Kampala, Uganda: Several of Kampala’s most established and high-profile primary schools failed to register a single aggregate 4-in-4 in the 2025 Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) released on Friday, despite posting strong overall results marked by high numbers of first and second grades.
An internal performance summary seen by DailyExpress shows that while these schools maintained impressive pass rates and ensured 100 per cent transition to secondary education, none attained the highly coveted aggregate 4, often regarded as the gold standard of academic excellence at Uganda’s PLE level.
According to the summary, Kampala Parents, one of the leading schools in the capital, recorded 96 candidates in first grade and 89 in second grade, with all candidates qualifying for secondary school, but still missed out on producing a top aggregate (4 in 4). The trend, administrators noted, was consistent across other major Kampala schools they routinely compete with.
“We performed well overall, but like other big schools in Kampala, we did not get aggregate 4,” the internal memo noted.
Kampala Schools that missed aggregate 4 in 2025 PLE
Below is the list of prominent Kampala schools that did not register any 4-in-4 aggregate in the 2025 PLE results:
- Kabojja Junior School – 0
- City Parents School – 0
- Greenhill Academy, Kibuli – 0
- Greenhill Academy, Buwate – 0
- Hormisdalen Primary School, Kalerwe – 0
- Hormisdalen Primary School, Kyebando – 0
- Sir Apollo Kaggwa Primary School, Old Kampala – 0
- Kampala Academy – 0
- Kampala Parents’ School – 0
- Kampala Standard Nursery & Primary School Kyanja – 0
Education experts say the absence of aggregate 4 scores should not be interpreted as underperformance, but rather as evidence of shrinking margins at the very top of PLE grading.
“Achieving aggregate 4 now requires near-perfect scores across all subjects,” said an education analyst familiar with national examination trends and the new competency-based education (CBE) curriculum. “Many schools still produce large numbers of first grades, but the difference between aggregate 5 and 4 is extremely thin.”
Data from recent PLE cycles indicate that while overall pass rates and first-grade numbers remain high, the number of candidates achieving aggregate 4 nationally has steadily declined.
The development is expected to spark debate among parents and education stakeholders in Kampala, where aggregate 4 has traditionally been used as a marker of elite academic status.
However, school administrators argue that emphasis is increasingly shifting toward consistency, learner wellbeing, and readiness for secondary education, rather than fixation on a single aggregate score.
As the 2025 PLE cycle settles, the results point to a changing landscape in Kampala’s elite primary education sector, one where strong performance is widespread, but absolute perfection is becoming increasingly rare.
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