Students across Saint Lucia began sitting the 2026 Caribbean Primary Exit Assessment examinations on Wednesday, with Education Minister Kenson Casimir visiting several schools to encourage students and support educators and parents ahead of the annual examinations.
The visits formed part of the Ministry of Education’s continued focus on student achievement, educational equity and academic preparedness.
Among the schools visited was Forestiere Methodist Combined School, where Principal Alvin Khodra said students appeared calm and confident despite the significance of the occasion.
“Well they actually feel very confident. I think I’m more nervous than them,” Khodra remarked.
“They feel very confident, they were ready, they came in early and they were settled and that’s what we wanted them to come early, to be ready, to be settled and not nervous and I think that has been accomplished and with their preparedness they are ready to face the world,” he added.
Khodra also encouraged students to take pride in the next stage of their educational journey as they prepare to transition into secondary school.
“As I told my students yesterday, I said to them we will be proud for the moment, we will be happy sharing the moment when they get the results, but they will be the ones wearing the uniforms and be proud for those next five years,” the principal stated.
“So they will be the ones continuing and they will be the ones walking around with the pride, beaming with pride.”
He further urged all students sitting the examinations this year to remain focused and confident.
“So you know to all those who are writing it this year, I really want to tell them when you get that uniform, wear it with pride and do your best wherever you go,” Khodra said.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Kenson Casimir said he was encouraged by the atmosphere and preparation observed during visits to schools across Districts One, Two and Three.
“I had the opportunity to speak with the principals, some of the other teachers, in terms of their preparation for this big day,” the minister explained.
Casimir noted that the ministry also visited Patricia D. James Secondary School, where students from other primary schools were accommodated for the examinations.
“The other schools, we visited the Patricia D. James Secondary School as well, the principal, the good spirit, and we had some of the students from Methodist and the Vide Bouteille Primary participating there,” he said.
The minister added that another stop included Castries Comprehensive Secondary School, where students from Dame Pearlette Louisy Primary School were among those writing the examinations.
“We are currently at the Castries Comprehensive, where we see the Dame Pearlette School that is always in the top ten in Saint Lucia, and the students look in good spirits, so we’re just wishing everybody the best,” Casimir stated.
The education minister praised the efforts of parents, teachers and school administrators in preparing students for the examinations and said the responsibility now rests with the students themselves.
“I think the parents have done their part, the teachers, the principals, and now it’s the time for the students to do their part and get to the secondary schools in Saint Lucia,” he said.