Senator Hazel Thompson-Ahye

Two prominent Trinidadian politicians have recently acknowledged the psychological and inequitable consequences the SEA exam casts on schoolchildren. Senator Hazel Thompson-Ahye of the Independent Party called for abolishing the SEA in October (Hamilton-Davis, 2020). Her demand came in agreement with parents: “All schools must be equally resourced so no child is disadvantaged by the choice of schools” (Hamilton-Davis, 2020). 

Dr. Everold Hosein

Likewise, Dr. Everold Hosein of the Green Party believes COVID-19 presents a perfect segway to abolition. He recognized the psychological trauma that schoolchildren endure with the exam and believes Trinidad is more than capable of following suit with Barbados (Hosein, 2020). Additionally, Hosein called for parents to take action and boycott the SEA exam if the government fails to abolish it by August 20th, the rescheduled exam date. As the current academic year and pandemic moves forward, the trajectory shows that political leaders’ dissent will continue to come forward as well.