Ugandan education experts have expressed their concerns regarding the education system that doesn’t seem to serve its purpose.
The criticism mainly targeted the varying trends in teaching that focus mainly on assessment at all times as opposed to encouraging learners to be critical thinkers. This, according to the UWEZO Uganda executive director Dr Mary Goretti Nakabugo, has been aggravated by the prolonged school closure.
“Our education system is largely not fit for purpose because it is leaving so many children behind. In other words, the curricula are way ahead of the children and teachers have not done enough to help them acquire foundational skills at a tender age,” Nakabugo said.
She added that since education is for all, the primary concern of all stakeholders is to get children in school, then worry about their literacy, numeracy and life skills later.
“Uwezo statistics show that about 74 per cent of children have had their enrolment in schools delayed due to the pandemic and chances of such children persisting with their education are low.”
Nakabugo is one of the experts who expressed her concerns virtually during the launch of a research project; Adapting assessment into policy and learning: Adolescent 21st century skills at Makerere University last week.
The research initiative is aimed at the acquisition of 21st-century skills for adolescents by strengthening the utilization of data from learning assessment in curriculum design, adaptation and delivery.
The two-year project is implemented by a consortium of partners including the Makerere University College of Education and External Studies (CEES), the Global E-Schools Communities Initiative (Gesci), an international NGO based in Kenya, and the US-based University of Notre Dame. It is being piloted in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania and funded by the International Development Resource Center (IDRC) under the Global Partnership in Education (GPE).
According to Nakabugo, learners have to acquire the foundations of reading and numeracy or they’ll fail to grasp the 21st Century skills.
Illustrating her point further, she cited 2014 statistics by the Inter-University Council for East Africa survey that aimed at graduates’ employability skills, technical mastery and basic work-related capabilities.
The study revealed a staggering 63 per cent of Ugandans, being the highest in Africa, with Tanzania at 61%, Burundi 55%, Rwanda 52% and Kenya 51%.
“Seven years later, things have not changed a lot in Uganda since the teachers and lecturers have remained the same. We urgently need the Education Policy Review Commission to critically look into these matters to close this gap,” she said.
The principal of CEES, Prof Anthony Mugagga, agreed with Nakabugo that the current assessment is skewed towards rote learning. He explained that learners only give answers based on recall and don’t think beyond their nose.
“During the research, we can’t promise that everything will change overnight but we are going to point out that there’s a problem with our education system,” Mugagga said.
He, however, emphasized that whereas teachers are critical thinkers, the practice dictates that assessment overrides professionalism.
“In as much as we teach, there must be something missing in institutions to help teachers deliver better in classrooms. We are going to be interacting with universities, other tertiary institutions, secondary, and primary schools in the three countries to come up with workable solutions for the 21st-century learner and teacher,” Mugagga said.
“We expect teachers who assess for a purpose and not for the sake of giving exams and awarding marks to students.”
The project lead for East Africa, Samuel Otieno, said the research does not target overhauling of the education systems in all three countries but will strengthen the use of data in shaping assessment systems.
Researchers expect to release their first findings by end of April 2022 for dissemination by stakeholders at the policy level, those in academia, and civil society.