But, the judge added, the ministry’s response to that issue appears to be that it was “washing” its hands over the issue.

“The ministry seems content with that position. It did not raise a question nor did it make a request for a change of policy,” Boodoosingh said.

“What is the position of the child who spends years preparing for this one examination which has a significant effect on the child’s future? Why can’t the child or parent see the paper he or she has written? What is the harm to any State’s interest in allowing the parents and child to view the paper? What is the harm to any private interest? None has been advanced to the court.”

Boodoosingh said there are contentious issues about the placement of children in schools. He referred to the fact that while 80 per cent of of the students are placed on merit, how the other 20 per cent are placed is a mystery to most citizens.