Jamaica to launch nationwide early childhood science program

Jamaica is set to expand its Nurturing Early Scientific Thinking (NEST) program to encompass all early childhood institutions across the country by the close of this year. This initiative, championed by Minister of Science, Technology and Special Projects, Dr. Andrew Wheatley, aims to foster a culture of scientific inquiry from the earliest stages of a child's education.

The NEST pilot program, which ran from February to June 2025, involved 25 early childhood institutions in Kingston and St. Andrew. These institutions were strategically chosen to represent a diverse range of environments, including schools in special operations zones, underperforming institutions, and compliant ones. According to Minister Wheatley, the pilot phase yielded positive results, building a strong evidence base for the program's effectiveness.

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The evaluation is positive. The evidence base is built. The scale-up plan is ready. We are now rolling NEST out nationally.

"The evaluation is positive. The evidence base is built. The scale-up plan is ready. We are now rolling NEST out nationally," Wheatley announced during his contribution to the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives. The national rollout is ambitious, targeting 500 early childhood institutions across all seven education regions and 14 parishes by the end of 2026. Rollout has already commenced in Kingston, St. Andrew, Portland, St. Mary, and St. Thomas, with other parishes to follow.

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The child who grows up asking ‘why’ and ‘how’ is the entrepreneur, the innovator, and the problem-solver Jamaica needs, and that journey begins not at university, but at age three.

Minister Wheatley emphasized the program's core philosophy: "The child who grows up asking ‘why’ and ‘how’ is the entrepreneur, the innovator, and the problem-solver Jamaica needs, and that journey begins not at university, but at age three." NEST is designed as Jamaica's structured approach to embedding the foundations of inquiry, problem-solving, and evidence-based thinking into early childhood education through play-based science, supported by specially designed books and STEM kits.

"NEST targets our youngest children because for far too long we have sought to embed and grow scientific thinking at the secondary and tertiary level. This approach in my estimation is wrong and we must start cultivating scientific minds at the basic and primary level," Wheatley stated, underscoring the program's commitment to early intervention in scientific education.

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NEST targets our youngest children because for far too long we have sought to embed and grow scientific thinking at the secondary and tertiary level. This approach in my estimation is wrong and we must start cultivating scientific minds at the basic and primary level.