CXC CSEC English A exam - Pass rates

CXC CSEC English A exam - Pass rates

The following CXC CSEC English A pass rates were assembled from data published by CXC in it annual school reports.

CXC CSEC English A exam
pass rate

Total passing overall
grade I-III

Year

January

June
2011

54%

67%

2010

55%

66%
2009

59%

56%
2008

48%

46%
2007
N/A

49%
2006

61%

51%
2005

44%

53%
2004

54%


50%
Fivestar

kendel (not verified) 6 January 2009 - 7:38pm

Thats a lot of people failing english for an english speaking country.We need to start looking at other ways and means to raise these percentages.We should try to get atleast 60%.I think that we need to look at our teaching methods and look at ways and means to make our teaching methods more effective.There seems to be little or no improvements for the last 5 years or so.We need to do something about these statistics.Help please!!!!!

guest (not verified) 7 January 2009 - 10:01am

In reply to by kendel (not verified)

that the problem is the people? It might be the exam that's the problem. Have you seen those reading comprehension questions? I'm just saying.

Sweetm (not verified) 21 January 2009 - 10:07pm

In reply to by guest (not verified)

I think the problem is that in the Caribbean we speak dialects of English and it is hard for students to understand the Queen's English because we teach as if they know it. I think the solution may be to teach English as a foriegn language. Aim high always! M

I think you may be right Sweetm. Perhaps if teachers/instructors in the Caribbean used teaching techniques found in English as a Second Language (ESL) curricula we might have more successes with students sitting the CXC English language exams.

Certainly it can't hurt to try. Maybe a pilot program of some kind with data tracking to see if the exam results differ significantly from previous averages.

This, however, would require training English teachers in ESL methodologies, creating a curricula to be used in the program and maybe developing instructional and training materials to be used in the program. And this is just off the top of my head. I am sure that there would be more costs involved. So, I guess it would be a big investment for islands with limited resources.

However the question could be asked, "Wouldn't it be worth it to find a solution to this ongoing failure rate in English?"

Charles-Bradstone (not verified) 4 February 2009 - 9:09pm

In reply to by admin

Old English is out dated but the principle is needed as for in writing and coprehending...Old english is as if in small countries that were over taken by Britan is a must as if in the old days when the spaniards came with their relegion and slaughterd innocent people...Now even inteligent or potencially inteligent(good) students are being punished over english as if it is a nesessity to a point where we cannot understand each other....English is needed but forcing it on some people expecially on a nation that majority language is english makes it look like our country has no uniqueness to it in other words we have no language we are a bunch of DUMBS..I belive we can get these english scores up but atleast give us our dignity and lower the standards but teach us..Money may be an effiency but making some real sacrifices and showing that our youths are truly woth it and the goverenment should give our youths more of an opptrunities so that there futures can be filled with actual excuses if anything without as much pity as can be given now about the less educated youths or the non oppotrunty that was had as a boy...the times has changed the so called minority should be made into the majority(theoretically speaking)

guest (not verified) 3 February 2009 - 9:42pm

In reply to by kendel (not verified)

amen to that so teachers sorry you all need to do better

guest (not verified) 4 February 2009 - 12:56am

In reply to by guest (not verified)

all the blame on teachers? The students have something to do with it too you know. "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink." If a student won't follow directions or complete assignments, can the teacher force him to do it? No. So is that the teacher's fault?

necey (not verified) 7 February 2009 - 3:16pm

how can we blame teachers ,cxc or any one else for those grades ? they are not the ones doing the exams! what we need to do is work hard to change those grades so we all can be proud.

Hold up! Hold Up! you all think that because we speak dilaect, English should be put as a foreign subject, you all blame teachers for our failure, you all blame CXC for our failure and last you all blame yourself for your failure.Let me show you a diferent prospective over the carribean we have differnt dialect some are very much poor break down English and some is of good grounding.But lets ask ourself this question we study for maths we study for spanish or french, but how do we study for english by practising, English is not directly about how we speak is how we approach the entire world as english speaking country/caribbean how we go in a in an office an address ourself are we able to understand? are we able to express ourself? that's where our "poor CXC" comes in to see if we have these skills so come on dont blame these people or try new strats.Sitting English A CXC is an "old thing" and perhaps its here to stay CXC gives us a syllabus/guideline follow it dont try to change your dialect just adjust it as they say writing a story int about how good you are at speaking its about a few perfect sentences and you on your way to an awarding experience. SO just Practice! Practice! We would make it..

angelz (not verified) 12 March 2009 - 10:06am

I think parents, The person in charge of placing the teacher to teach the syllabus as well as students have a part in failure or success of english language at cxc. You must admit sometimes there are teachers who do not have the skills necessary for effective teaching of a specific syllabus,some students are just unwilling to go the extra mile and practise writing or even complete their assignments and some parents don't make time to ensure that their child gets the homework done...English must be practiced..it is not something to rervise. In placing teachers to teach a subject, one must ensure that they are well equipped with the necessary skills and materials needed to teach the students efficiently and effectively. Not everyone can teach english language, likewise mathematics and the other subjects..something to think about..

