MONTEGO BAY, St James — Grade six students from at least two primary schools in St James have expressed confidence that they have done well in the just-concluded inaugural Primary Exit Profile (PEP) assessment.

The students sat the final component of this year’s PEP, the Curriculum-Based Test, last week Tuesday and Wednesday.

Headboy of Howard Cooke Primary School in Montego Bay, DShaun Fletcher, expressed strong belief that he aced the assessment, which has replaced the Grade Six Achievement Test.

“The exam was easier than expected,” DShaun told the Jamaica Observer last week. “It was great.”

He underscored that the work by his parents, teachers and his own effort prepared him for the PEP challenge.

His father, Rohan Fletcher, noted that his son is a hard-working student and he expects his results to be good.

“My son said it was great. When he says that, you know he did well. To be honest with you…I prepared him for his work, but he did a lot himself. I just tried to let him know that whatever he is doing, try to apply it to everyday life. And anything he knows, don’t swat (memorise) it, and know it. Because of that he prepared himself and I am confident that he will do very well,” the senior Fletcher told the Observer.

He also attributed his son’s and other students’ expected successful performances to the yeoman service of their teachers.

“And you see this teacher that they have, she drilled them in the mornings and in the evenings. So I realise that most of them that did the exams, most of them said it was easy,” the proud father said.

According to the headboy’s teacher, Tameka Allen, the feedback she has been receiving from her students has been encouraging.

“Based on what we were told by the students, it was manageable. The preparation that they got was adequate and they were able to manage.

“We have not actually seen the papers, so we can’t really tell until we get a chance to see them. So when the results get here, we will be able to better say,” Allen told the Observer.

Another grade six teacher at the school, Shelly-Ann Jump, expressed similar sentiments.

At the nearby Catherine Hall Primary, students were also beaming with confidence after the final paper last week.

“It was easy,” Shavaugn Francis commented.

Kourtney McBean said: “It was good but at the same time the maths was a bit hard, but not too hard. On a scale of one to 10, I think I got eight and half.”

In the meantime, vendor Alicia Ferguson, who the Catherine Hall Primary School students fondly call Lisa, noted that based on their reactions, the students did well.

“From my experience, how them talk, it seems like it was manageable to them,” she said.

“I care for them. They are like my kids,” she said.

However, students from both schools said they found geography and mathematics to be the most challenging, but manageable, of the subjects.

PEP assess students’ knowledge, in addition to, placing increased emphasis on assessing students’ demonstration of the 21st century skills, for example, critical thinking and communication.