Turks and Caicos Islands

Summary
Although the Turks and Caicos Islands remain a
British overseas territory, the central government is
the sole major funder of ICT projects in schools.
Government primary and secondary schools provide
access to ICT to students, although that access is
limited. Major challenges to greater use and
increased effectiveness of ICT in both primary and
secondary schools include maintenance and teacher
capacity.

The Turks and Caicos Islands are an archipelago

consisting of six islands. The capital, Grand Turk
Island, and the island of Providenciales have
relatively stable economies with adequate growth.
Principle sectors are tourism, offshore financial Policy and planning
services, and fishing. Other islands are not economi-
cally self-sustaining and are at lesser stages, overall, Approved in April 2005, the current education
of development. policy directly addresses the use of ICT in education.

Basic Data

Category Date Value

Population 2006 32,200
Per capita GDP (PPP) 2006 $16,054
Economy, composition 2006 Tourism, financial services, fishing
Literacy, total population 15 and over 1970 99
Literacy rate (girls) 1970 98
Net enrollment ratio, primary 2002 73.5
Net enrollment ratio, primary (girls) 2002 72.7
Net enrollment ratio, secondary 2002 79.1
Net enrollment ratio, secondary (girls) 2002 79.9
Number of primary schools 2006 31
Number of secondary schools 2006 8
Language of instruction — English

Sources: World Factbook, UNESCO, Min. of Education, Youth, Sports & Culture

Turks and Caicos Islands 71

 Relevant Policies

Document Status Date Key points

Current Education Policy Adopted April 2005 ■■ Integrate computer-assisted reading software into instruction
at all schools
Development Plan of 1998–2004 Adopted 1999 ■■ Create a more skilled islander through development of
capacity in ICT
■■ Provide ICT training to at least one teacher in each school
■■ Introduce computer-assisted learning in all schools
■■ Install computer hardware and software in all schools

Education Plan of 2006–2010 Completed November 2006 ■■ Recognizes the need for greater use of ICT in schools and
training of teachers in this area.

Source: MOE

In primary schools, the policy identifies ongoing encompasses both basic computer skills (i.e.,
integration of computer-aided reading programs as a productivity software) and intermediate skills (i.e.,
key goal. The Education Plan of 2006–2010 builds communication, research, graphics). The main
off the prior plan of 1999–2004, which lists as purpose of the primary curriculum is to help students
objectives: training of at least one teacher per school prepare for the secondary-level CXC ICT exam.
in computer literacy; the introduction of computer-
assisted learning in all primary schools; and, the Private primary schools serving expatriates from
installation of computer hardware and software. Haiti and other economically challenged countries
in the region generally do not offer ICT access to
students. These schools serve a large proportion of
ICT in primary and secondary the school-age population, presenting challenges
both in terms of equity and in terms of “main-
schools streaming” disadvantaged students.

Public primary and secondary schools offer students Inadequate technical capacity—notably in the area
access to computers and the Internet, although the of EMIS—highlight the ways in which the organiza-
numbers of available computers are low relative to tional structure of the MOE limits the ability to
enrollment. A primary-level ICT curriculum address barriers ranging from the technical to the

ICT Resources in Schools

School type Number Gross enrollment* ICT profile

Primary schools, government 10 1,998 ■■ 3 computers per schools average, in 2002
(in 2006/7) ■■ 160 computers total, with Internet, as of 2006**
■■ Planned introduction of Destination Reading program in all
govt. schools; cost is $120,000 in 2006/7
Primary schools, private 21 1,770 ■■ 64 computers, total
■■ 40 of 64 computers at three schools

Secondary schools, government 4 1,436 ■■ 52 computers per school, ADSL Internet access
(in 2006/7)
Secondary schools, private 4 409 ■■ 58 computers total
■■ 32 of 58 computers at one school

* The Turks and Caicos Islands include six inhabited islands. School populations vary from island to island sufficiently that an average figure for
enrollment is a meaningless distortion.
** In this instance as well, a median figure would be distorting. Salt Cay’s one government school has eight students and an estimated two
computers (4:1 student-computer ratio). A school on Providenciales has a 430-student enrollment and 26 computers (16:1 student-computer ratio).
Source: MOE

72 Survey of ICT and Education in the Caribbean Volume II: Country Reports
pedagogical. A Computer Unit is responsible for islands will have more limited access to ICT outside
support of all Ministry technology initiatives. of schools—whether at home, in libraries, or at
However, the Computer Unit is technology-focused, cybercafés. (With specific reference to cybercafés,
and does not have pedagogical or school-operational parents in outlying islands may see less benefit to
expertise. paying for use of computers or the Internet.)

