Two weeks after the Uganda National Examinations Board (Uneb) released the PLE results, several parents are still scouring the lists to find out how some schools performed and which ones excelled beyond the obvious statistics. MOSES TALEMWA has been looking at this year's performance, in comparison to last year's.
Last week, we set out to look at the division one performance of some of the best schools in each district in the country. When one looks strictly at Kampala and Wakiso, there is a tendency to believe that there was a slight dip in the number of children passing in division one.
However, when one looks at the general picture across the country, they find that the number of pupils passing in division one has increased from 51,427 in 2015 to 63,400 in the latest results. So, where are the increments?
To find these increments, one has to go upcountry. Apparently, parents have taken a cue from our 2015 analysis and found some good upcountry schools, where one can get the same level of learning at a lower cost.
Thus, schools like Flobbeto nursery and primary school in Hoima, which is affiliated to Wakiso's Hillside nursery and primary Naalya, was able to see all its P7 class pass in division one at the first seating.
The situation was the same in various privately-founded institutions, in mostly urban areas in Hoima, Kabarole (Fort Portal), Kasese, Gulu, Bushenyi, Mukono, Buikwe, Rukungiri, Kanungu, Mbarara and Kabale, where little-known schools are putting up a massive challenge to the known greats.
Even in Abim (deep in Karamoja) Morulem Girls’ P7 school continues to shine the light there. Its major competition is Morulem Boys’ P7 school. However, it is in Iganga where one finds a revealing distinction.
The best schools are to be found in one place, called the Church Missionary Society village, just before you head into Iganga town, on the way from Kampala.
This area is blessed with Bishop Willis PTC, which provides the schools there with several student teachers. This support network is part of the reason the schools are in direct healthy competition with each other.
There is a similar network among Mbarara’s best primary schools, thanks to Bishop Stuart University’s education faculty (formerly National Teachers’ College Kakoba).
Private business interests are also playing a role in how these schools are evolving and competing on a national level. In many upcountry areas, senior civil servants and prominent businesspeople are working with educationists to develop private schools in the rural areas, on a par with their Kampala and Wakiso counterparts.
Thus prominent businesspeople in Kumi set up Joy Christian School PS in collaboration with some Korean investors. Some disagreements there saw the Koreans and some teachers leave to start Joykim Christian PS. The two schools have maintained a health rivalry in national exams.
Similar collaborations have sprouted in Gulu (with the establishment of El Shaddai), Rukungiri (Nyakibale Boarding, Kinyasano Boarding, Rukungiri Modern and Rukungiri Universal). Other setups have grown in Tororo (Tororo Parents and Victory Boarder) and many others.
And the indications are that the competition is only heating up. Disgruntled or retiring teachers are happy to set schools in their home areas, where they can make the kind of contribution they only once dreamed of.
mtalemwa@observer.ug