| Education System in Saba |
Saba is a tiny island in the Caribbean five square miles in extent and under the governance of the Netherlands. Notwithstanding the size of the local population, education is compulsory from ages 6 to 18. There is one junior school that provides kindergarten facilities, and primary education from age 6 through to 6th grade.
There is also only one secondary school where the balance of the education program is provided. This begins with a foundation period with a common core curriculum. A further 3 years are taken preparing students for the examinations of either the CXC Caribbean Examination Council, or the IGCSE International General Certificate of Secondary Education in Dutch.
The secondary school also runs technical and vocational education programs that are a blend of theory and practical assignments. Skill sets targeted include planning and organizing, and critical and analytical thinking too.
The Saba University School of Medicine illustrated here is a private initiative that provides a different base for the first phase of obtaining a medical qualification. Most if not all the students are from beyond the Island’s shores. Basic sciences are taught over a period of 20 months, divided into 10 semesters.
Following this, students return to their home countries of America and Canada, where they complete their final 5 semesters through clinical rotations at teaching hospitals there. The University's programs are thus equivalent to those of American / Canadian medical schools.
