KINGSTON, Jamaica — School administrators are being advised to call on the Education, Youth and Information Ministry for any additional support they may require in the implementation of the Primary Exit Profile (PEP).

“We are interested in knowing where the needs are, and where we can provide additional resources,” said Portfolio Minister, Senator Ruel Reid at a regional teachers’ consultation on Tuesday at the Port Antonio High School in Portland.

Reid noted that over the past year, the Government has spent more than $200 million to prepare schools for the National Standards Curriculum (NSC), which includes PEP.

He assured that once requests are made, the ministry will respond, as “we have a programme to provide the necessary support for all schools”.

He called for partnership in ensuring the success of PEP, noting that while the ministry has responsibility for its implementation, “we all must collaborate to achieve the desired outcomes”.

The consultation dealt with issues related to PEP and the NSC, the health and wellness of teachers as well as other matters related to education.

PEP replaces the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) as the national secondary-school entrance test and is intended to provide a better and more complete profile of students’ academic and critical-thinking capabilities at the end of primary-level education.

It comprises a performance task, ability test and a curriculum-based test. Students who entered grade six in September 2018 will comprise the first PEP cohort.

The education ministry has been training teachers for implementation of the examination.

Reid said that the ministry has been receiving feedback from educators and other stakeholders on the mock tests that were administered in June.