Welcome Dr. Willy Ngaka. Thanks for your views and thank you and Winnie for volunteering on the Committee
Sent from my iPhone On Feb 28, 2013, at 12:16 PM, Willy Ngaka <[email protected]> wrote: > Dear Caleb and members in this forum, > > Permit me to extend my sincere apologies for being silent for a long time. I > was sick and had to undergo a surgical procedure in Mombasa in December 2012 > and now just getting better. Thanks to you all for your prayers. During this > time, I had limited access to internet and missed many things. However, this > will be history in the next 10 or so months as I have now embarked on an > intercontinental postdoctoral research programme, courtesy of the University > of KwaZulu-Natal in which I will have the facilities/technologies to > meaningfully engage with members, time permitting. > > Well, members I must say I am feeling the pain from these yearly results more > than any of you. I vividly recall the 1970s when Ombaderuko Primary School I > completed from would give 50 – 70 candidates in Grade I and saw this trend > declining to a level that in my own year, only two of us made it to Grade I > out of over 100 candidates. I also had an unimagined opportunity to join > Kabalega SS which those days was one of the academic giants/stars in the > Country and during my year only 4 of us out of 120 candidate still made to > Grade 1. Caleb, your understanding of the whole matter in terms of a > complicated surgery, pains me even more because I just came out of it and > know what it means. > > I ask myself, have we all exhausted the options at our disposal? What level > of commitment have we exhibited to tackle this matter? I remember when I > informed the net/forum about my graduation in 2010, it generated a list of > all PhD holders in the region, the question I still ask is: where are > we/they? In terms of human resources, I strongly believe West Nile is well > endowed. Why are they sighing away from this noble responsibility? Caleb, I > totally buy the idea of convening a stakeholders meeting and I would gladly > volunteer to be a member in the organizing team. I thought the Education > Committee we had should have been the right unit in the forum to spearhead > this. If there is anything that you think I can contribute towards this > regional convention, kindly let me know. I am genuinely committed this cause > because I feel we can change the statuesquo and also because “I even managed > to make it to where I am, and why not them” Our younger generation in the > region can do better with our support, guidance and leadership. > > One thing that keeps bothering me is the issue of language policy in this > country. It has consequences for literacy and numeracy learning at lower > levels and impacts badly on our children if we sit and just watch. The World > Bank argues that to progress to a second language, one needs to be fluent in > his/her mother tongue. To what extent have we, as members of this forum, > considered the lack those simple reading story books Like “Ondia pi Draru be” > we used to read those days as a contributory factor in worsening PLE results > in our region? Why do I say this? Just because I no longer see them and those > that are coming up are written by “the Bashabes” with questionable Lugara. I > think we have many professional Language teachers, the district has even a > Language Board, and there are some people like me who would like to volunteer > and do something towards addressing the challenge of revitalizing, Lugbara, > developing, enriching and on a sustainable and promoting it on sustainable > basis as other ethnic groups do. Our Lugbara should not die. One of the root > causes of poor performance in Primary which lays foundation for subsequent > levels of education has to do with the fact that pupils these days leave > primary level of education without the required reading, writing and > numerical skills. We need to address this squarely in the context of the > current thematic curriculum teaching in which mother tongue or one’s first > language is a cruel factor. > > From 2011 – 2012, myself, Francis Enjata from St. Joseph’s College, Ombaci by > then, Jasindo Afebu from Micu Primary School and Mrs Christine Debo, the > Deputy Speaker of Arua District Local Government sat under the LETTER > Project, sat together through series of workshops and wrote four bilingual > story books which New Readers Project of the University of KwaZulu Natal is > finalizing. At an appropriate time, I would invite interested members to view > the books and see their worth for our new readers and consider mass > production for distribution to our primary schools and community libraries I > have set up in the region. To motivate literacy and numeracy learners we also > need to