Some are good at english Longuage and many are not.

Archie 24 March 2009 - 1:01pm

Well at least the CXC English A pass rate for 2008 wasn't worse than 2007. I mean it could be better, but.....

Michelle857 (not verified) 18 May 2009 - 10:01am

May god bless our little hands in exams tomorrow may he boost up our brains with lots of ideas that will be very benefical to the paper and give us our grade 1`s & 2`s. But remember god help those who help themselves!!!

ssally (not verified) 13 December 2009 - 1:20pm

I believe it's important first to know why so many students failed the English tests and where within the test they encountered the biggest difficulties. You guys are right, it's a small passing percentage for an English speaking country and that is the first clue that something goes wrong inside the system. It's very important to know how to approach the teaching and learning plan, English is not the easiest language, even those who know English may encounter problems in pronunciation or accent reduction so I think if we had a systematic approach things would improve.

i think the education system sucks man! the approach is too narrow, therefore it leaves many who can't ride the bicycle, falling by the wayside of failure. I'm not asking for the 'easy does it' Toyota Yaris, but something that can accommodate the varying minds that this caribbean has to offer.

swankyness (not verified) 30 December 2010 - 8:39pm

i need to kno the pass rate for a grade 1 and 2 and 3 .. i mean like percentages to obtain the grades.

guest (not verified) 2 January 2011 - 2:05pm

In reply to by swankyness (not verified)

CXC does not give out the exam percentages needed to pass for any of their exams.

That might be because the exam percentages are not the same every year or for some other reason.

David Archer (not verified) 12 May 2011 - 9:15pm

cxc is an exam that's set off the level of the top performer. for example, highest grade for math is 60%, that's where grade 1 starts and grade 2 starts 51% and grade 3 starts 42% and so on.

Businessman (not verified) 18 May 2011 - 4:56pm

On the statistic sheet up above,is it saying that persons in 2010 who receive 66 percentage or over,got a grade one? or is it saying that you need to get 66% to just pass the exam?

Hi Businessman,

It is saying that 66% of the students who sat the CXC CSEC English A exam in 2010 passed with a grade of either I, II or III.


As an example, if 100 students sat the English A exam, it is saying that 66 of them passed the exam, getting either a grade I, II or III.


It is not talking about individual grades to pass the exam at all. Hope this helps...

Hi Admin

yes it does and thanks.

Got another question,Can someone get (B for understanding) and (D for expression) and still pass the English exam?

admin 20 May 2011 - 5:16pm

In reply to by Businessman (not verified)

Hi Businessman,

That is a very hard question to answer. This is because saying B and D does not say anything about the marks the person made. They could have high D marks and low B marks or high B marks and low D marks or high and lows marks for both.


So truthfully, it is not possible to answer that question with any certainty. Passing the exam does not depend on whether you get an A,B,C or D, instead, it depends on the amount marks you make for each question.


So it's the amount of marks you make that count, and which also gives you the letter grades for the exam profiles.

heidi (not verified) 18 May 2011 - 9:10pm

can anyone tell me how was cxc maths exam.

guest (not verified) 3 May 2012 - 4:30pm

I think the biggest problem is the short stories. I hear many students complaining about the length of words they have to write for the short stories (400 to 450). They are saying it is too much for them to write.

guest (not verified) 21 June 2012 - 5:43pm

last year English results wasn't so bad. I hope they good this year too. I really want to pass English this time.

anna-kaye wallace (not verified) 7 August 2012 - 10:13am

results are out on friday and i am very anxious but i am also vry nervous about what i will see. i really do hope i pass all my subjects because my very best and i understand everything i did on the paper. GOD HELP ME!!!!!!!! i really did do my best and the papers were'nt hard, you just needed to think a little. i do'nt see how people fail exams and they have been learning the same thing for five years...i mean even during mock exams, we get a feel of what we are going to face when we do cxc. i wish everyone the best and that you receive the grade you worked for and truly deserve. some people do not study at all and expect to get a 1....unless you have photograpic memory, then that is not possible. I WISH EVERYONE THE BEST THOUGH, GO BLESS YOU!

guest (not verified) 21 August 2012 - 12:40am

I need assistant in teaching csec englishA....first time teacher

guest (not verified) 3 January 2013 - 9:11am

In reply to by guest (not verified)

*assistance. probably shouldn't be teaching English

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