Why the indomitable search for adult education?
May 24, 2011
IN the middle of a gruelling physical education exercise, a student moves on one side, holding his chest. He is ordered to re-join the others as they go through the morning drills. The clean-shaven man with traces of grey hair struggles to catch up with the pace of the other pupils.
Why the indomitable search for adult education?
By Angela Ndagano
IN the middle of a gruelling physical education exercise, a student moves on one side, holding his chest. He is ordered to re-join the others as they go through the morning drills. The clean-shaven man with traces of grey hair struggles to catch up with the pace of the other pupils.
Clad in a green shirt and purple trousers folded up to the knees, the 72-year-old sighs with fatigue as he struggles to run behind the multitude of young pupils dashing to class — many of them the age of his grandchildren. This is the price Paul Acak, the 72-year-old father of 17 is paying to fit in a class dominated by pupils fit to be his grandchildren.
Acak, who hails from Angeki cell in Cegere sub county in Apac district is in P.6 at Abutaber Primary School. He walks about 5km from his home to school. You probably have heard or read stories of 50-year-olds and even those in their late 70s enrolling for primary education. Most of us have a good laugh at the sight of their pictures in the newspapers.
At such an advanced age, one should be taking their grand children to class as opposed to sharing it with them. But, there are those who have looked beyond the amusing pictures and raised their concerns.
There are many who wonder why a person who has lived past the national average lifespan should brave the morning cold and the long distances to go to school.
“I don’t see the point in a 70-year-old go back to school. It is not that they are going to get a job. Who can employ an 80-year-old primary graduate,†Bridget
Galabuzi, a parent, asks.
However, experts say, do not think these people are out of their minds when they choose to go to school well passed their 60th birthday. Contrary to the common belief that such people are usually doing the unacceptable, studies have shown that adults who join school have reasons which education experts grade as very convincing and necessary.
Dr. John Muyingo, an educationist, argues that it is normal for a 70-year-old to study.
“At any age, learning should continue. I fully support anybody going back to school regardless of their age. I consider such a person brave,†Muyingo explains.
“The problem with most people is that they view education as a means of gaining employment only. Education is supposed to make someone happier. If someone can become happier by learning how to read and write, then it is fine,†he counsels.
Experts attribute the wave of more elderly people enrolling for primary education to the availability of free education as one of the key motivators behind. Most of the elderly people who have gone back to school have confessed the desire to seek the opportunities presented by Universal Primary Education (UPE).
Primary curriculum not suitable for the elderly
As the trend of grey haired people setting foot in the classroom continues, the applicability of the primary curriculum to such an age group is raising concern.
Connie Kateeba, the director of the National Curriculum Development Centre says when a curriculum is being prepared, it takes into account the age of the learner.
“The reason children begin primary school at six years is because the curriculum is suitable for children that age,†she says. Kateba adds that the primary curriculum is slow yet adults need a more accelerated curriculum.
“What a young learner covers in two terms should take an adult about four months,†she explains. To achieve better education benefits, Kateeba proposes that older people resort to adult learner groups.
Gaston Byamugisha, a counsellor at Kyambogo University shares a similar view.
“The curriculum is developed for young children, an old person is supposed to opt for functional adult education,†he says.
“By virtue of being an adult someone has already been exposed to learning many things, all he needs is to learn how to read and write. In about four years, he should be able to complete what takes the children seven years,†he adds.
Fagil Mande, an educationist echoes a different view. “People view education narrowly. It is not only about reading and writing, it also involves developing social skills. Spending time with these children can help them develop socially,†Mande observes.
“Since they are beginners, they are supposed to go through the same steps the children go throughâ€, says Martha Nambuya a teacher at White Angels Primary School.
Learning environment
Besides the curriculum, another issue that raises concern is whether the learning environment in primary school is suitable for the elderly.
“It is better for these people to study in a separate place because young children get involved in games which help them develop socially. However, the adults are left isolated because they cannot participate in vigorous physical exercises,†says Barnabus Mutenyo, a teacher at Kampala Parents’ Primary School.
Humiliation and teasing Others raise the worry of humiliation and teasing that can lead to a low self esteem.
