The Ministry of Education is to review its practice of naming and awarding top performers of the Secondary Entrance Assessment.

It comes after a major mix up in which the 2020 top performer, Ameerah Beekhoo, was nearly stripped of her title after a review found that another student outperformed her.

The Ministry explained that placement has customarily been based on preliminary SEA results, blaming a senior official for overstepping their authority by varying the placement list, based on reviewed results of some students.

Education Minister Dr. Nyan Gadsby-Dolly says it is her personal view that “the ranking system has outlived its usefulness, and is now an additional stressor in an already high-stress environment.”

Meanwhile, Opposition MP Anita Haynes has criticized the Education Ministry’s handling of the debacle, saying it exhibited a transparency issue.

“In addition to causing undue stress to the involved students and their family members, this matter has fueled the lack of public confidence in the education ministry,” she said.