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118,500 senior five students miss govt schools
Secondary school head teachers during the Senior Five selection exercise at UMA Show Grounds in Kampala on February 23, 2023. PHOTO/FRANK BAGUMA
What you need to know:
- According to the selection procedure, schools notify Uneb how many students they can accommodate and Uneb automatically selects them from the system.
The Ministry of Education yesterday advised parents of 118,500 students, who passed the 2022 Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) examinations but were not selected, to look for slots in private schools and tertiary institutions.
This is after the Ministry announced that government schools could only accommodate 221,400 students.
Speaking during the Senior Five selection at Lugogo UMA Show Grounds in Kampala, the chairperson of the placement selection committee, Ms Jane Egua, said 329,939 students passed Senior Four exams and qualified to join Senior Five.
However, according to Ms Egua, the Uganda National Examination Board (Uneb) has only been able to place 221,400 students in government schools.
She said the balance of 118,500 are slated to join private schools and tertiary institutions.
According to the selection procedure, schools notify Uneb how many students they can accommodate and Uneb automatically selects them from the system.
For instance, if a school has the capacity to accommodate 500 students and more than 1,000 applied to the school as the first choice, Uneb identifies the best 500 students from the 1,000.
Ms Egua warned schools to take on all candidates who have been placed in their schools and desist from selling the slots (for selected students) to parents with money.
Some schools have been threatening to give away slots of placed students if the parents fail to clear all school fees in time, something that has been discouraged by the Ministry of Education.
The director of Basic and Secondary Education, Mr Ismail Mulindwa, yesterday warned school heads who are dodging parents who want their children placed in various schools.
Mr Mulindwa said some heads have deserted their schools while others have switched off their phones over fear of being approached by parents who need placements.
“If you cannot manage pressure, you make us think you are not fit for the job. I advise you to explain to parents why you cannot place their children at your school as opposed to tossing them around,” Mr Mulindwa said.
Compiled by Damalie Mukhaye, Frank Baguma, Akullu Felly Lydia, Dorothy Nagitta, Karim Muyobo, Esther Bridget Nakalya, Shabibah Nakirigya & Peter Sserugo.