Funding for education in Turks and Caicos Islands Secondary schools

is currently limited to inputs from the central The primary curriculum prepares students for a
government; no donor-funded ICT projects have secondary ICT curriculum offered in forms 4 and 5.
taken place. The secondary curriculum conforms to the CXC
syllabus and prepares students for the CXC IT
In primary schools, students in grades 4 through 6 exam. In the 2005/2006 school year, out of approxi-
are required to complete ICT curricula. These mately 254 Form 5 students attending government
curricula emphasize not only use of office productiv- schools, 138 participated in the CXC IT exam. Of
ity tools, but also the use of information, communi- these, 87 received passing scores. Students sat for the
cation skills, and graphics tools. General Certificate of Education (GCE) or
International General Certificate of Education
Although a few private schools serve middle- or (IGCSE) exams ) at one private school, with 19 of
upper-class catchments, the remainder of the more the school’s 20 fifth-form students participating and
than 21 private primary schools serve expatriate 13 of 19 passing.
communities from the Dominican Republic and
Haiti that are disadvantaged both by language (e.g.,
Spanish and French) and income. These schools
rarely offer functioning computers or Internet
Teacher professional
connectivity, even though ADSL connectivity is development
available free of charge by arrangement with C & W.
If the government is successful in implementing the Because TCI teachers do not elect to participate in
proposed computer-assisted reading program, the community-college-based ICT certificate
Destination Reading, in government schools, program, awareness and capacity among faculty
students in the private primary schools will not island-wide is minimal. This situation also reflects
benefit. Estimated cost of introducing Destination the fact that private sector marketing and support
Reading is US$120,000, which includes both for ICT use among the public is a relatively recent
software licensing and costs of additional hardware. phenomenon. The primary and secondary IT
curricula are typically taught by expatriate teachers
Both public and private primary and secondary who have received appropriate certificates or degrees
schools in the smaller, outlying islands perform at off-island.
lower levels than their peers on Grand Turk and
Providenciales Islands, possibly because there is less There are no current plans that address integration
incentive for and less daily emphasis on academic of ICT into other areas of the curriculum. Barriers
success. In relation to ICT, students on the smaller include the overall lack of awareness among the

Teacher Professional Development Programs

TPD program Target

type population Objectives Scale Barriers
Community College In-service primary and Familiarize teachers Open to all ■■ No incentives
secondary teachers with ICT teachers ■■ Some teachers live on islands without
community colleges; available time is
only weekends and holidays
■■ Few teachers have completed course

Source: MOE

Turks and Caicos Islands 73

 public and among teachers, and—according to one Non-formal and community ICT
respondent—lack of basic skills among students and
education
possible lack of subject mastery among teachers.
The Department of Social Development operates
two community centers addressing the needs of
Relevant (e.g., Caribbean) evaluation results
out-of-school youth. However, these centers
demonstrating impact of ICT used to help students
presently do not provide access to ICT.
build basic skills and support teachers’ development
of subject mastery would be useful as a means of
demonstrating applicability of ICT to current
challenges in the education system. Barriers and challenges
Tertiary education ■■ Uneven economic development among
The TCI community college offers several programs islands: Disparities in economic development
that address ICT, ranging from certificates in among islands contributes to differences in the
computer applications, database management, and quality of education, with poorer students,
autoCAD to Associate Degrees in Electrical schools and communities at a disadvantage, and
Engineering. In addition, use of CAD/CAM to unequal access to ICT.
(Computer-aided design/Computer-aided manufac- ■■ Large proportion of students in private
turing) software is addressed in technical-drawing schools: Approximately 45 percent of primary
classes. students and 22 percent of secondary students
attend primary schools. The majority of these
There has been discussion within the government of schools offer much lower levels of ICT access
extending access to the community college using than do government schools. Students entering
ICT. Access to the community college, located on secondary schools from private primary schools
Grand Turk Island with a branch on Providenciales, will lag students attending government schools
may be problematic for residents of North Caicos, in terms of ICT skills. Students attending
South Caicos, Middle Caicos, and Salt Cay islands. private secondary schools will likely remain
Students on these smaller, outlying islands must disadvantaged in this regard. In both instances,
relocate to attend the community college. a large cohort of the student population lacks
equal opportunity to prepare for and pass the
EMIS CXC IT exam.
Steps have been taken to implement EMIS across ■■ Teachers lack ICT skills and incentives to
the Turks and Caicos Islands schools: computers participate in TPD: As mentioned, the island
have been purchased; software was developed locally topography of the Turks and Caicos Islands
and has been installed in a few schools. However, creates barriers to teacher access to community-
network infrastructure problems have stalled the college ICT courses. Motivation, however, is a
project. Adequate school-wide implementation problem for many teachers regardless of their
would require a systemwide LAN, whether wireless location: the current TPD program does not
or wired. In addition, development of a central establish incentives for teachers’ participation in
database that can be access by all users at all times ICT-focused TPD.
has proved problematic. ■■ Technology unit of MOE lacks capacity and
mandate: As currently structured, the technol-
EMIS implementation requires the extension of ogy unit within the MOE is neither mandated
technical support beyond the current boundaries of nor resourced to address schools’ needs for
the Ministry’s administrative structure to the level of maintenance, training, curriculum, and other
the schools themselves. components supporting effective ICT use.

74 Survey of ICT and Education in the Caribbean Volume II: Country Reports