79 per cent of PEP students master literacy, 75 per cent numeracy

Jamaica has reported strong results in its Primary Exit Profile (PEP) assessments for 2026, with 79% of students demonstrating mastery in literacy and 75% in numeracy.

Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dana Morris Dixon, explained at a press conference that Jamaica's definition of literacy goes beyond the global standard set by UNESCO. Instead of merely assessing if students can read and write, the ministry focuses on functional literacy, emphasizing comprehension. "We're not interested in if you can just read something on a paper. That’s not our goal, and that should never be our goal," Dixon stated.

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UNESCO has a definition and it’s basically, can they read and can they write? That’s it. We do not use that definition of literacy in Jamaica. We look at functional literacy. So, we’re not interested in if you can just read something on a paper. That’s not our goal, and that should never be our goal. So, when I give you these numbers, they don’t stack up with the international because we go further in our literacy tests. We actually are doing comprehension and not simple reading and writing.

She elaborated that the literacy tests assess comprehension, leading to the 79% mastery rate. An additional 17% of students are considered to be at 'almost mastery,' needing only a few more points. Only 4% of students did not achieve mastery. Similarly, for numeracy, the cohort showed a progression from 69.9% mastery in grade four to 75% by grade six. Around 18% are at 'almost mastery,' and 7% are not mastering the subject.

"The good thing is we now have baselines… from which we can now push performance even further ahead," the minister said, highlighting the value of these results as a starting point for future educational improvements. The article also includes unrelated snippets about a World Cup match suspension, US dollar exchange rates in Jamaica, children found dead in a car in France, and trade growth in Latin America and the Caribbean.

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The good thing is we now have baselines… from which we can now push performance even further ahead.