The High Council for Education (HEC), has decried lack of pedagogical skills by university lecturers, saying it affects their capacity to impart knowledge to students. This was observed during a two-day meeting of HEC officials and vice rectors in charge of studies at various institutions of higher learning in the country, in Rwamagana yesterday. According to HEC officials, one of the problems affecting quality of education in universities is employing lecturers that never had teaching training. Addressing the scholars, Dr Innocent Sebasaza Mugisha, the Executive Secretary at HEC, said only 18 per cent of the lecturers had pedagogical skills. Mugisha said the primary goal of the Rwandan education system was to produce graduates who are employable and can create their own jobs. He urged heads of learning institutions to be vigilant, adding that a lecturer should produce a teaching certificate before being employed. “It is absurd that only 18 per cent of university lecturers in our universities have teaching skills. One may have a PhD but they cannot help learners without teaching skills,” Mugusha said. Dr Cyprien Niyomugabo, from the University of Rwanda, said it was high time every lecturer acquired teaching skills. “If lecturers continue teaching without pedagogical skills, there will always be a gap in terms of quality,” he said. “It’s not only about the content you give…you must package it in a manner that is tailored to the social, economic and political realities. This can only be done by a trained teacher,” he said.
