Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon, visited two high-achieving primary schools in St. Ann on Wednesday (July 2), to celebrate their outstanding performance in this year’s Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examinations.
Senator Morris Dixon met with the students and staff of Philadelphia Primary and Infant School as well as Clydesdale Primary to personally commend their exceptional achievements.
These institutions, located in Region Three of the Education Ministry, were among 10 schools previously flagged for underperformance, but have since elevated their students to proficiency levels.
At Philadelphia Primary, all five grade- six students who sat PEP secured placements in high schools, including Brown’s Town High, Discovery Bay High, Ferncourt High, and Ocho Rios High.
The school reportedly achieved 90 per cent proficiency in language arts and social studies, 60 per cent in mathematics, and 80 per cent in science.
Meanwhile, Clydesdale Primary’s two PEP candidates earned placements at Knox College and Aabuthnott Gallimore High – an achievement credited to targeted intervention programmes that begin with diagnostic testing from Grade One.
“We are very excited to see this development. I am here… because I wanted the teachers, I wanted the principals, I wanted the parents, and I wanted the students to know that your hard work is recognised. You would have all worked really hard,” Dr. Morris Dixon stated.
“When you see these rural schools having the kind of results that they have, it says to all of Jamaica that all our children can do it. It says that we have good teachers and good principals who are trying new things, being innovative, and that’s what we want to celebrate,” she added.
Minister Morris Dixon noted that the schools had fully leveraged Ministry-led workshops and innovative teaching methods to enhance student learning outcomes.
Principal of Philadelphia Primary, Nicholas Wisdom, said the school focused on literacy strategies like read-aloud sessions, strong teacher dedication, and sustained parental involvement.
He emphasised that a solid academic foundation is key to the school’s success, and encouraged other institutions to adopt similar initiatives.
Clydesdale Primary Principal, Teresa Brown, attributed the school’s success to teacher collaboration, extra lessons, and holiday PEP marathons, among other innovative strategies.
“So we want to say congratulations to [our] two students, to the teachers, to their parents. We are so proud of them. The entire community is elated with the results that we have for these two students,” she added.
On the day, additional support came from the Jamaica Independent Schools Association (JISA), which partnered with the Ministry to provide celebratory tokens to the institutions.
Corporate sponsors, including Sunshine Snacks, National, and the Wisynco Group, also contributed gifts, reflecting a shared national pride in the achievements of these rural institutions.