Education Minister Aseri Radrodro. [Photo: FILE]

The Education Ministry has introduced a new Student Progression and Retention Policy to improve education quality while protecting student wellbeing.

Education Minister Aseri Radrodro said the policy was developed after consultations with teachers, unions, universities and other stakeholders.

He adds that the quality of education students are receiving needs to be strengthened.

The policy requires students to attend at least 80 per cent of school days and score 50 per cent or above in each subject to progress to the next year.

Exceptions will be allowed for genuine reasons such as illness or family emergencies.

“This is just an option that has come about through consultation, through the Denarau Declaration, where stakeholders have suggested that because of the automatic progression, the level of quality of education that the students are obtaining may need to be improved.”

Radrodro said the Ministry would monitor school data on attendance and performance to provide extra support where needed. Schools must also work closely with parents and provide assistance to students at risk.

“So those are all taken on board, taken into account. And to ensure that no child is discriminated against and they be given the opportunity to ensure that they are provided a safe academic environment and feel at home. And not to be discriminated upon and not to be labelled as a person who cannot read. So this is something that this policy is trying to address all those gaps and ensure that the child feels safe when coming to school.”

Schools are required to submit annual reports on attendance, progression, dropout rates, and academic performance to District Education Offices before sending them to the Ministry’s Headquarters.

The Ministry has warned that late or incomplete reporting will not be tolerated as the policy moves into full implementation.

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