Dominica

To become a certified teacher, candidates must have attained four subject-passes on the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC), including both English and mathematics. Teacher training is completed at Dominica Teachers Training College. The teacher-training program and subsequent courses are administered under the auspices of the Faculty of Education of the University of West Indies.

There is a lack of certified teachers particularly at the primary level. In 1999 only 64 percent of the primary teachers were certified. The majority (41 percent) of trained primary school teachers in 1998 were located in the western portion of the island, and 77 percent of the teachers taught at public institutions in 2000. The student-teacher ratio for qualified primary teachers in 1999 varied between 31:1 and 50:1, dependent upon the district. At the secondary level, only 31 percent of the teachers were trained to teach the content appropriate for their individual grade levels. The student-teacher ratio for qualified secondary teachers in 1999 averaged 53:1 yet could be as low as 21:1, based on individual districts. The vast majority of secondary school teachers were employed at either public schools (53 percent) or assisted schools (44 percent).

Women dominate the education profession at both the primary and secondary levels. At the primary level, roughly 80 percent of the staff were women in 2000. And at the secondary level, women accounted for 66 percent of school personnel.