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The Department of Education & Sports
The Education department of Amuria District envisions an Educated, Literate, skilled, healthy and self-sustaining people of Amuria District.
Mission
To facilitate access to early childhood development, early quality Education to all school going children in the District in a child friendly learning Environment and Facilitate talent development of youth in and out of school. In our interview with the Inspector Of Schools, the following were highlighted. The Primary Section has a total of 108 Government institutions under Universal Primary Education. 10 Community Schools and 6 others under the private section.
At Secondary Level: 8 Government aided Schools exist. 2 Private and 3 others are Community founded.
Tertiary Level: 1 Private Technical School.
Major Achievements
The Education Department officers have ensured increased enrollment of pupils from 57,000 to 278,000 children in Schools as at 2012.Each year, a mass sensitization is done to keep children in schools.
Improvement in Primary Leaving Examination Performance: Example is 17 Div. 1,106 Div 1s in 2011 from 5, 23, and 52 in the previous years.
The Pupil to classroom Ratio has improved slightly. 16-20 classroom blocks are being constructed each financial year. Parents have also been sensitized on their role in Education of their children.
Partner’s collaboration has intensified to support the Education Department much more than ever before. For example NUSAF (Northern Uganda Social Action Fund) and PRDP (Peace and Disaster Recovery Plan) initiatives have helped improve the Education department through classroom, pit latrine and other school amenities construction.
The Education Ordinance has been formulated in which communities have been enforced to send children to school and ensure they stay at school. This was an initiative by the Amuria District Council.
Challenges
Understaffing is a major challenge evidenced by the pupil to teacher ratio which is still poor. It’s been commonly observed in Amuria Schools that the teacher to pupil and student ratio doesn’t permit the learner to comprehend what the teacher is offering. As a result, such learners can’t favorably compete with their counterparts in the National Assessment Examinations provided by the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB). This in the end has left many of them unable to benefit from Universal Education Programs provided by the Government.
Poor sitting facilities are yet another serious problem. The increasing population has outgrown the available space and as a result has led to the furniture problem. Most pupils and students lack furniture and our filed work activities indicated that many of the pupils of lower classes (primary One to Three or Four) sit on the floor and also have their lessons conducted on the floor.
Little pay to the teachers. The teachers also complained of little pay which really affects service delivery. The need to revise teacher’s remuneration was suggested as a solution to this problem.
Little support from parents towards their children. It’s true to note that even up-to-date some parents don’t value Education that much to an extent that during the harvesting period children don’t go to school.
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