Barbados’ Ministry of Education is moving forward with a planned overhaul of its secondary school entrance system, rolling out a phased approach that has drawn questions from parents during recent public engagement sessions. At a transformation-focused town hall held Thursday, education officials detailed the proposed framework that will replace the long-standing Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination, more commonly known as the one-day Common Entrance test. Under the new model, student evaluations will span the final two years of primary education – Classes Three and Four – blending ongoing in-class assessments with nationwide standardized tests, moving away from the high-stakes single-day examination that has long defined primary-to-secondary transitions for Barbadian students. During the open forum, one parent pressed officials on the timeline of the rollout, asking why formal assessment under the new system would not launch as early as Class One, rather than bringing Class Three students into the new model first. Responding to the concern, Acting Chief Education Officer Julia Beckles explained that the phased timeline was crafted around child development principles and the existing progress of curriculum integration in primary schools. Beckles emphasized that education planners have concluded Class Three students are uniquely positioned to adapt to the new assessment framework, thanks to their level of academic and social development after several years of primary schooling. She added that while formal evaluation will not start until Class Three, foundational preparation for the new model will begin much earlier, aligned with the parent’s suggestion. “We will be training all educators and rolling out preparatory work starting with current Class One students,” Beckles confirmed. The acting chief education officer noted that early primary years will be focused on building the skills students need to succeed under the new model, particularly project-based learning, which is a core component of the updated assessment structure. Since 2024, primary schools across Barbados have already integrated project-based learning activities into their curricula for early primary grades, meaning current Class Three students have already had years of practice with this learning style – making them the ideal first cohort for the formal assessment. Currently, the Ministry of Education is hosting a series of public consultation sessions across the country to collect feedback from parents, educators, and other key stakeholders before the new transition model is finalized and implemented permanently.