I preface this Report to Council by acknowledging the sterling contribution to the role and reputation of the CXC made by our outgoing Registrar, Mr. Glenroy Cumberbatch, over his years of service as Registrar and Pro Registrar. His commitment to the development of education stems from what I believe is his own conviction of the importance of education in development. I thank him sincerely and wish him the very best as he moves into the next phase of his journey. The year under review was an exciting one. Information technology continues to drive our operations, E-Testing was expanded to include all paper types and this year, candidates were allowed to use their own devices to sit examinations. All countries participated in this process. In this regard, I wish to commend specially, the Ministry of Education and by extension the Government of the British Virgin Islands. Despite the severe challenges posted to infrastructure by two devastating hurricanes in 2017, the British Virgin Islands was able to participate fully in the 2018 E-Testing process. CXC will continue to evolve this particular area of our operations and I look to the future when the process becomes ever more efficient and grades can be made available even earlier for early placement and offers to students by tertiary education institutions. With regard to overall performance by students in this year’s examinations there was improved performance in the three natural science subjects at the CSEC level. At the CAPE level, overall performance remained at the same level as 2017. The CXC examinations remain the quality standard for students transitioning from secondary to tertiary education in the region. The importance of education in economic development of countries is without question. Improving the rate of transition between secondary to tertiary education in all our countries is a critical factor as we go forward and the education system as a whole must confront this challenge. We pledge our commitment to advancing the dialogue and cooperation among the various sectors to ensure that our developing countries can engage as fully as possible in the evolving fourth industrial revolution. The alignment between CXC syllabi, the examinations and workforce readiness and the preparation of innovative thinkers for the future is a critical element in our planning. During 2018, extensive consultations with educators, parents, students and stakeholders in the private sector were held with a view to providing them with a more nuanced understanding of CXC’s products and services. Engaging with private institutions is also emerging as a priority as more of these entities offer CXC qualifications.
Functioning as Chairman of CXC is made much easier by the teamwork and camaraderie of the staff at Headquarters and the Western Zone Office. Their professionalism and commitment to delivering quality services to the region are truly exemplary and to each of them I say a sincere “thank you.” Keep on being the wonderful team that you are! Blessings! Professor Sir Hilary McD Beckles
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Quality service underpins the operations of CXC and the development and promulgation of the CXC Customer Service Charter during this year was an affirmation of this philosophy. A survey was also conducted by the National Initiative for Service Excellence (NISE) to measure CXC’s attention to the importance of quality customer service to provide baseline data on which the institution can build.