While a number of schools are harvesting cash from parents, we at Mbale High School are focusing on harvesting results with the majority of our learners excelling in first class and second divisions and the PTA association has also ensured that teachers are reasonably motivated to spur improved performance.
The seriousness of Parents and Teachers Associations is seen in the seriousness they attach to the annual General meetings whenever they have been invited in the Schools to listen to how the administrators manage the school and the children there too, there is always 90 %attendance.
The parents are very passionate about the needs of the learners in schools and are willing to sacrifice anything to meet the proposals from the administrators which proposals are calculated to support learning in schools.
The PTA is a voluntary association of parents and teachers who come together in order to support the learning environment in schools. Their roles in schools are multifaceted.
There is no school devoid of PTA association in Uganda whether private or public. The PTA associations bring both parents and teachers together in the management of the school. As parents, they would wish to be the first persons to contribute towards the needs of their children before anyone else.
As parents are critical stakeholders in the running of the schools, they formulate and approve policies in the school for example proposal for any fees is usually brought up during PTA meetings, since it is the parents’ to contribute towards any proposed increments we live them to suggest themselves and once any increments in the school is well explained, parents are quick to embrace it without any aorta of hesitation.
The PTA association have their own constitution which dictates how it can participate in school affairs but, such PTA policies should not contradict other enabling statutes like the Education Act and others higher than the PTA ones.
The parents and teachers association monitor how the contributions they make towards the welfare of their children are used, through the PTA association increments on teachers’ welfare have been proposed.
Some schools for example Mbale High School have procured over 50 modern computers to help in the learning of ICt in the school because of the contributions from the parents.
Once the PTA associations are well-supported nobody can overtake them in meeting the needs of learners, many PTA associations are involved in counselling learners in different schools across Uganda to desist from negative vices that militate against learning in schools.
These associations are voluntary associations but have overtaken Boards of Governors in some schools, whereas sometimes in various schools Boards have been accused of corruption, PTA as a volunteer association has put itself at the forefront of fighting graft in various schools across Uganda.
The association exists to guide both administrators and learners since they are in between learners and administrators. And as neutral parties and contributors to school finances, they are listened to by both learners and teachers.
The Headteachers and headmistresses of whatever grade execute policies put in place by the Parents and teachers associations,(PTA)it is even wrong to harass the Headteachers for any policy breach, it is we the PTA associations who should be held liable but not the Headteachers, since we can accuse Headmasters for being insolent to us parents. Any fees payments and charges are demanded by us parents who feel our children need this and that.
As owners of the learners in these various schools, we are determined to ensure that we mobilize resources to provide our learners, with tools that promote learning. Many associations have also resisted some PTA Headteachers who charge exorbitant fees especially where the schools are Government aided.
Mbale High School charges the lowest figure in the whole country as per the Ministry of Education records, which we parents ourselves proposed to be less than 70,000. Our focus at PTA Mbale High School is learning but not cash as it is elsewhere in some schools. with the new leadership of Mr. Wambalo Stephen who is about 3 years old now, the school is making nearby giants shaken.
Any future increments in fees will be tagged on performance once our fellow parents see excellent results they will contribute, the school now has first and second scores only in National exams, and the learners and teachers have impressed us as parents.
While many schools are focusing on cash collection for us Mbale High School is focusing on result harvest. In the face of biting economic straits, PTA associations should side with parents and resist Headteachers who charge over 1,000,000 in government-aided schools
The writer is the spokesperson of Inzu Yamasaba and an executive of Mbale High School PTA.
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