Teamwork made Nebbi primary school a star

* The school was the only one that produced top PLE candidates By Gilbert Awekofua in Nebbi NEBBI district got only 60 first grades in the last Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE). But 19 of these pupils came from Nebbi Primary School. This forms about 30% of the entire number in the district. Many people in the district have been wondering how Nebbi Primary School made it, while majority of the 186 primary schools in the district could not get even a single first grade. To understand why majority of rural schools fail, one has to listen to the headteacher of Nebbi Primary School Mr Fabiano Okwonga. "There are many things. But the most important thing is the vision and dedication of a head teacher. However, without a collective planning and consistent team work from dedicated teachers and parents, the head teacher cannot succeed in any thing," Okwonga emphasises. Okwonga is talking about what he started implementing in 1997 when he came back from grade 5 training at Muni National Teachers College in Arua. "The first thing I did when I came back was to hold a serious meeting with my fellow teachers. I sold my ideas to them. Many of us head teachers do not utilise our teachers, especially while planning. I told them about the need for prep, time management, the need for monthly printed examinations, parents involvement, extra classes for mathematics and English etc"says Okwonga. Following the meeting with teachers, Okwonga called a separate meeting with parents. He told parents his vision of transforming Nebbi into a better school. He later had a separate meeting with parents of primary seven pupils who have formed their own association. He told them about the goal he set with his teachers. Parents were excited. Many of them are very poor but willingly accepted to pay sh5000 extra per term. That was in 1997. Today it is revised to sh15,000 per term. Others who find it too high are allowed to pay in several installments. The primary seven pupils parents association monitor the extra fund members pay for extra teaching. They meet regularly with teachers. The association is also capable of successfully sweet talking a less serious parent. Through the association, parents have been able to tame irate pupils. From January 1997, things have changed. Today, by 7:30 am all primary six and seven pupils are in class. They are taught for at least one hour before normal lessons start at 8:30 am. This is not the case in majority of schools in the district where lessons start at 9:00 a.m. The pupils remain in class from 5:00 - 6:00 pm. Absenteism which is the order of the day in other schools is an unimaginable offence in Nebbi PS. Many pupils who could not cope up with the new approach when Okwonga started implementing his vision transferred to other schools were the administration and programme is laxed. At Nebbi PS, the pupils sit for monthly printed exams unlike pupils in other schools who meet printed examination questions for the first time during PLE. Out of 22 teachers, only two are unqualified. But these are already undergoing in-service training. "These teachers are highly motivated. I make sure that simple things like tea is always here. I try my level best to provide other thing that would take them out during school time. So they concentrate and actually compete among themselves," Okwonga says. The school has been sharing internal examination papers with friendly schools in Kampala, Iganga, Mpigi Mukono and Jinja. Using part of the sh780,000 UPE monthly grant, Okwonga has bought a number of revision papers for his pupils. Unlike other schools, pupils in Nebbi PS study on Saturdays. During holidays, the pupils rest for only one week. Okwonga says all this is done to ensure that they complete the whole syllabus within the first and second terms. Third term is left entirely for revision. During this final term, pupils revise in groups. They brainstorm on their own and only go to teachers when all of them fail to find solutions to a question. This is non-existent in many rural schools. Records show that in 1996, Nebbi PS got only six first grades. The number doubled to 12 in 1997. It went to 14 in 1998 and 19 in 1999. Okwonga's dream is to see his school walking tall and proud beside top Kampala schools. Ÿou can see the trend. My dream is that we should start competing with Kampala schools in the near future"Okwonga concludes. Ends.