Education, it is repeatedly said, "is the passport out of poverty," "the key to progress," etc.

While I too believe in such promises, I worry that school outcomes persistently favour some over others. Given the disturbing rate of delinquency, dropouts, youth crime and juvenile homes' enrolment, these fall-outs from many parts of the education system compel an indepth look at the education system itself.

I say 'many parts' because you will not find such debilitating problems in the 'prestige schools,' which raise the most fundamental challenge of all: why are some secondary schools so much better than others? Does it largely start from the primary school intake? Is it the dual system? How is the Ministry of Education dealing with this? There is an SOS here.

As analysed in my 2016 book, Inequality, Crime and Education: Removing the Masks, the Ministry's National Test Report once showed a remarkable difference among school types for mathematics and language arts. For mathematics at standard one (mean scores percentages): private schools 61, denominational 50, government 48. There were similar scores for languages, and also at standard three. The economics of education reared its head here with the private schools getting highest scores - and the same at SEA.

A five-year study (2008-2012) also showed students from denominational schools getting twice as much, with five or more CSEC passes (Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificates), compared to government-school students. The difference is similar with CAPE (Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination).

Academic success is linked to school discipline and character. These statistical glimpses show the persistent inequalities (proportional) in the education system. The ministry should now publish similar trend data in its annual administrative reports to show taxpayers how the $8 billion education system is working or not working.

A lot of citizens are concerned.

Louis W Williams, for example, in his newspaper analysis (October 3) of teaching, schools and career inequity, concluded: "I am of the considered view that our education system needs a complete citizens overhaul from pre-school to tertiary level."

In his recent UWI lecture, visiting professor Pedro Antonio Noguera, noting the achievement imbalances in the education system, said while we have "top students" in certain schools, "I also know that within certain schools that kind of success is less likely, and instead of being anxious about opportunity, our schools produce inequality."

Education Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly said: "We must redefine and rethink our paradigm to meet the educational needs of this generation and the next generation…Educational success entails school performance, student performance and the achievement of 21st-century skills."

Where is the data? Which brings us to my university colleague Prof Theodore Lewis's repeated calls for "measuring school performance." Comparing Scandinavian countries, he added: "We have one of the most punitive education systems in th