Students' Perceptions of Quality Education in Secondary Schools in the Commonwealth Caribbean: Country, School Type and Gender Differences

Abstract

There is a lack of clarity on what quality education means and how it could be achieved. This study examines this question from the perspective of secondary school students in Jamaica and Trinidad. The study also sought to ascertain whether there were significant country, school type and gender differences in the students’ perceptions .A convergent mixed methods design was used for the research. The findings revealed that students perceive the context in which teaching and learning take place, the inputs available, teaching-learning processes and educational outputs as being critical to the achievement of quality education.