Dear Editor,

As a concerned high school educator in Jamaica, I am becoming increasingly alarmed by the growing literacy and behavioural crisis unfolding within our secondary school classrooms. Every day, teachers across this country are being asked to perform miracles under extremely difficult circumstances, yet the reality facing many of us is often ignored or misunderstood.

A troubling number of students are entering high school unable to read fluently, spell basic words, write coherent sentences, or identify simple numbers without assistance. Some students struggle to recognise letters of the alphabet, read instructions from the board, or complete basic classroom activities independently. While teachers are expected to deliver the high school curriculum, we are simultaneously forced to reteach foundational primary-level concepts that should have been mastered years earlier.

This issue is no longer isolated or hidden. In 2025, reports revealed that more than 70 per cent of approximately 220 grade seven students at Pembroke Hall High School in Kingston were unable to read or could only read at a grade three level. Some students reportedly struggled to identify letters of the alphabet. The Ministry of Education itself admitted there are major gaps in identifying and addressing learning deficiencies before students transition into secondary schools.

Additionally, the Jamaica Education Transformation Commission (JETC) report highlighted a disturbing national reality. According to data referenced by the Ministry of Education, the 2019 Primary Exit Profile (PEP) examinations revealed that 33 per cent of students could not read or could barely read, 56 per cent could not or could barely write, and 58 per cent struggled to locate information on a topic.

As educators, we are deeply concerned because these literacy deficiencies do not disappear when students enter high school. Instead, the problems intensify. Students who cannot read properly often become frustrated, embarrassed, withdrawn, or disruptive. Many act out in class because they are unable to cope academically. Some become aggressive, engage in fights, use indecent language, disrespect authority, destroy classroom order, or simply refuse to participate in lessons altogether.

Teachers are, therefore, battling two major crises simultaneously: academic underachievement and behavioural instability. Imagine attempting to teach a grade 7 English language lesson when several students cannot identify punctuation marks, spell common words, or comprehend simple reading passages. Imagine trying to teach mathematics to students who cannot confidently identify numbers or perform basic calculations without assistance. This is the daily reality for many teachers across Jamaica.

Unfortunately, many educators are also being blamed for poor student performance without consideration for the severe educational gaps students already possess upon entering secondary institutions. Teachers are expected to prepare students for examinations while also functioning as reading specialists, behavioural therapists, counsellors, social workers, and parental substitutes.

The emotional and mental strain on teachers is becoming unbearable. Classroom management has become increasingly difficult because students who are academically behind often become disengaged and disruptive. Some students openly admit they hate reading because they were never taught properly or supported at earlier stages of schooling. Others have undiagnosed learning disabilities, speech difficulties, attention disorders, or emotional trauma that remain untreated because of limited assessment resources and long waiting periods for intervention services.

The Ministry of Education has acknowledged these deficiencies and announced interventions targeting underperforming schools, literacy support programmes, and the reintroduction of timetabled reading sessions in schools. While these efforts are commendable, far more urgent and comprehensive action is needed.

I strongly believe Jamaica must:

1) implement mandatory intensive literacy intervention programmes beginning at the primary level

2) increase the number of reading specialists, guidance counsellors, and special education professionals in schools

3) provide proper psychological and behavioural support for struggling students

4) conduct earlier and more effective assessments for learning disabilities

5) equip teachers with additional training and classroom support to manage literacy-deficient and behaviourally challenged students

6) reduce class sizes in schools with high literacy deficiencies

7) increase parental accountability and involvement in students’ academic development

Education is the foundation of national development. If our children are progressing through the education system unable to read, write, comprehend, or function independently, Jamaica’s future workforce and society are at serious risk.

Teachers are trying. Many of us stay late after school, purchase resources from our own pockets, provide emotional support, and continuously adjust lessons to meet students at their level. However, teachers alone cannot solve a national literacy crisis without stronger systemic intervention.

We cannot continue to normalise students leaving primary school without mastering basic literacy and numeracy skills. The longer this crisis persists, the greater the social consequences will become, including increased school violence, unemployment, crime, low productivity, and educational inequality.

I hope this serves as a wake-up call to policymakers, parents, stakeholders, and the wider society. Jamaica’s teachers need help, and more importantly, Jamaica’s children deserve better.

Classroom management has become increasingly difficult because students who are academically behind often become disengaged and disruptive.

Danielle Latibeaudiere-Clarke

Educator

daniellelatty93@gmail.com