“It is better that they study separately from the other pupils. In case a child answers a question that the adult cannot, the adult feels very small,†says Margaret Kibuuka, the head teacher, Gayaza Junior School
However, Byamugisha argues that by the time an old person decides to go to school, he or she is mentally prepared for all the mockery and insults. He says someone’s self esteem is only vulnerable when they are still young.
Effect on the pupils
“Children at that age expect an adult to know everything, any wrong answer will cause unnecessary excitement in the class,†Mutenyo observes. Nabunya shares similar thoughts.
“Young children are easily distracted; they are likely to switch their attention to this person.†Byamugisha looks at the situation in a more positive way.
“The presence of an adult could be a motivator for the children, if they were disrespecting the teacher and they see an adult respecting the teacher, their attitude is likely to change.â€
Way forward
Muyingo, who is currently working on a project to introduce adult education in his Bamunanika constituency, urges the Government to invest in adult education. “It is the Government’s responsibility to create a suitable learning environment for all its citizens. This environment should be a place where they can socialise freely without feeling out of place,†he says.
“People speak of adult education but do not emphasise the fact that adult education is not free.
Until there is free adult education, people will continue to go to primary school in such of free education,†Mande says.
Dr. Yusuf Nsubuga, the director for Basic and Secondary Education, says the best avenue for old people to acquire a good education is through adult centres.
“If there are no such centres for them, we cannot blame them for joining primary schools,†he says.
He adds that the responsibility of providing good adult education lies in the hands of the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development which handles the Functional Literacy Programme.
Although Uganda has surpassed the 50% target of achieving adult literacy by 2015, the adult literacy services reach only 4.3% of the non-literate adults.
However, almost 5.5 million women and 1.4 million men are in need of adult literacy services in Uganda. Uganda’s adult literacy level stands at 54% for females compared to 75% for the males.
The National Education For All (EFA), progress report projects that by 2015, at least 75% of adults in Uganda will be literate.
Asked why adult education is not under the education ministry, an official at the gender ministry said adult education is non-formal education which falls under the gender ministry.
A global trend
Studies have shown that people aged 60 years and above, especially in third world countries, represent the largest age cohort of functional illiterates.
And yet educational systems have not adequately addressed their need for education. Many older adults living at or near poverty levels have no high school diploma and experience great difficulty in finding employment.
By Angela Ndagano
IN the middle of a gruelling physical education exercise, a student moves on one side, holding his chest. He is ordered to re-join the others as they go through the morning drills. The clean-shaven man with traces of grey hair struggles to catch up with the pace of the other pupils.
Clad in a green shirt and purple trousers folded up to the knees, the 72-year-old sighs with fatigue as he struggles to run behind the multitude of young pupils dashing to class — many of them the age of his grandchildren. This is the price Paul Acak, the 72-year-old father of 17 is paying to fit in a class dominated by pupils fit to be his grandchildren.
Acak, who hails from Angeki cell in Cegere sub county in Apac district is in P.6 at Abutaber Primary School. He walks about 5km from his home to school. You probably have heard or read stories of 50-year-olds and even those in their late 70s enrolling for primary education. Most of us have a good laugh at the sight of their pictures in the newspapers.
At such an advanced age, one should be taking their grand children to class as opposed to sharing it with them. But, there are those who have looked beyond the amusing pictures and raised their concerns.
There are many who wonder why a person who has lived past the national average lifespan should brave the morning cold and the long distances to go to school.
“I don’t see the point in a 70-year-old go back to school. It is not that they are going to get a job. Who can employ an 80-year-old primary graduate,†Bridget
Galabuzi, a parent, asks.
However, experts say, do not think these people are out of their minds when they choose to go to school well passed their 60th birthday. Contrary to the common belief that such people are usually doing the unacceptable, studies have shown that adults who join school have reasons which education experts grade as very convincing and necessary.
Dr. John Muyingo, an educationist, argues that it is normal for a 70-year-old to study.
“At any age, learning should continue. I fully support anybody going back to school regardless of their age. I consider such a person brave,†Muyingo explains.
“The problem with most people is that they view education as a means of gaining employment only. Education is supposed to make someone happier. If someone can become happier by learning how to read and write, then it is fine,†he counsels.
