Exams or regular tests: Which is best?
May 11, 2011
UNDER a new curriculum for primary schools in Uganda, sitting for examinations as the only basis of assessing pupil’s performance is coming to an end. Pupils’s will now be assessed on what they can ‘do’ than merely what they ‘know’ or ‘can remember.
By CONAN BUSINGE
UNDER a new curriculum for primary schools in Uganda, sitting for examinations as the only basis of assessing pupil’s performance is coming to an end. Pupils’s will now be assessed on what they can ‘do’ than merely what they ‘know’ or ‘can remember.
The National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) wants continuous assessment to be the basis of checking the performance of pupils in Primary One to Three.
The education ministry’s Permanent secretary, Francis-Xavier Lubanga says that the new assessment in primary schools follows the new thematic transition, and upper primary curricula.
“The priority at this stage of learning and teaching is the development of skills, values, understanding and the ability to explore and discover more from the environment around them. This will be through developing critical thinking skills, and use of their senses, rather than learning information,†Lubanga says.
Many educational systems worldwide have adopted this approach in assessing learners’ achievement in many subject areas.
The handbook to institutionalise Continuous Assessment was launched last week by the education minister Namirembe Bitamazire, while commissioning an expanded and renovated Kabale-Bukinda Core Primary Teachers College.
However, educationists warn that the new policy raises more questions than answers. They argue that unless strict guidelines and monitoring mechanisms are put in place, the system will be prone to abuse.
Cyprian Ssebulwade, a teacher at Mugwanya Preparatory School Kabojja doubts whether the programme will yield good results.
“If we have always got incidents in some schools where teachers aid pupils to cheat in national exams, how will it be when they are the ones assessing their own pupils?†he asks.
Ssebulwade adds that the Government should put in place proper monitoring mechanisms to protect the scheme from abuse.
“We need to follow up learners keenly meaning that we have to spend so much time. We need to keep a pile of records and for a long time,†a teacher in one of the Government primary schools in Western Uganda says.
One of the important aspects of continuous assessment is the availability of standard valid and reliable tests which could be used in all schools.
There is a need to construct these tests following established procedures and practices. This means teachers and school heads must be prepared to operate the system.
“If the teacher is not well prepared to operate the system, it may lead to a tendency to ‘cook up’ scores in the name of continuous assessment,†another teacher remarks.
Gabriel Obbo, the head of department Pre -Primary at National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) acknowledges that implementing the programme has its challenges.
He adds that most teachers have not been empowered with enough skills of record management, to implement this project.
“We have to reshape teachers’ attitude towards this programme. The majority of them have poor management skills,†he says.
Obbo adds that the pilot scheme started in 50 districts, purposely to check how efficiently it can be rolled out.
He however says the ministry of education has started massive sensitisation about the project among teachers.
Why Continuous assessment is good for Uganda’s education
Agnes Nakabugo, the headmistress Namugongo Boarding Primary school says continuous assessment is a good yardstick to judge the pupils’ academic performance.
“They (pupils) study for seven years and wait to be examined in two days. In my view it is very little time. Assessing our pupils will boost our primary education system. Schools will start concentrating on teaching the syllabus rather than preparing pupils to pass exams with good marks,†she says.
Jane Kisembo, the director of studies Kitebi Primary School echoes a related view.
“Some of them (pupils) fall sick and they do not sit for exams, but when they have been performing well. Also continuous assessment will help us to identify pupils who have weakness in some subjects, right from primary one,†she explains.
Kisembo adds that her school started internal continuous assessment long time ago but putting much emphasis on pupils joining upper classes.
To make the results comparable across all the schools, teachers need to be equipped with skills of test construction and administration. That is why the education ministry has rolled out continuous assessment materials in all Primary Teachers’ Colleges.
For successful implementation of the continuous assessment approach, teachers need to give more tests, which means more marking.
The Education ministry insists that comprehensive measures have been worked out to ensure successful implementation of the system.
Education experts at the Curriculum development Centre say in the new assessment, there will be the use of a variety of assessment instruments, considering various components of learning; not only the thinking processes, but including behaviours, personality traits and manual skills.
The Director of NCDC, Connie Kateeba says continuous assessment will gradually be stretched to other classes.
Asked whether continuous assessment will soon replace Primary Leaving Examinations, Kateeba says they have not yet taken a decision to scrap national examinations.
“We will share the guidelines with the stakeholders. We will later have them rolled out to the whole country. But, once the guidelines are released, we will start with a pilot study and later have all schools on the same course,†she explains.
