CSEC Math scores drop again, lagging behind regional average

By Zaya Williams

Recent Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination results have revealed a concerning trend in mathematics performance for Antigua and Barbuda, despite overall strong showings in other subjects.

Antigua’s CXC registrar Myrick Smith provided a comprehensive overview of the country’s performance, highlighting both areas of success and concern. While many subjects saw pass rates in the 70s and 80s, mathematics stood out as a significant challenge.

“In 2024 there was a significant drop in in Antigua with the performance at CSEC math in 2024 we had 28.4 percent and that compares with 32.6 percent in 2023,” Smith reported.

This decline is particularly worrying when compared to the regional average, which, although also experiencing a drop, still outperformed Antigua and Barbuda.

“When we compare ourselves with the regional average, we see it was 36.6 36.3 percent in 2024 for the regional average and that is a drop though from 2023 when for the regional average it was 43.4 percent,” he shared.

In 2023, the pass rate dropped from that of 2022 as well.

In contrast, English language results painted a more positive picture. Smith noted, “In 2024 the average pass rate for Antigua and Barbuda was 82.8 percent and for the region it was 76.3 percent so Antigua is significantly above the regional average in 2024 in English.”

He added that this represented a slight improvement from the previous year’s 81.8 percent pass rate.

However, mathematics wasn’t the only subject area showing concerning trends. Smith pointed out, “So quite a number of the subject areas had percentage passes that are in the 70s and 80s as a matter of fact there are actually very few subjects as the director pointed out that had performance or percentages below let’s say 65 percent and they would include subject areas such as geography is 36.7 percent and that’s a significant drop from last year when it was 48.72 percent.”

He also mentioned a decline in French performance, from 51.4 percent in 2023 to 39.8 percent in 2024.

Despite these challenges in specific subjects, Smith emphasized that the country’s overall performance remained strong, with most subject areas achieving pass rates exceeding 70 percent.

The mixed results highlight the need for targeted interventions in struggling subject areas, particularly mathematics, to ensure Antigua and Barbuda’s students can compete effectively on both regional and global stages.