Although the government noted on Friday, August 15, that there were improvements in the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Mathematics examination performances, Damion Crawford, Shadow Minister for Education, has countered that boast, saying that there were only nine more students who passed this year compared to 2024.

Crawford said on Saturday, while speaking at the PNP Kingston and St Andrew Parish Meeting in Cross Roads, Kingston, that in 2015, literacy in Jamaica was 84 per cent. In 2024, it is 65 per cent. In 2015, under the PNP, five subjects, with Mathematics and English A, were 28 per cent. Now, it is 18 per cent.

“Dem seh education has improved [but] I am telling you right now, and I am asking [Education Minister] Dana Dixon to come and deny if it is true, in 2024, Mathematics passes were 7,817. In 2025, the Mathematics passes was 7,826. That mean seh in one year, nine dege-dege people get more than Mathematics in this country, and de running around that nine more than 33,000 get Mathematics,” Crawford shouted. “When I see dem a celebrate nine dege dege people, I say dem people ya drunk!”

On Friday, the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information reported an improvement in the performance of Jamaican students in the May/June 2025 sitting of Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) English A and Mathematics.  

Morris Dixon said 85 per cent of students received a passing grade in English A, while 44 per cent passed Mathematics. In 2024, 76 per cent and 39 per cent of students passed English A and Mathematics, respectively.  

“The regional average is 80 per cent of students passing English A. We have surpassed the region in English A. The regional average is 39 per cent of students passing Mathematics. We are above the regional average again, in Mathematics,” Dr Morris Dixon said. 

Forty-four per cent of public school children who pursued CSEC 2025 Mathematics passed with a Grade I to III, although the ministry’s goal was 50 per cent.

“Obviously, that’s not where we want to be. We want that to go even higher… but last year it was 39 per cent, and the regional average is 39 per cent of students passing Mathematics. We are above the regional average again in Mathematics,” Morris Dixon said on Friday, August 15, at the ministry’s press conference on the report for 2025 CXC results.

Morris Dixon said work is ongoing to improve the numbers.

“There’s a Mathematics problem in our region, and that we have to fix, and we do know it. When you talk to some of our children, you’ll see this fear of Maths, and all of them get it from their parents, because they fear Maths too, and it is something that we have to work on really actively, to make Mathematics more exciting. We are expecting the numbers to go overtime,” Morris Dixon said.