She says examinations will be maintained in the primary school’s education system, as part of the ontinuous assessment.
One of the expected advantages of continuous assessment lies in its being guidance oriented. Since it will involve data gathering, it will yield accurate data reaching the teachers early enough to modify instruction.
This could play a vital role in diagnosing and remediating areas of learners’ weaknesses if properly anchored in what occurs in classrooms.
Another advantage of continuous assessment is that it places teachers at the centre of all performance-assessment activities. It encourages teacher participation in the overall assessment or grading of his or her learners.
History of Continuous Assessment
The Government made a review of its education system in 1987 when it appointed an Education Policy Review Commission (EPRC).
The EPRC in its report (1989) noted among other short comings that the education system was examination ridden and there were very few attempts to assess practical skills.
On assessment and examination, the EPRC, recommended, the introduction of continuous assessment in primary and post - primary training institutions.
The Government, in its White Paper on Education, approved these recommendations in 1992.
Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) was to implement those decisions to reform examinations and assessment. In its action plan, UNEB introduced reform activities that saw the establishment of National Assessment of Progress in Education and Continuous Assessment (CA).
It also increased higher order thinking skills questions in all its examinations and embarked on systems upgrades.
The conceptual framework guiding the systemisation and formalisation of CA is one which seeks to use CA to improve classroom instruction and enhance holistic learner achievement.
The primary school cycle of seven years has been sub-divided into two segments. CA in Primary One to Four will be used by the school and the data integrated into the District level EMIS and used for planning purposes, and also for monitoring learning and teaching.
From P5 to P7, apart from the school and district, CA data will be used by UNEB for reporting on end of cycle achievement. The package will be a percentage contribution (25%) to terminal assessment at PLE in four subjects.
In the practical subjects, a separate report on pupils’ achievement will be included in the results.
Prior to 2004, UNEB with classroom teachers prepared sample materials for use of Continuous Assessment programme.
The tests were for primary five and primary six in four subjects: English, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science and Health Education. The materials were printed and distributed to primary schools.
Continuous Assessment was to begin with second term of 2004 and official date for launching was to be May 2004 beginning with P5 and P6 in the four subjects. The original plan was to have CA contribute 25% to the PLE final written examinations for P7 candidates in 2005.
Observations were to be done daily, written formal tests were to be done once a month and a record kept so as to submit it, on data forms to UNEB at the end of term one in P7.
The monitoring of implementation was to be done by Ministry of Education and Sports agencies such as District Inspectorate, Teacher Education through coordinating centre tutors (CCT) and Directorate of Education Standards (DES).
UNEB was to do technical audit checks for quality control and assurance.
However, the programme was not launched because the education ministry directed that the primary school syllabus/ curriculum be reviewed. But the review has been finalised.
With the introduction of the Thematic Curriculum in lower primary (2007), the CA component has been in built. UNEB has been involved in the implementation of CA in the Thematic Curriculum, beginning with the training of Primary one teachers.
Moses Nsereko, a banker
The habit of moving a child from one school to another will sabotage the programme. The project will be successful, if Government enacts a law to back it up. Assessing them will also help the country to have quality graduates rather than having those who are examination oriented.
Philip Obwor, Engineer
Teachers will disorganise the project by giving pupils easy questions, to hoodwink us that our children are performing well. Teachers should work with Education officers at the district level in assessing our children. The good side is that the project will enable a teacher to identify the weakness and strengths a child has in some subjects.
Jimmy Tamale , a parent
As the Government is pushing for the assessment of our children, it should think of scrapping off Primary Leaving Examinations. Schools these days focus on how to cheat rather than teaching the concepts of the subjects. It is a good idea for our children’s performances to be assessed but the Government should also increase teachers’ salaries, so that they can have settled minds. Inspecting schools will also help this programme to yield results.
Joseph Eremara, market vendor
Headteachers and teachers should be trained on how to keep records, before the Government introduces this project. This programme can only yield good results in urban schools because of the available facilities they have. If the Government wants it to cut across the country, rural schools should also be fully facilitated with enough scholastic materials.
Eunice Ayiike , Business Woman
I have liked the idea because most children in Amuria district do not perform well in national examinations, yet they are bright. Judging the child’s capability on Primary Leaving Examinations results, in my view is not a good idea.One may fall sick towards examinations and fail to perform well. The essence of assessing them should be to improve on the quality of primary education.
