Category Archives: Education
Schools in Lira Register Poor Turn Up of Learners
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Schools in Lango sub-region have registered poor turn up of learners as schools reopened for semi candidate classes.
Last month President Museveni allowed schools and tertiary institutions to reopen for primary six learners, senior three and senior five students on the 1st of March 2020, after a long closure since March, last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
However, many rural schools in Apac, Kwania, Kole, Dokolo and Oyam districts have suffered a low turn up of candidates.
46 Inmates Sit UCE at Luzira Maximum Security Prisons
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46 inmates at the Uganda Prisons Service have started their Uganda National Certificate of Education examinations amidst heightened lockdown measures. They include 41 males and five females.
The examinations started at 9 a.m. prompt at the Luzira Maximum Security Prisons where access to outsiders has been limited to invigilators while movement in the upper prison is also restricted. One can only access Prisons through the main gate as three of the small gates have been locked due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Just In: Makerere University Extends 71st Graduation ceremony to May
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Makerere University management has postponed the 71st Graduation Ceremony citing different unforeseen issues.
According to the university calendar issued recently, the said ceremony had been scheduled to take place on the March 18, 2021. However, the University Senate has revised date to May 7,2021.
Prof. Umar Kakumba the Deputy Vice Chancellor Academics, notes that the postponement was based on the request of the University Ceremonies Committee which wanted more time for proper planning and organising the event.
Fort Portal Private Schools Struggling to Conduct Practical Exams Due to Financial Challenges
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Private Secondary Schools in Fort Portal Tourism City are struggling to conduct practical exams due to financial constraints. Senior candidates kicked off their Uganda Certificate of Education – UCE exams with their physics practical paper this morning.
However, some of the private schools in Fort Portal say that due to the closure of schools resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, they are no longer able to meet all their financial obligations since they were solely relying on fees paid by students.
At Fort Portal Senior Secondary School, the Headteacher, Regan Kateregga, says that even though they have managed to reopen for the semi-candidate classes, they are struggling to raise funds to buy laboratory equipment and chemicals that are urgently needed by the candidates.
Kateregga explains that the chemicals and apparatus needed for science subjects like Biology, Physics and Chemistry are costly for the school.
He appeals to the government to fulfil its promise of extending financial support to private schools to enable them to deal with the effects of the pandemic.
At Kabarole Adventist Secondary School, the Headteacher, Joshua Kagaba, says that to enable candidates to sit their first paper, he was forced to use half of the teachers’ salary to buy laboratory equipment and chemicals.
He says this was also not an easy decision to make since he had to first seek the teachers’ permission to allow him to delay their salaries so that students can sit their final exams.
Kagaba notes that this has been the worst financial crisis they have ever faced as school, adding that he is worried the situation may worsen if the government does not intervene.
Countrywide, at least 333,889 candidates from 3,935 centers are expected to sit for this year’s UCE examinations.
The candidates would have sat their examination last year around October. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the school calendar.
Full Story: Gayaza Orders Candidates to Shave Hair Before Sitting UCE Examination
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There was panic at Gayaza Road secondary school this morning when school administrators ordered some candidates to shave hair before sitting their Uganda Certificate of Education-UCE exams.
The candidates covered at an informal school assembly around 7: 45 am where the teachers were updating them on the dos and don’ts in the examination room. However, the Director of Studies, Jude Wasswa was disappointed that some of the candidates looked shabby with unkempt hair.
Latest: Gulu University Academic Staff Strike Over Salary Increment
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Academic staff at Gulu University have laid down their tools to push for salary increment. The over lecturers under their umbrella Gulu University Academic Staff Association (GUASA) laid down their tools this morning, saying they will not resume until they receive communication from the government.
UCE: Distribution of Examinations Delays in Most Part of the Country
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There was late delivery of examination papers and arrival on invigilators as senior four candidate started their final examinations this morning. Despite the fact that most of the examination center visited by our reporter opened as early as 7 am, some invigilators were stuck at different storage centers, as they did not know the location of the schools where they were deployed.
At the Jinja road examination storage center, invigilators had to wait for school administrators to pick the examinations and give them a lift. As a result, some invigilators arrived late at their duty stations. According to the Uganda National Examinations Board-UNEB guidelines, invigilators and scouts are supposed to arrive at their duty station an hour to the start of the exams.
BOOK REVIEW: The Greedy Barbarian – Kakwenza Rukirabashaija
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BOOK REVIEW
Title: The Greedy Barbarian
Author: Kakwenza Rukirabashaija
Volume: 130 pages (42,000 words)
Publisher: Self-published
Year: 2020
Reviewer: Jacobs O. Seaman
If limitless greed exists, what follows such abyss?
By Jacobs Odongo Seaman
Kayibanda is a miscreant personified. He is born without moral scruples. And no father. But with an enviable ability to invent such putrid mischief and greed that even the writer appears at a loss to narrate.
The Greedy Barbarian, a fictitious novel, leaves readers hanging on a plot so many a time that one would only begin to appreciate how confusing it must have been to build the character of Kayibanda when he abandons all pretenses at decency and gallops down the abyss of greed.
Teachers who Drink Alcohol in the Morning to be Caned -RDC
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Trouble and humiliation awaits teachers in Budaka who still enjoy the bottle to the extent of sipping during daytime as schools open for semi candidates next week.
Parents and the public have been urged by the Budaka Resident District Commissioner Tom Chesol to exercise their mandate and discipline by caning any teacher found drinking in the morning.
Full Story: UNEB in Financial Crisis as UCE Nears
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Uganda National Examination Board-UNEB is battling financial challenges that might affect the preparation and management of 2020 final examinations.
According to sources in the examination body, the board lacks funds to finance a number of activities ahead of the Uganda Certificate Examinations-UCE scheduled to start on March 01, 2021.
Education Ministry Rolls out Distribution of Second Phase of Self-Study Materials
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The Ministry of Education and Sports has embarked on the nationwide distribution of the second batch of self-study materials.
The materials were introduced as one of the interventions to ensure that learners continue learning during the lockdown. Although the materials were much needed during the period when learners were out of school, they are coming a few days to the expected phased resumption of teaching and learning activities.
A circular issued by Ismael Mulindwa, the chairperson of the covid19 education response committee, indicates that the government has printed 5.43 million copies to benefit learners in upper primary and lower secondary.
Makerere University Professor Found Dead in House
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Anthony Geoffrey Genmungu Kerali, an Associate Professor at Makerere University has been found dead in his house. Kerali died from his home at Plot 1 Prince Charles Drive in Kololo. The cause of his death is yet to be established.
Kerali was a lecturer at Makerere University at the College of Engineering, Design, Art, and Technology (CEDAT).
Victoria University Cuts Tuition Fees for New Entrants
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Victoria University has slashed its tuition and functional fees for new entrants.
The University Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Lawrence Muganga, says the new entrant will pay Shillings 938,000 for tuition per semester down from Shillings 1.7 million and Shillings 650,000 in functional fees from Shillings 860,000.
