SCHOOLS: Continuous assessment will be a challenge for external mocks

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Schools have said that the continuous assessment system under the new abridged curriculum is not the best alternative for the external mocks banned by the Ministry of Education.

The Ministry last year banned external mock examinations prior to their Uganda National Examination Board – UNEB finals. According to the ministry, schools normally concentrate on giving tests and exams to the candidates at the expense of content delivery.

The Ministry said that with the introduction of the abridged curriculum, schools should concentrate on teaching and assessing the learner’s competencies at the end of every topic to identify the learning gaps.

Despite the ban, some schools insist that external mocks cannot be replaced with continuous assessment.  They argue that the external mocks help to ease the tension of learners which is encountered during the UNEB finals.

Juma Mwamula, the General Secretary of the Uganda Private Teacher’s Union says that as a Union they are ready to abide by the directive from the ministry however, this does not mean that they do not value the importance of external mock examinations.

According to Mwamula, the pressure that comes with sitting final exams can easily lead to failure or reduction in the concentration capacity of the learners.

Although schools are abiding by the Ministry’s guidelines, the bodies that set the external mocks for partner schools are already approaching schools.

Ibrahim Ssembatya, the acting head teacher of Kololo High School, says that they have always valued the importance of external mocks however, due to the directive they will concentrate on the internal exams for their candidate’s classes.

He explains that exposure to externally set and marked exams has always been a good step for the preparation of learners for the UNEB finals.

The Minister of State for Primary Education Dr. Joyce Moriku Kaduccu, says that the ministry is revising its decision on external mocks knowing its importance to both the schools and learners.

According to Dr. Kaduccu schools are encouraged to continue with internal mocks in the meantime as the ministry sets itself to give guidance on the matter very soon.

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