Govt injects Shs2b in science kits for disadvantaged schools

The Ministry of Education and Sports, through the Basic Education Department, has procured science kits worth Shs 2.4 billion to aid practical lessons in selected disadvantaged  Primary Schools in rural Uganda.

The kits comprise illustrative crafts and materials aligned with the national curriculum and are designed to make science learning more practical and engaging for learners in upper primary.
Mr Abbey Musoke, a Senior Education Officer, Basic Education in the Ministry of Education and Sports told this publication that availing schools with science kits was critical to the realisation of the government's agenda of promoting the teaching of sciences as a key driver for social and economic transformation.

According to Mr Musoke, the new kits will help schools cover all science topics using a practical approach to teaching and learning and build a strong foundation for science education as they prepare pupils for secondary school.

The kits consist of illustrative materials such as different body organs, including the eyes, kidneys, digestive systems, respiratory systems, reproductive systems, and human skeletons, among other instructional materials.
Mr Musoke explained that they selected primary schools in 17 local governments, 16 of which were allocated 20 science kits each, while Nabilatuk District received 14 kits.
Targeted districts include: Abim, Kapelebyong, Pakwach, Kwanja, Kiryandongo, Buliisa, Kabanda, Kyotera, Namisindwa, Kazo, Serere, Namayingo, Kamuli and Tororo.
The leadership is each district is expected to distribute 15 kits in the best-performing primary schools and five kits in the least-performing schools.

Mr Stuart Nabaasa, Science and Innovations Manager at River Flow International, said the organisation collaborated with the government to provide science kits for learners in Primary Schools with a focus on upper primary.

• According to him, each metallic cabin contains a variety of science instructional materials and costs about Shs 7.2 million each.

“Each cabin contains items that teachers can't easily find around school but make learning interesting, fun, and easy to learn, such as human eyes. It is like a movable laboratory. Teachers have been drawing these organs on the chalkboard and learners have been having a hard time relating them to real organs," Mr Nabaasa says.

Abim District Inspector of Schools, Mr Horsey Koryang, commended the government for distributing kits in selected schools and suggested that teaching of practical science lessons should be initiated in all primary schools to make learning more practical, interesting and minimise fear learners have towards science subjects.

Mr  Stephen Olinga, Kapelebyong District Education Officer who confirmed that about 41 primary schools in the district had received science kits from the Ministry, said that high pupil-to-teacher ratio, coupled with inadequate material for practical lessons, remains a setback to effective practical teaching and learning.

“We received half of the required science kits due to a small resource envelope.  Teaching of practical lessons in the district would be more effective if all schools received these kits so that children have enough time to interact with materials and teachers can provide children with enough time to practice," Mr Olinga suggested.