Educators discuss quality of education

POVERTY, indiscipline, lack of enough teaching materials and ‘outdated’ curricula are affecting quality of education in primary and secondary schools, school heads and directors have said.

Sunday, March 24, 2013
Students read in a school library. The New Times/ Jean P. Bucyensenge.

POVERTY, indiscipline, lack of enough teaching materials and ‘outdated’ curricula are affecting quality of education in primary and secondary schools, school heads and directors have said.The educators were speaking, last week, during a one-day consultative meeting which brought together school head teachers and sectors and education officers from Huye, Nyaruguru, Nyamagabe and Gisagara districts together with officials from the Rwanda Education Board (Reb) and the Education ministry.Theodore Kimenyi, the deputy head teacher of Petit Seminaire Baptiste de Butare, said insufficiency affects students generally. "Some schools still lack basic materials such as books and maps,” he said. "Some books are also not adapted to the local context, which affects how students grasp lessons.”They faulted parents for failing to monitor their children, saying it has led to cases of misconduct. "Parents must work together with educators to ensure that students get the best education and that they are followed, be it at home or at school,” Marie Goreth Mukarubayiza, the director of ENDP Karubanda, said.However, Dr John Rutayisire, the Reb director-general, said efforts are being made to improve education.He said schools are regularly supplied with materials and noted that the process is ongoing.