adminTHE 2014 A Level results are out and again St Faith’s and Nyanga (Marist) High Schools are calling the academic shots. We celebrate with these top performing schools and urge them to push on so that those lagging behind will emulate their achievements. It is worrisome to hear that a total of 8 000 pupils, most of whom are from poor backgrounds, failed to achieve good grades.
Their performance was below par.
We cannot gloss over such glaring statistics considering that these 8 000 pupils mastered at least five subjects at O Level. These statistics show that we have deep-seated challenges that are adversely affecting our education system.
Holistic remedies are urgently needed to solve these challenges. The bulk of these pupils who failed to make the grade are from Government and council schools. We urge teachers, SDCs and responsible authorities to rise to the occasion and help these pupils achieve better grades.
In the same vein we call on the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to come up with practicable strategies to improve the quality of education at all poor performing Government and council schools, be they in rural or urban areas.
Some of these schools, since independence, have failed to offer quality education that meets or exceeds the expectations of our nation.
A top 100 performing schools checklist released by Zimsec shows that church-owned schools are outperforming Government and council schools across the country. This calls for Government and councils, as responsible authorities, together with their respective SDCs to invest in the improvement of the learning environment at schools. These under-performing schools are having challenges in recruiting good teachers because of poor infrastructure.
A teacher’s performance can improve with an improvement in the learning environment.
If new infrastructure is built the ball will roll smoothly and the quality of education will improve because teachers will do their work well.
For the teachers to meet or exceed expectations, teach from the heart and deliver the goods, we need to improve the operating environment, which is the bottom line. Results reflect the quality of the operating conditions for both the pupil and teacher.
These schools must have the additional support they need to help children overcome the challenges that life throws at them.
We know there is more to do, but examples of St Faith’s High and Marist Brothers have proved that the best State schools can overcome disadvantages, thanks to support and the work of skilful, dedicated and hard-working teachers who put this educational plan into action. The low pass rate, to an extent, is reflective of the low morale among teachers. English, Maths, Geography and Sciences were the most failed subjects.
We have a shortage of teachers in these subjects and most schools do not have proper laboratories and equipment to conduct science subjects. We also need to critically look at the issue of teachers’ recruitment and training. Who are our teachers and are they teachers by choice or by inconvenience?
Why does our teacher training system not separate chaff from grain? Why is it a willing absorber of the chaff rejected by other professions such as lawyers, engineers and doctors? Why is it that most of the people who fail to make the bill in other professions end up being teachers? If they cannot be trusted with defending the law, what makes us think that they can be good drivers of our education? What makes us think these people can incessantly focus on the quality of teaching strategies and prepare students for life, not just for exams?
Also our preparation for a teaching career should follow the model of apprenticeships, in which novices learn from experienced masters. Student teachers should spend less time in lecture halls learning educational theory but must spend more time in classrooms, working directly with students and master teachers. Teaching skills should be continually sharpened, with time to take courses, attend conferences, and share lessons and tips with other teachers, online and in person.
Online Reporter