Experts attribute the wave of more elderly people enrolling for primary education to the availability of free education as one of the key motivators behind. Most of the elderly people who have gone back to school have confessed the desire to seek the opportunities presented by Universal Primary Education (UPE).
Primary curriculum not suitable for the elderly
As the trend of grey haired people setting foot in the classroom continues, the applicability of the primary curriculum to such an age group is raising concern.
Connie Kateeba, the director of the National Curriculum Development Centre says when a curriculum is being prepared, it takes into account the age of the learner.
“The reason children begin primary school at six years is because the curriculum is suitable for children that age,†she says. Kateba adds that the primary curriculum is slow yet adults need a more accelerated curriculum.
“What a young learner covers in two terms should take an adult about four months,†she explains. To achieve better education benefits, Kateeba proposes that older people resort to adult learner groups.
Gaston Byamugisha, a counsellor at Kyambogo University shares a similar view.
“The curriculum is developed for young children, an old person is supposed to opt for functional adult education,†he says.
“By virtue of being an adult someone has already been exposed to learning many things, all he needs is to learn how to read and write. In about four years, he should be able to complete what takes the children seven years,†he adds.
Fagil Mande, an educationist echoes a different view. “People view education narrowly. It is not only about reading and writing, it also involves developing social skills. Spending time with these children can help them develop socially,†Mande observes.
“Since they are beginners, they are supposed to go through the same steps the children go throughâ€, says Martha Nambuya a teacher at White Angels Primary School.
Learning environment
Besides the curriculum, another issue that raises concern is whether the learning environment in primary school is suitable for the elderly.
“It is better for these people to study in a separate place because young children get involved in games which help them develop socially. However, the adults are left isolated because they cannot participate in vigorous physical exercises,†says Barnabus Mutenyo, a teacher at Kampala Parents’ Primary School.
Humiliation and teasing Others raise the worry of humiliation and teasing that can lead to a low self esteem.
“It is better that they study separately from the other pupils. In case a child answers a question that the adult cannot, the adult feels very small,†says Margaret Kibuuka, the head teacher, Gayaza Junior School
However, Byamugisha argues that by the time an old person decides to go to school, he or she is mentally prepared for all the mockery and insults. He says someone’s self esteem is only vulnerable when they are still young.
Effect on the pupils
“Children at that age expect an adult to know everything, any wrong answer will cause unnecessary excitement in the class,†Mutenyo observes. Nabunya shares similar thoughts.
“Young children are easily distracted; they are likely to switch their attention to this person.†Byamugisha looks at the situation in a more positive way.
“The presence of an adult could be a motivator for the children, if they were disrespecting the teacher and they see an adult respecting the teacher, their attitude is likely to change.â€
Way forward
Muyingo, who is currently working on a project to introduce adult education in his Bamunanika constituency, urges the Government to invest in adult education. “It is the Government’s responsibility to create a suitable learning environment for all its citizens. This environment should be a place where they can socialise freely without feeling out of place,†he says.
“People speak of adult education but do not emphasise the fact that adult education is not free.
Until there is free adult education, people will continue to go to primary school in such of free education,†Mande says.
Dr. Yusuf Nsubuga, the director for Basic and Secondary Education, says the best avenue for old people to acquire a good education is through adult centres.
“If there are no such centres for them, we cannot blame them for joining primary schools,†he says.
He adds that the responsibility of providing good adult education lies in the hands of the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development which handles the Functional Literacy Programme.
Although Uganda has surpassed the 50% target of achieving adult literacy by 2015, the adult literacy services reach only 4.3% of the non-literate adults.
However, almost 5.5 million women and 1.4 million men are in need of adult literacy services in Uganda. Uganda’s adult literacy level stands at 54% for females compared to 75% for the males.
The National Education For All (EFA), progress report projects that by 2015, at least 75% of adults in Uganda will be literate.
Asked why adult education is not under the education ministry, an official at the gender ministry said adult education is non-formal education which falls under the gender ministry.
A global trend
Studies have shown that people aged 60 years and above, especially in third world countries, represent the largest age cohort of functional illiterates.
And yet educational systems have not adequately addressed their need for education. Many older adults living at or near poverty levels have no high school diploma and experience great difficulty in finding employment.