Ms. Claudette Phoenix

I was born on October 2, 1955 in Georgetown Guyana and was raised in the same community. I have one child and one grandchild. I obtained a Trained Teacher's Certificate in1983 and a Bachelor of Education Degree with Credit from the University of Guyana in 1994. My major was Primary Education and my electives were Social Studies and English Language. In 1996 I completed a six-month full time training programme in Test Development in Education. This  programme, which was funded by the Primary Education Improvement Project/International Development Bank (PEIP/IDB),  was designed by the Faculty of Education, University of Guyana for the Ministry of Education. In 2002  I embarked on an Online-Offline training programme in 'Assessing for Understanding' with the Harvard Graduate School of Education and completed it that same year. The training was sponsored by the Organisation of American States (OAS) through the Public Service Ministry, Guyana. In 2005 I graduated from the University of Guyana with a Master Degree in Education majoring in Measurement and Evaluation. My elective was Management and Supervision.

My teaching career began in September 1974 with the  Ministry of Education. That was my first employment. After spending 22 years in that profession, I was offered a position, in 1996,  as a Test Development Oficer in the Test Development Unit of the Ministry of Education. (The Unit was later renamed the Measurement and Evaluation Unit). Prior to my appointment,  I received a six-month training in Test Development which enabled me to function in the position. I retired as the Chief Test Development Officer (Head of the Measurement and Evaluation Unit) in 2010 after spending 14 years in that Unit. Thus in 2010 I retired from the Ministry of Education after serving for 36 years. 

My duties as the Chief Test Development Officer were numerous. They included facilitating the preparation of examination papers and coordinating marking activities for all national examinations. The examinations were the National Grade Six Assessment, the National Grades Two and Four Assessments and the Guyana Technical Education Examination. Additionally, I was responsible for analysing examination results, preparing statistical reports on the examinations for the Ministry of Education, and facilitating Measurement and Evaluation professional development sessions for educators.

From March  2011 to July 2012, I served as a part time Tutor at The Cyril Potter College of Education where I was responsible for Practicum courses.  In June  2010, I was offered the position of a Part-time Lecturer in the Faculty of Education, University of Guyana, to teach Measurement and Evaluation to students who were pursuing a Master Degree in Measurement and Evaluation. That Part-time employment continued until 2012 when I was appointed as a full time staff in the same faculty. 

As a lecturer, I teach all Measurement and Evaluation courses at the graduate and undergraduate levels. I also   serve as a Practicum Supervisor for students who are pursuing the Post Graduate Diploma in Education and  as Thesis Supervisor for students who are pursuing the Master of Education Degree. From 2015 to 2018 I have had one student each year whose thesis was accepted and hence graduated. Additionally I served as an Internal Examiner for Master of Education theses. I examined one thesis every year from 2013 to 2017. Prior to 2016, I taught Research Methods and Issues in Education and Development to undergraduate students. I also supervised undergraduate students in Education Practicum, Education Research Proposal, and Education Research Study.

During my tenure at the university I acted, from June to August 2013,  as Head of Department of the Department of Foundation and Education Management in the Faculty of Education and Humanities.Besides teaching, I have used my knowledge of Measurement and Evaluation extensively in and out of the university community. For example,  from 2013 to present, I have been serving as the Measurement and Evaluation Specialist for the University of Guyana Entrance Examination. In August 2018,  I facilitated a one-week Measurement ane Evaluation workshop for the Faculty of Health Sciences. That workshop was done in collaboration with Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation. In December 2017, I facilitated a Measurement and Evaluation Workshop for Lecturers of the Cyril Potter College of Education and in March 2013  I  facilitated a Professional Development session for lecturers of the Faculty of Education and Humanities. Since  2010 I have been involved in the editing of final examination papers for the national examinations offered by the Ministry of Education. I have also been involved in editing of final examination papers for the Faculty of Education and Humanities. From 2010 t0 2015  I have facilitated Professional Development sessions in Measurement and Evaluation annually for the Ministry of Education during the months of July and August.

In 2018, I completed a research entitled "An Evaluation of the Performance of Students Admitted to the University of Guyana through the University of Guyana Entrance Examination."  This study can be found in the University of Guyana Library. I am presently working on a study entitled: "Primary School Teachers' Knowledge of and Attitude Toward Affective Assessment in Georgetown and Region Four Education Districts". I also have a chapter   entitled: "Policy implications of project evaluation in Guyana: The Case of the Secondary School Reform Project" .This chapter can be found in:  A. Ezenne(Ed). (2008).  Leadership for Schools in the Caribbean. Jamaica UWI.