What must be true before we move forward?

The policy uses readiness-based implementation so that schools and systems are supported according to their starting point — rather than excluded because they are not yet ready.

MDRS

Minimum Digital Readiness Standard

MDRS sets the baseline conditions a school must meet before digital tools are deployed at scale. It is intended as a levelling instrument, not a gatekeeping instrument — schools below MDRS are prioritised for support so they catch up.

Electricity
Reliable, regular electrical supply during school hours
Without reliable power, devices cannot be used, charged or kept operational.
Connectivity
Classroom-grade connectivity sufficient for intended use
Tools that fail under classroom loads create frustration and erode adoption.
Devices
Age-appropriate devices available at workable learner-to-device ratios
Devices must match the developmental stage and curricular use of learners.
Technical support
First-line technical support reachable from the school
Outages without support quickly become permanent loss of use.
Safeguarding policy
Adopted school-level acceptable-use and safeguarding policy
Devices without rules create avoidable safeguarding incidents.
Recurrent funding
Recurrent operating costs budgeted at national level
Connectivity and replacement cycles must be funded year on year, not as one-offs.

MARS

Minimum AI Readiness Standard

MARS builds on MDRS and adds the data, governance, professional capacity and safeguarding conditions needed before AI-dependent tools are deployed. AI tools are not used in schools below MARS.

Foundation
MDRS met
AI tools cannot be sustained where the digital baseline is unstable.
Data protection
REDPS compliance verified for every AI tool used
Caribbean data protection rules — not vendor defaults — govern student data.
Teacher capacity
Teachers using AI tools have completed at least Tier 1 PD
Teachers must be able to critically evaluate AI outputs before acting on them.
Leadership
School leader has completed the leadership programme
Without prepared leadership, acceptable-use policies are not enforced consistently.
Acceptable-use policy
Current acceptable-use policy in place and communicated
Students, teachers and parents need clear, published rules.
Incident response
Defined breach and incident response process
When incidents occur, response must be fast and coordinated.
Transparency
Transparency to students, teachers and parents on AI-mediated decisions
People affected by AI-mediated decisions have a right to know.
Bias evaluation
Tools used in assessment, tracking or profiling have passed Caribbean-data bias evaluation
Tools trained on non-Caribbean data can be biased for Caribbean learners.

If some conditions are not yet in place, the next step is not exclusion. The next step is targeted support.

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