Victoria Ssekitoleko calls for school syllabus that is relevant to locals

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  Former Agriculture Minister Victoria Ssekitoleko has called for a localized approach to the school syllabus, emphasizing the need to tailor education content to specific regions of the country.

Ssekitoleko argues that a uniform nationalized curriculum has failed to address the diverse backgrounds of students, rendering it ineffective in making education relevant to the child, community, and country. //Cue in: “Look at it…

Ssekitoleko, now in retirement, shared her insights before the Amanya-Mushega-led education policy review commission on Wednesday drawing from her extensive leadership experience and roles as a diplomat and consultant in diverse countries.

Speaking with intense emotion, almost to the point of tears and in a weathered voice, she passionately advocated for a paradigm shift in education. Her proposal urged the customization of the curriculum to harmonize with the unique economic, cultural, and transitional characteristics of each region.

She highlighted the importance of incorporating region-specific elements into basic education, such as adapting the alphabet to reflect the local context. For instance, in areas with a tradition of cattle rearing, Ssekitoleko suggests teaching children an alphabet where “C” represents “Calf” instead of “Car,” making the learning experience more relatable for students from such backgrounds.

Commenting on her recommendation, Dr. Kedrace Turyagyenda, a member of the commission, highlighted that rather than creating a one-size-fits-all national curriculum, the National Curriculum Development Centre should focus on designing a framework.

Dr Turyagyenda who is also the former director of education standards at the education ministry says that the framework would allow for the customization of education content in a way that suits the specific needs and preferences of different regions.  //Cue in; “We should stop…

A similar concept has already been proposed by the National Planning Authority. In their October 2022 paper, the government’s think tank advocated for a comprehensive overhaul of the curriculum to address the unique needs of people in specific geographic areas.

“Reform the primary curriculum to allow for diversity such that besides the core national curriculum, there is a curriculum that is domesticated and aligned to the local economy within the region. This is aimed at increasing relevance of primary and secondary education systems to the local challenges and opportunities,” the paper reads in part.

Countries with better education systems often have a national curriculum that sets educational standards nationwide. However, variations or adaptations may exist at the regional or local levels within these countries. This allows for the incorporation of regional perspectives, languages, and cultural elements into the broader national curriculum, making it more relevant to specific areas. Some countries also grant autonomy to regions or states in shaping certain aspects of their education policies and curricula.

For instance, in India, the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) plays a pivotal role in developing policies and programs and creating a National Curriculum Framework. However, each state has its equivalent organization, known as the State Council for Educational Research and Training (SCERT). SCERTs propose educational strategies, curricula, pedagogical schemes, and evaluation methodologies to the states’ education departments. While generally following NCERT guidelines, states have significant freedom in implementing their education systems.

Meanwhile, Ssekitoleko also emphasized the necessity of applying a similar approach to the technical education system, advocating for a region-specific focus. She proposed that learners in particular regions should be educated to contribute meaningfully within their local value chains.

She underscored the importance of prioritizing skills development and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) for Uganda to transform its narrative. Ssekitoleko believed that the cultivation of skills should commence at home. Drawing on societal practices, she cited the example of communities in Busoga that would traditionally gift a goat to a newborn boy.

In her view, embedding this cultural aspect into the curriculum could yield remarkable outcomes. Learners could not only sustain themselves through the basic elements of goat rearing but also explore sophisticated elements of engineering related to goat farming and other associated skills along the value chain.

Ssekitoleko drew parallels with successful nations like China, highlighting that embracing and adapting education to local culture and practices had contributed to their greatness. She cautioned against merely adopting a learning model designed for the West, urging Uganda to forge its own path of education that aligns with its unique context and needs.

“The basic subjects for our children should be mathematics, which they will need in every aspect of life, languages, and then skills, and ICT; these are the core areas that we should focus on,” she noted. Her stance aligns with the sentiments expressed by many others who have shared recommendations with the commission, advocating for the early introduction of skills to learners, starting as early as primary school.

This argument raises a crucial question about what learners can do after completing primary, secondary, and higher education. Currently, finding a straightforward answer to this question is challenging. This concern is not new and echoes a similar query posed by the Kajubi Commission, which resulted in the 1992 Government White Paper.

The Kajubi Commission sought to address this by introducing skilling at the primary level, leading to the design of a curriculum that reflected this vision. However, awareness about these specific aspects of the primary curriculum remains limited among the general public.

Recommendation on Creative Arts and Gifted Children 

The former minister also recommended integrating the creative arts sector and industry into the education system, emphasizing that its current peripheral status needs to change. In her perspective, this industry holds substantial economic value, amounting to billions.

She added that creativity and innovation have the potential to independently drive economic transformation, but these aspects should be systematically incorporated into the education system, starting from the early years of a learner’s development. This is another facet that numerous individuals have been urging the commission to thoroughly scrutinize, considering the education sector’s neglect of creative arts and physical education.

Ssekitoleko highlights that, due to a near ban on such activities in primary schools under the guise of prioritizing academics, a nation rich in creative talent lacks specialized institutions dedicated to this essential aspect.

She also emphasized the need to develop a system that enables teachers and parents to identify highly gifted students and provide them with special attention. In her view, these individuals have the potential to significantly impact the country, as they have done in other nations.

However, she expressed concern that in Uganda, many of these talented individuals face frustration within the system, leading to their disappearance. Teachers should be equipped to recognize gifted learners as part of a strategy to identify highly intelligent children. She argued that gifted children should not be treated within the confines of the normal education system.

Currently, in Uganda, several policies pose challenges to this approach. For instance, the Uganda National Examinations Board- UNEB requires candidates to complete a minimum of four years from S.1 to S.4 before being eligible for registration. This policy hinders learners who could cover these four years in just two, resulting in their inability to advance within the current system.

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