JUSTICE PARTY
www.idr.co.ug/dfwa-u/Nymapp/justice.htm
Investigating functional illiteracy and literacy- Uganda Education.
LACKING INFRASTRUCTURE
Quickly notice � there is total lack of policy guideline implementation from the ministry of education on course literature and of course, on course implementations. It is visible every where by the way �see below for example from my own investigation.
There is only a few possibilities by which ministry of education can solve its monitoring and evaluation problems (1) making parents aware of the state of affairs i.e. How schools must be administered , designed for education to be possible thus reporting directly to MOE (2) using the media as a watch dog to monitor schools (3). printing massive policy guidelines brochures and handing them to students to protest and report unfair academic conditions and environment(buildings, laboratories, teaching and so on) (4) making teachers realise that their working environment if improved it is in their best interest- encouraging them to report to MOE.
Why are schools not given such policy guideline in print so that they can also forward the same polices to unsuspecting parents and students? Why is it not mandatory?
Should a secondary school teaching science have laboratories or not? Do Uganda schools have the policy guidelines in print or not on science and technical education?
How should a school look like- built in a slum, no play grounds? Should schools be spacious and open free from distraction and the like or not?
How are schools designed in this country � is the ministry of works and housing having a hand in this most crucial part of starting a school or it is anything goes?
So who suctions school building structural and LANDSCAPE design, the town or city councils, ministry of eduction, without the input of the ministry of works- or they lack a policy guideline on such important matters?
No � we have not reached that stage � so let be. Let the sleeping dos sleep in peace!
What should an academic institution look like and what should it be?
How many hours should be spent in a science, computer laboratories, workshop (mechanical, home-economics, agricultural fields, )
How frequent should science experiment be done to produce an all round theoretically and practically but also functionary intuitive pupil or a student destined to a world full of contradictions?
Interesting questions isn�t it? More articles at the link below
http://pub59.ezboard.com/fugandamanufacturersassociationfrm1.showMessage?topicID=122.topic
UGANDA EDUCATION:
Now there is something about Uganda education - the education which Ugandans get as every one knows is VERY RICH IN CONTENT- that is theoretically to BE precise.
Where theory can be turned into PRACTICAL EDUCATION Ugandans generally have excelled anywhere on earth expect of course in Uganda itself � their own country.
This points to one problem � there is no usability and applicability of industrial education children get in Uganda. It is needed though!
And THEREIN IN LIES THE PROBLEM� Education without the basic social infrastructure into which it can be applied. The so-called theory practice INCONSISTENCY.
So is Uganda type of education irrelevant � NO.
Uganda type of education is rather de-linked from the realities that rule in this country- physicist without labs and industrial network to support their trade into which they function.
Pharmacologist without drug industry despite the fact that people are dying due to lack of drugs, artist without development of indigenous culture, industrial artist without a corresponding industry. This is another problem.- governmental lack direction, socially , politically and otherwise.
This is not ministry of education problem but rather POLICY MATTER issue e.g. a problem of disorganised political systems we have had in this country.
However the above does not absolve the ministry of education from its own short fall as I will show below:
You have of course interacted and still interact with University professors, world over �
There are University professors in Europe and the USA who do not actually know about an atom, about a cathode ray tube, or what becomes of copper when burnt in air.
University professors who do not know where Colombia is, the history of Mesopotamia or anything about temperate climate in their own countries- a basic primary education.
Any Ugandan student from secondary school level has some basic knowledge at least about anything mentioned above.
Then why is Uganda, one of the poorest and functionary illiterate country- people can�t dig wells, Kampala building and traffic design tells a tell of its own etc,.
Investigating structural phenomenon in depth.
Aptech: Ministry of education I do believe, as government policy wanted to develop Information Technology as a niche so Aptech hurriedly was licensed.
An IT University affiliated with universities in India and Britain entered the scene at a cool over UG 500.000 per term
Has the ministry of education monitored or randomly tested the students released from this Aptech Computer UNIVERSITY FOR THEIR SUITABILITY IN UGANDA ENVIRONMENT?
Apetch students from my own investigation DO HAVE THREE TO A MAXIMUM OF SIX HOURS in a computer lab PER WEEK if they can get a free computer station
There is no where on earth, an overtly practical subject like computer science has ever been understood without PRACTICAL EDUCATION.
Why are these students not allowed to work with government departments to practice what they are preached to- MINISTRY OF EDUCATION LACK OF POLICY AS A GOVERNMENTAL UNIT TO MAP A WAY FORWARD.
In sum � Aptech students are functionary illiterate on finishing their degree course �
I have a person I�ve been seeing through Aptech so I know the facts very well. Books, teachers okay but VIRTUALLY NO practically oriented education as students are preached to.
Enter KYAMBOGO; KYAMBOGO is one of the institutions, which has got many financiers. Kyamboago some time back got many computer units approximately 200 of them for years, these computer were not used � WHY?
What does the ministry of education know about this fact?
There is no interest or simply a policy on how they could be used. Moreover they were not installed to offer even editing programmes so for year they lied their idle!
Today Kyambogo is a university. I visited Kyambogo last season. One observation was that this Institution is falling apart for reasons beyond me. But One teacher told me they had not funding.
That that very day they had no power � in a polytechnical institution, which could design a generator for supplementary power.
I was told on occasions � power was low below the required to light a UNIVERSITY bulb.
Now just imagine that there are students who do practical work how could they go forward without electrical power.
Teachers� welfare is appalling and horrible �explained in the article I wrote about teachers residences and students dining hall at Kyambogo � the researched article I wrote though sent to all mass media and all my discussion list went an notice!
Nalukolongo: From Kampala toward Natete stop at Nalukologo market and turn to your right and walk about 100 meter inside the dirty village.
There is a primary school with growing children in want of play and space for their development purposes confined in a space 10 by 10 meters!
For the past five years a friend and I have been doing our investigations about UPE reflecting at this very school that exist there almost in the middle of the city. So we return again and again to see what has been don - NOTHING
The school is a two-block institution with a third semi-finished block going for school latrines in exactly the same parameter. The blocks face each other in a semi- square box.
There is no playground, toilets are just five meters away from the other block. This is slum area with all types of people around the children.
I personally has written countless articles without mentioning the school itself. How on earth can such a school exist in Kampala City, without the knowledge of the authorities in the ministry of education still defeats me?
But that can be discussed.
Another at Katwe residetial school: walk across the fly over bridge from Katwe trading centre- turn left walk some 10 � 20 meters toward Kibuye. And inside there is a school in one home. No school buildings no nothing it is a school on its own in Kampala City 2003.
This is a school in between filthy and near collapsing buildings run by Islamic teachers. It is located in a residential slum area- Katwe.
So children around here go to this school. One morning last year I was here, I saw about 30 children lined and reciting words in English after their teacher.
RUBAGA ACADEMY a boarding school behind Rubaga social centre: This school started out as a computer education facility.
I have visited the school in over seven years since 1996 and today it has added business so it reads: RUBAGA ACADEMY of business and computer science or something like that.
The institution is located in once unfinished flat doubling as a boarding school. The school doubles as a boarding school in one block.
In 1997 a student there told me, there was population of about 70 students all doing computer science studies on six computer units.
I have visited the school many times to doing exactly the same thing � understanding the brains behind these institution and students views about the school.
Students do not care much though they pay exorbitant fees- because what is told to them is computer science is basic knowledge they have about computer use.
This too points to lack of policy guidelines from the ministry of education of course literature and implementations.
There are more such stories � but anyone can do own investigation anywhere around the country and report back to me. THANK YOU.