Florence Nakitto, clothes vendor
The programme will reduce on examination malpractices especially in private schools, which basically business oriented entities. Is the Government going to pay teachers an extra amount of money for assessing our children or it will be parents to pay?
Compiled by Brian Mayanja
UNDER a new curriculum for primary schools in Uganda, sitting for examinations as the only basis of assessing pupil’s performance is coming to an end. Pupils’s will now be assessed on what they can ‘do’ than merely what they ‘know’ or ‘can remember.
The National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) wants continuous assessment to be the basis of checking the performance of pupils in Primary One to Three.
The education ministry’s Permanent secretary, Francis-Xavier Lubanga says that the new assessment in primary schools follows the new thematic transition, and upper primary curricula.
“The priority at this stage of learning and teaching is the development of skills, values, understanding and the ability to explore and discover more from the environment around them. This will be through developing critical thinking skills, and use of their senses, rather than learning information,†Lubanga says.
Many educational systems worldwide have adopted this approach in assessing learners’ achievement in many subject areas.
The handbook to institutionalise Continuous Assessment was launched last week by the education minister Namirembe Bitamazire, while commissioning an expanded and renovated Kabale-Bukinda Core Primary Teachers College.
However, educationists warn that the new policy raises more questions than answers. They argue that unless strict guidelines and monitoring mechanisms are put in place, the system will be prone to abuse.
Cyprian Ssebulwade, a teacher at Mugwanya Preparatory School Kabojja doubts whether the programme will yield good results.
“If we have always got incidents in some schools where teachers aid pupils to cheat in national exams, how will it be when they are the ones assessing their own pupils?†he asks.
Ssebulwade adds that the Government should put in place proper monitoring mechanisms to protect the scheme from abuse.
“We need to follow up learners keenly meaning that we have to spend so much time. We need to keep a pile of records and for a long time,†a teacher in one of the Government primary schools in Western Uganda says.
One of the important aspects of continuous assessment is the availability of standard valid and reliable tests which could be used in all schools.
There is a need to construct these tests following established procedures and practices. This means teachers and school heads must be prepared to operate the system.
“If the teacher is not well prepared to operate the system, it may lead to a tendency to ‘cook up’ scores in the name of continuous assessment,†another teacher remarks.
Gabriel Obbo, the head of department Pre -Primary at National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) acknowledges that implementing the programme has its challenges.
He adds that most teachers have not been empowered with enough skills of record management, to implement this project.
“We have to reshape teachers’ attitude towards this programme. The majority of them have poor management skills,†he says.
Obbo adds that the pilot scheme started in 50 districts, purposely to check how efficiently it can be rolled out.
He however says the ministry of education has started massive sensitisation about the project among teachers.
Why Continuous assessment is good for Uganda’s education
Agnes Nakabugo, the headmistress Namugongo Boarding Primary school says continuous assessment is a good yardstick to judge the pupils’ academic performance.
“They (pupils) study for seven years and wait to be examined in two days. In my view it is very little time. Assessing our pupils will boost our primary education system. Schools will start concentrating on teaching the syllabus rather than preparing pupils to pass exams with good marks,†she says.
Jane Kisembo, the director of studies Kitebi Primary School echoes a related view.
“Some of them (pupils) fall sick and they do not sit for exams, but when they have been performing well. Also continuous assessment will help us to identify pupils who have weakness in some subjects, right from primary one,†she explains.
Kisembo adds that her school started internal continuous assessment long time ago but putting much emphasis on pupils joining upper classes.
To make the results comparable across all the schools, teachers need to be equipped with skills of test construction and administration. That is why the education ministry has rolled out continuous assessment materials in all Primary Teachers’ Colleges.
For successful implementation of the continuous assessment approach, teachers need to give more tests, which means more marking.
The Education ministry insists that comprehensive measures have been worked out to ensure successful implementation of the system.
Education experts at the Curriculum development Centre say in the new assessment, there will be the use of a variety of assessment instruments, considering various components of learning; not only the thinking processes, but including behaviours, personality traits and manual skills.
The Director of NCDC, Connie Kateeba says continuous assessment will gradually be stretched to other classes.
Asked whether continuous assessment will soon replace Primary Leaving Examinations, Kateeba says they have not yet taken a decision to scrap national examinations.
“We will share the guidelines with the stakeholders. We will later have them rolled out to the whole country. But, once the guidelines are released, we will start with a pilot study and later have all schools on the same course,†she explains.
She says examinations will be maintained in the primary school’s education system, as part of the ontinuous assessment.
