Dear Editor,
I seek clarity. I do not question. The 2026 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) results are spectacular. They went right through the roof. They are out of this world. If a mere 10 students tie for the number one spot in an examination that borders on what comes dangerously close to a miracle of divine proportions. So, when all of 20 NGSA students find themselves in exactly the same tight top ranked place, I hearken back to Wall Street days. It is a Black Swan event. To explain: one that occurs every 10,000 years, if that short.
For a score of Guyana’s NGSA students to score perfect scores is astounding to the point of breathlessness, glassy-eyed dizziness. It is the equivalent of not just the late Sir Garry Sobers scoring 365 runs (while that record lasted), but that almost every other star batsman in the team, compiled that precise number of runs. On the same day. On the same wicket. On fire against the same opposing bowlers. Like I said, this is head spinning. And neither a bouncer hit me on the head, nor a goat bite me. Before any Guyanese get the idea that this is a criticism of the Ministry of Education’s raw score methodology, get this one thing straight first: what the hell do I know about methodology? The ministry is the best place for the clarity that is sought. It owns the model; therefore, it owns the inputs that went in and generated those figures. Seeking clarity is not the same as sharing condemnation. It would be an injustice to the 20 top performers who all crowded (somehow) in the winner’s enclosure. There is much to love about this development. There would be so much more to love about the Ministry of Education’s raw score compilation and revelation.
What is fascinating about all this is how a student that chalks up a 98 percent mark, an outstanding score by any yardstick, cannot stick his or her toe inside the storied yard of Queen’s College. Other than as a temporary guest. The raw score(s), the perfect scores, must rank as perfection personified 20 times over. Unprecedented is not the word. Algorithmic may find some footing in this matter that now swirls restlessly, that mystifies endlessly. Even algorithms go a little crazy, on occasion. Meanwhile, from a parent’s point of view it is the ecstasy of celebration, visions of greater things to be. From a public man’s perspective, it is something that needs a little looking into, with a word or two offered as subtitles. The language that everyone can read and understand.
For emphasis, I take away not a tot from the ministry’s handiworks. Nor the tireless energies of students, educators, and those hovering anxiously morning, noon, and night. I herald parents and grandparents, guardians, the heralded village, and others that were part of that supporting structure. Perfection at the NGSA is an achievement for the ages. One to be spoken of in awe, with respect, and with gratitude. My interest is not so much for a steward’s inquiry, but that it is gotten right. All t’s crossed, all I’s dotted, and no b mistaken for a d. or a 3 for an 8. The NGSA can be compared to a cauldron of intense pressure. Steam hissing. Smells sizzling. Smoke spiraling. So, when not a single hair is out of place on the day that the NGSA exams were sat, two in fact, then a little further looksee may be in order. Two grueling days for Guyana’s youngsters where the sweat rains, the mouth dries, the eyes glazed, and there is difficulty in holding onto one’s head. It is curiosity itself that not a hat became slightly off-centre. Gravity certainly held steady on those two days, and 20 Guyanese superstars emerged smiling from ear-to-ear.