Schools across the country are 94.7 percent ready for the new advanced level learning system that changes subject combinations and adds compulsory courses, The New Times has learned.

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The system was introduced by the Ministry of Education on June 20. Under the reforms, students will now follow one of three pathways: Mathematics and Science, Languages, or Arts and Humanities. These replace the old subject combinations such as Mathematics-Chemistry-Biology (MCB), History-Geography-Literature (HGL), and Literature in English-French-Kinyarwanda (LFK).

The Arts and Humanities pathway will cover fields such as education, law, psychology, and philosophy. The Languages pathway will focus on careers in communication, diplomacy, translation, and anthropology, according to the Rwanda Basic Education Board (REB).

Although the reforms are set to take effect on September 8 when schools reopen, the changes have created staffing gaps. Some schools, for instance, lacked philosophy teachers, while others had staff whose skills are no longer required under the new system, necessitating their transfer to where they are most needed.

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Information obtained from REB indicates that teacher transfers are nearing completion.

"We have already finalised the internal transfers and expect to complete the external transfers by the end of this week,” a REB official told The New Times.

"Next week, we will begin activities related to teacher placement using the waitlist, followed immediately by their assignment to schools. Overall, teacher deployment readiness currently stands at 94.77 per cent.”

REB added that training sessions for deans of studies (DOS) have been fully completed with a 100 per cent attendance rate. All DOS prepared timetables using the newly provided software. Data on teacher placement and management were also accurately collected from schools, facilitating the planning of required staffing levels.