News

The report “School Education,” issued by the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) today reviewed how efficiently and effectively the Ministry of Education is using its resources to maximise student achievement.

The report specifically looked at whether the Government has a clear strategic direction for improving performance of the education system and how efficient and effective the Ministry of Education is at using its resources to maximise student achievement.

“Despite education being a priority area and one of the Government’s strategic broad outcomes, there is no overarching strategic plan that sets out the goals, objectives and outcomes that are expected to be achieved.” says Ms. Winspear. “We found that there was limited understanding between the use of resources and performance. It is important that good success measures and outcomes are set for education to ensure that success can be measured and money is being spent on things that will make a difference.”

The report highlights that student performance has improved in recent years but there are significant areas of underperformance.

The Auditor General adds, “It is encouraging to see that overall student performance is improving. But it is worrying that there continues to be significant levels of under-performance. Students at both primary and secondary schools are under-performing against the expected levels and there is a significant gender gap. Both of these issues need to be addressed if the Government’s strategic broad outcome for education is to be achieved. ”

The report also highlights that the Government has increased its investment in students with special educational needs over the past five years but it is not clear if this is improving outcomes.

“We found that despite investment in special educational needs increasing significantly, it is not clear if it is improving outcomes for students with special educational needs,” Ms. Winspear adds. “There has been a significant increase in the number of specialist staff but the performance of students with special educational needs continues to be mixed.”

More information about the report can be obtained by contacting Sue Winspear at (345) 244-3201 or Angela Cullen, Director of Performance Audit at (345) 244-3220.

This report and the original OAG reports on which this report is based are available at www.auditorgeneral.gov.ky.

 

Ministry of Education Outlines Commitment to Providing the Best Educational Opportunities

The Ministry of Education, Youth, Sports, Agriculture and Lands (MEYSAL) welcomes the Office of the Auditor General’s report and recommendations on school education in the Cayman Islands.

The report assesses MEYSAL’s efficiency and effectiveness in using its resources to maximise student achievement.

The Ministry of EYSAL is committed to providing the best educational opportunities for the children of the Cayman Islands.   Accordingly, the Ministry allocates a considerably amount of its funding towards the provision of resources that will enhance the teaching and learning process.

By providing world-class educational opportunities to our youth, the ministry tackles a myriad of societal ills including illiteracy, unemployment, criminality and lower economic growth. We ensure that each dollar that is spent delivers value for money so that we can tackle these global challenges effectively.

To date, one of the main focuses of the Ministry of Education and the Department of Education Services has been to improve student performance (progress & achievement), in our most vulnerable students as well as maintain the performance of our higher-performing students. The 2018-2019 Office of Education Standards Full Inspection Report highlighted the fact that 72 percent of schools that receive government funding (private/public schools) performed at a level that was deemed satisfactory or better. Our Special Education Needs (SEND) institutions have also seen progress. This has been noted by the fact that performance at the Lighthouse School was rated as good within the same report.

The Ministry has introduced several initiatives so as to achieve these successes. Strategies utilised thus far include but are not limited to the  review of existing curriculum, standardisation of  assessment types and procedures across all government schools as well as  development, in collaboration with school principals and staff, of a plan of action that focus on literacy, numeracy, science, SEND, data, and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

The Ministry will continue to build on these initiatives to augment student progress and attainment and will seek to provide further research-based initiatives that target the specific needs of students in public schools. 

In 2019, the Ministry also introduced a new national curriculum in all government primary schools. Included in this new curriculum are UK based assessments and data tracking systems that will facilitate more accurate benchmarking against our international counterparts.

As part of its strategic approach, the Ministry has also provided a range of professional development training opportunities (mandatory and optional) for all levels of education staff including principals, teachers and support staff, that is specifically focused on improving teacher pedagogy and raising student attainment. 

The Ministry acknowledges the importance of a strategic plan for education and will include this in up-coming planning in response to the recommendations in the report.

Download File