Over 40 teachers sit competence exams over poor PLE results

Nakaseke, (UG): At least 40 teachers of P.7 classes from various primary schools in Nakaseke District have been subjected to competence assessment exams after their respective schools performed below average in the 2023 PLE results.

The 40 teachers who were initially tricked to come and attend a meeting with the district officials at Nakaseke Technical Institute today, Wednesday, March 13, 2024 weee surprised when they were on arrival, given special PLE past papers depending on the subject, they teach in their respective schools.

The exam was administered by the Nakaseke District Chairperson, Mr Ignatius Kiwanuka Koomu responding to complaints raised by local government over the alarming failure rate in some of the schools in the area.

“This is not a punishment to the affected teachers. Through this exam, we shall be able to get to the root of the problem. We shall certainly get to the root cause of the failures in our schools,” Mr Koomu said.

Over the last six years, Koomu has consistently warned teachers to enhance academic performance or face consequences.

“You Can’t Teach What You Dont Know”. Komu says he is after finding solutions to the poor performance of learners in the district.

This publication understands that out of the 4813 candidates that sat for 2023 PLE in Nakaseke District, 604 candidates passed in Division 1, (12.9%), 2,706 in Division II (57.9%) and 728 passed in Division III.

The number of candidates that passed in Division IV was 361, representing 2.9 per cent while 276 candidates completely failed. The number of candidates that didn’t sit for the exam was 138.

The result according to the district leadership was not good in comparison to the previous year yet the district had already passed a resolution to make the respective head teachers and classroom teachers in schools that perform poorly to account for the poor results.

It had also been decided that the affected school head could be demoted to the position of deputy with an option of demotion to a primary six class teacher.

But a section of educationalists claim that the failures could be a matter that calls for thorough investigation since some of the schools could be located in hard-to-reach areas where the pupils report to school late while many others are always absent.

Mr Edmond Ssenseko, a retired District Education Officer based in Wakiso District says that the factors that lead to the children’s failure are many and vary from region to region including areas that are disadvantaged by poor infrastructure among other factors.

“Government should take interest in the poor performance. We should not rush to conclusions,” he said.

It is reported that those who fail to achieve the required 60% pass mark in the competence exams will be required to undergo a refresher course or demoted to lower classes depending on their performance.