One of the expected advantages of continuous assessment lies in its being guidance oriented. Since it will involve data gathering, it will yield accurate data reaching the teachers early enough to modify instruction.
This could play a vital role in diagnosing and remediating areas of learners’ weaknesses if properly anchored in what occurs in classrooms.
Another advantage of continuous assessment is that it places teachers at the centre of all performance-assessment activities. It encourages teacher participation in the overall assessment or grading of his or her learners.
History of Continuous Assessment
The Government made a review of its education system in 1987 when it appointed an Education Policy Review Commission (EPRC).
The EPRC in its report (1989) noted among other short comings that the education system was examination ridden and there were very few attempts to assess practical skills.
On assessment and examination, the EPRC, recommended, the introduction of continuous assessment in primary and post - primary training institutions.
The Government, in its White Paper on Education, approved these recommendations in 1992.
Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) was to implement those decisions to reform examinations and assessment. In its action plan, UNEB introduced reform activities that saw the establishment of National Assessment of Progress in Education and Continuous Assessment (CA).
It also increased higher order thinking skills questions in all its examinations and embarked on systems upgrades.
The conceptual framework guiding the systemisation and formalisation of CA is one which seeks to use CA to improve classroom instruction and enhance holistic learner achievement.
The primary school cycle of seven years has been sub-divided into two segments. CA in Primary One to Four will be used by the school and the data integrated into the District level EMIS and used for planning purposes, and also for monitoring learning and teaching.
From P5 to P7, apart from the school and district, CA data will be used by UNEB for reporting on end of cycle achievement. The package will be a percentage contribution (25%) to terminal assessment at PLE in four subjects.
In the practical subjects, a separate report on pupils’ achievement will be included in the results.
Prior to 2004, UNEB with classroom teachers prepared sample materials for use of Continuous Assessment programme.
The tests were for primary five and primary six in four subjects: English, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science and Health Education. The materials were printed and distributed to primary schools.
Continuous Assessment was to begin with second term of 2004 and official date for launching was to be May 2004 beginning with P5 and P6 in the four subjects. The original plan was to have CA contribute 25% to the PLE final written examinations for P7 candidates in 2005.
Observations were to be done daily, written formal tests were to be done once a month and a record kept so as to submit it, on data forms to UNEB at the end of term one in P7.
The monitoring of implementation was to be done by Ministry of Education and Sports agencies such as District Inspectorate, Teacher Education through coordinating centre tutors (CCT) and Directorate of Education Standards (DES).
UNEB was to do technical audit checks for quality control and assurance.
However, the programme was not launched because the education ministry directed that the primary school syllabus/ curriculum be reviewed. But the review has been finalised.
With the introduction of the Thematic Curriculum in lower primary (2007), the CA component has been in built. UNEB has been involved in the implementation of CA in the Thematic Curriculum, beginning with the training of Primary one teachers.
Moses Nsereko, a banker
The habit of moving a child from one school to another will sabotage the programme. The project will be successful, if Government enacts a law to back it up. Assessing them will also help the country to have quality graduates rather than having those who are examination oriented.
Philip Obwor, Engineer
Teachers will disorganise the project by giving pupils easy questions, to hoodwink us that our children are performing well. Teachers should work with Education officers at the district level in assessing our children. The good side is that the project will enable a teacher to identify the weakness and strengths a child has in some subjects.
Jimmy Tamale , a parent
As the Government is pushing for the assessment of our children, it should think of scrapping off Primary Leaving Examinations. Schools these days focus on how to cheat rather than teaching the concepts of the subjects. It is a good idea for our children’s performances to be assessed but the Government should also increase teachers’ salaries, so that they can have settled minds. Inspecting schools will also help this programme to yield results.
Joseph Eremara, market vendor
Headteachers and teachers should be trained on how to keep records, before the Government introduces this project. This programme can only yield good results in urban schools because of the available facilities they have. If the Government wants it to cut across the country, rural schools should also be fully facilitated with enough scholastic materials.
Eunice Ayiike , Business Woman
I have liked the idea because most children in Amuria district do not perform well in national examinations, yet they are bright. Judging the child’s capability on Primary Leaving Examinations results, in my view is not a good idea.One may fall sick towards examinations and fail to perform well. The essence of assessing them should be to improve on the quality of primary education.
Florence Nakitto, clothes vendor
The programme will reduce on examination malpractices especially in private schools, which basically business oriented entities. Is the Government going to pay teachers an extra amount of money for assessing our children or it will be parents to pay?
Compiled by Brian Mayanja