Experts want only two A’level subjects

Jun 08, 2022

The education ministry has embarked on a process to develop a new competency-based curriculum for A‘level, to address the skills gaps.

Students attending class after the first Lock-down

New Vision Journalist
Journalist @New Vision

Over a million students have graduated from A‘level in the last decade at both public and private secondary schools in Uganda. 

Several reports have indicated that the majority complete the cycle unskilled and can hardly perform a task outside academics.

To address this, the education ministry has embarked on a process to develop a new competency-based curriculum for A‘level, to address the skills gaps.

As part of the curriculum review process, the National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) embarked on a countrywide consultative exercise and preliminary findings are that three of the four main regions of Uganda have recommended that the A’level syllabus is reduced to focus on the core subjects required at universities and tertiary institutions.

The findings from the curriculum development consultations indicate that western, central, and eastern Uganda, has recommended that the Government reduces the content covered by learners in two years, from a three-subject combination to just two subjects.

Instead of a student enrolling for history, economics, and geography (HEG), the stakeholders recommended that this be changed to history and economics (HE), history and geography (HG), or geography and economics (GE).

According to stakeholders, the same standard should be adopted for science subject combinations. The preliminary findings indicate that the key topics of the dropped subjects can be studied in a general paper.

The stakeholders noted that the A’level students are forced to enroll in subject combinations which are not relevant for the programs at tertiary institutions, including universities.

The stakeholders who were consulted include teachers, headteachers, parents, local council and district chairpersons, education secretaries of founding bodies, researchers, and professionals including doctors, and engineers, among others.

For instance, for the subject combination of history, economics, and fine art (HEA), which would enable one to enroll in industrial fine art at university, they argued that one does not need history, but the other two.

Fine art is needed because it is the core, whereas economics introduces the learner to business modules.

The stakeholders failed to connect the importance of history in the subject combination. Under science, they listed that a student requires biology and chemistry to enroll in human medicine at university.

However, they argued that students are burdened with physics, which they claim has principles similar to those of chemistry at the A’level.

“The stakeholders asked if the main subjects for human medicine are biology and chemistry, why should a student add to the physics or mathematics to have a subject combination of PCB or BCM?”

Grace Baguma, the director of NCDC, asked. Talking to New Vision, Baguma said the views from the stakeholders will be submitted to the NCDC council which will later inform the education ministry for further guidance and recommendation.

Thereafter, she said, the ministry will then inform Cabinet. “We have so far conducted consultations in western Uganda held in Mbarara city, the central region in Mityana municipality, and the eastern region in Soroti city,” she said.

She noted that there will be consultations in the north, another in Kampala Metropolitan Area, and one for universities and other tertiary institutions.

The New Vision has learned NCDC is scheduled to hold a special preview of the report this week and next week to fine-tune the findings.

Dr. Baguma said after the public and expert views, they will then benchmark the finding against other countries that could be implementing a similar curriculum.

 If the ideas of reducing content and two principal subjects are not adopted the stakeholders recommended that government extends the duration of the A’level from two years to three with the same content.

The idea was premised on the fact that A’level content is bloated and Several professionals the New Vision interacted with backed the proposed competency-based curriculum for A’ level.

However, they had diverging views on adopting two-subject combinations as opposed to three. Prof. Francis Omaswa, a renowned cardiovascular surgeon, researcher, and academician say a competency-based curriculum is the way to go.

Once implemented properly, he said, it will instill critical thinking and problem-solving in learners. “We need a curriculum which will instill critical thinking in A’level students. The curriculum should produce a student who will find solutions, not one who will cram already existing facts,” he said.

However, he said, the three subject combinations should be maintained especially for science programs. Much as human medicine requires biology and chemistry, he said, the program has unique components found in both mathematics and physics.

“We should not narrow the subject combination to two. Physics is very important in medicine. It has light, mechanics, and electricity which are needed in medicine and related programs,” he said.

Adding that “A’level students need a broader foundation. They must learn to work under pressure because this is when you start to specialize.”

On mandatory subjects, he said, these should be limited to primary and lower secondary schools which do not need specialization.

Fred Mwesige, the executive director of Forum for Education NGOs in Uganda (FENU,) said it is not appropriate to reduce the subject combinations to two.

Instead, he said, the content per subject can be reduced by eliminating repetition and duplications. According to him, a combination of three subjects enables the student to enroll in more programs at tertiary institutions.

“I think this is an overreaction from Ugandans on what they do not want in the education sector. This is probably a reaction to unemployment. However, as we develop the new curriculum, we need to think through some of these proposals,” he said.

Adding that: ”We should produce an all-around learner who understands a bit of everything. History has always been abused. But it is unavoidable. For instance, the slave trade, colonialism, and neocolonialism have all had an impact on our economies. We cannot remove history.”

Ketty Lamaro, the education ministry’s permanent secretary both science and art students should take a vocational subject the stakeholders recommended that government extends the duration of A’level from two years to three covered in a short period.

This, the stakeholders said, has promoted rote learning and cramming to pass examinations. They also recommended that the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) examinations, be marked out of 70%.

The other 30%, the public said, can be generated through the school-based assessment, just like under the revised lower secondary school curriculum.

They also recommended that each student, whether in arts or sciences, take on a mandatory vocational program that is 100% practical and examinable nationally.

This, the report says, will enable the country to address the unemployment among learners at that level. Christopher Muganga, the acting deputy director for research, consultancy and library services at NCDC, said:

“The issue of skilling and vocationalisation has been raised several times. The stakeholders want it to be implemented.” This proposal comes at a time when the Government is proposing the roll-out of mandatory vocational programs for all senior six leavers.

The proposal which is also included in the National Development Plan (NDPIII) would require that before a student is admitted to a higher institution of learning, including the university, they must have studied and graduated with a vocational skill in a year.

Ketty Lamaro, the education ministry permanent secretary, confirmed that a needs assessment has already been conducted by NCDC to get views from the public. At the moment, she said, stakeholder engagements are ongoing to share findings of the needs assessment.

“The review of the curriculum will follow and it is planned that by the time we get to S4 implementation of the lower secondary school curriculum, the new A’level curriculum is in place,” she said.

 What next The education ministry wants a new A’level curriculum ready in two years. This, the ministry says, will enable learners enrolled under the revised lower secondary school curriculum to transition to a new and similar curriculum at A’level.

Comments

No Comment


(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});