The History Forum

By, Wendy Storey, HIST 3030 Student A toilet or septic tank, were not common household’s terms in Barbados in the post-emancipation period. Common phrases for excreta disposal were “night soil”, “totsi”, “potty”, “pit –toilet”, privy pit or latrine. Frank Ramsey, a Barbadian physician, tells us “there was no water carriage system of sewage disposal, nor any undertaking by any sanitary authority to remove excreta.” Excreta disposal was solely a household duty until policies were created around the 1970’s to ensure proper methods of discarding it, which meant that disposal was not always disposed properly but in a way the resident saw fit. There were several methods of disposal adopted by the Barbadian population. According to Ramsey “water closet emptying into a closed cesspit; closet or privy with a cesspit in the earth or limestone subsoil; a pail closet emptied into the sea; or a keg or tin in a corner of the yard with an oat bag as an improvised screen.” Even though these methods...

The origin and evolution of the Common Entrance Examination in Barbados and its effectiveness in achieving quality education 1959-1982 By, Levisha Josiah HIST 3030 The Evolution of Social Policy in Barbados The Barbados Secondary Schools Entrance Examination, commonly called the Common Entrance Examination, was implemented in 1959 as a method for transferring students from primary to secondary school. It emerged from a recommendation by G.S.V. Petter (1956).    After conducting a survey in both grammar and modern secondary schools, Petter realized that something had to be done about the way in which students went on to secondary schools. He concluded that children were being examined too early in their lives (some as early as 9 years old). During this time period, because of a high demand for secondary education children would write several examinations by different secondary schools with hopes of gaining entry to at least one grammar school. Petter (1956) noted tha...