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Education in Guyana

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During the early times until the 1930s, education was strictly prohibited for the ladies by the Indians. In the 1960s after the country’s independence from the British colony, the standards of schooling especially in the secondary level have become better and higher. In this light, Guyanese education has been considered one of the best education systems in the Caribbean, but somehow deteriorated in the 1980s. The reason behind the deterioration is the emigration of academic professionals and highly educated citizens. These professionals do so because of lack of opportunities for them and low pay as well. Moreover, they also lack funding for education from the government during those times.

Today, education in Guyana is largely provided by the government through their Ministry of Education. They allot 8.3% of their GDP on education, which makes them one of the top spenders on education. However, they still experience shortage on basic resources especially on the modern technologies for the field of science and technology. The government is responsible for determining the school curricula, assigning school funding, setting the school standards and policies and the Ministry of Education is the one who implements them, together with other government agencies related to it.

Compulsory education begins at the age of 5 years and 9 months until 16. Primary education lasts for 6 years, while secondary education for 5 years. After which, students have the option to go to college and/or post graduate studies. School year starts in September and ends in July.