Private schools decry new ranking
HEADS of private secondary schools have criticised the on-going exercise to rank them into “star†categories. “It is untimely. Schools were caught unawares,†Stephen Ssendagire, the proprietor of Bright Future Vocational S.S Kawempe, said.
By Aidah Nanyonjo
HEADS of private secondary schools have criticised the on-going exercise to rank them into “star†categories. “It is untimely. Schools were caught unawares,†Stephen Ssendagire, the proprietor of Bright Future Vocational S.S Kawempe, said.
“Some schools were started using bank loans and are still servicing the loans,†he added. This was during a recent public dialogue organised by Human Rights awareness and promotion forum at Bativa Hotel in Kampala.
Ssendagire also noted that some private schools which were helping the government to accommodate the Universal Secondary Education students (USE) were overwhelmed.
“Our schools had enough furniture and stationery for the students before the coming of USE. Today you find four or five students occupying one desk. With that we cannot meet the standards the ministry wants,†Ssendagire said.
The headteacher of Kinaawa High school Kawempe, Musa Kayira, also said it was not fair for the government to use the same yardstick to evaluate both the private and the government schools.
“Some schools are entirely commercial while others are community owned. How come you are going to evaluate us on the same wave length?†he asked.
The education ministry recently contracted Afroeducare, a private consultancy, to grade schools in categories of five star to one star. The school that scores highest will be a five-star school, while the one with the lowest standard will be a one-star school.
The indicators are student welfare, health and safety, credentials of the proprietor and staff, the accommodation and facilities of the school and co-curricular programmes.
Reacting to the concerns, Ismael Mulindwa, the ministry’s principal education officer said the move would strengthen the quality of schools.
He regretted that some private schools were involved in deceptive advertising, claiming facilities and services they did not have.
“We want parents and students to get the true picture,†he said
HEADS of private secondary schools have criticised the on-going exercise to rank them into “star†categories. “It is untimely. Schools were caught unawares,†Stephen Ssendagire, the proprietor of Bright Future Vocational S.S Kawempe, said.
“Some schools were started using bank loans and are still servicing the loans,†he added. This was during a recent public dialogue organised by Human Rights awareness and promotion forum at Bativa Hotel in Kampala.
Ssendagire also noted that some private schools which were helping the government to accommodate the Universal Secondary Education students (USE) were overwhelmed.
“Our schools had enough furniture and stationery for the students before the coming of USE. Today you find four or five students occupying one desk. With that we cannot meet the standards the ministry wants,†Ssendagire said.
The headteacher of Kinaawa High school Kawempe, Musa Kayira, also said it was not fair for the government to use the same yardstick to evaluate both the private and the government schools.
“Some schools are entirely commercial while others are community owned. How come you are going to evaluate us on the same wave length?†he asked.
The education ministry recently contracted Afroeducare, a private consultancy, to grade schools in categories of five star to one star. The school that scores highest will be a five-star school, while the one with the lowest standard will be a one-star school.
The indicators are student welfare, health and safety, credentials of the proprietor and staff, the accommodation and facilities of the school and co-curricular programmes.
Reacting to the concerns, Ismael Mulindwa, the ministry’s principal education officer said the move would strengthen the quality of schools.
He regretted that some private schools were involved in deceptive advertising, claiming facilities and services they did not have.
“We want parents and students to get the true picture,†he said