consider introducing our rural folks to ICTs. Look at an example of a > photo I took in Otravu Primary School when we visited our community library > there with a mobile computer laboratory from our partner Maendelo Foundation > which can be accessed through this link: > http://www.elearning-africa.com/photo_competition_home.php On the page you > will see two options: SUBMIT Or VOTE. Click on the vote and look for a photo > with the capitation “Computers excite and motivate intergenerational literacy > learners in a rural school”. It is probably the 8th or 9th photo in the > group. If you do not mind members, give the region your vote because these > are things we would like to promote to address some of the problems we are > talking about. > > I am sorry for the long post, but I think the end justifies the means. > > Willy > > > On Thu, Feb 28, 2013 at 11:26 AM, Caleb Alaka <[email protected]> wrote: >> Ismail, I think this convention will assist to bring us at par with all the >> actors, there are many questions which need answers, there is need to >> measure the feeling and pain of all actors. If members agree, we can move to >> the next step >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> On Feb 28, 2013, at 11:21 AM, banduga ismail <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> Members, >>> >>> Lets try to implement this proposal, CONVENE A STAKEHOLDERS MEETING AND >>> ADDRESS THIS ISSUE. It pains when other schools post the best candidates as >>> scoring 25 points and our schools post 17, other post pass rates above 80% >>> and ours less than 50%. >>> >>> From: Caleb Alaka <[email protected]> >>> To: George Afi Obitre-Gama <[email protected]>; A Virtual Network for >>> friends of West Nile <[email protected]> >>> Cc: A Virtual Network for friends of West Nile <[email protected]> >>> Sent: Thursday, 28 February 2013, 10:49 >>> Subject: Re: [WestNileNet] A-Level Results WN Results - Pg 8 Monitor >>> >>> Dear Gordon and good people, we have been through this year in and year >>> out, when UNEB announces results at any level, every time, I feel like a >>> person awaiting the outcome of a complicated surgery. There is that moment >>> when the silence of a Doctor emerging from the theater tells the story. >>> Question is do the Local Authorities feel this pain as much as we do, Are >>> school administrators saddened by failure rate the way we are. If a head >>> master has the guts to refer a senior, prominent and influential person or >>> citizen who is an OB to a school to the Deputy in charge of academics to >>> answer a simple query, does that not speak volumes about the attitude of >>> School Administrators about education in our schools. It is frustrating. In >>> some districts, Local Authorities punish head teachers whose schools enjoy >>> mediocrity. SHOULD WE CONVEN A STAKE HOLDERS meeting in Arua involving all >>> head teachers, political leaders, Civil Servants, Parents, Students, >>> religious leaders, business and opinion leaders, academics and elders and >>> prominent sons and daughters of the region in other words representatives >>> of the above class and come up with a lasting solution to the educational >>> malaise in our region. We need such a convention in West Nile >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> >>> On Feb 28, 2013, at 8:11 AM, George Afi Obitre-Gama <[email protected]> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> Brethren, >>>> >>>> I have gone through the today's Monitor list(pg 8) of A-level rankings one >>>> by one(1-273) without seeing our prominent schools in West Nile apart from >>>> Mvara SS which is ranked a whooping no. 187!!! I don't see Ombaci, Muni, >>>> Nyapea and others and they happen not be listed - probably my eyes are >>>> getting old!! >>>> >>>> Tabu Butagira should probably clarify if another list exists - otherwise I >>>> see the performance as already pathetic not withstanding the fact that the >>>> best P7 Pupil in West Nile got an agg 7. >>>> >>>> I am very angry and annoyed. What is happening? Are we not engaging our >>>> youngsters enough!! >>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> WestNileNet mailing list >>>> [email protected] >>>> http://orion.kym.net/mailman/listinfo/westnilenet >>>> >>>> WestNileNet is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/ >>>> >>>> The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including >>>> attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any >>>> way. >>>> _______________________________________________ >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> WestNileNet mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> http://orion.kym.net/mailman/listinfo/westnilenet >>> >>> WestNileNet is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/ >>> >>> The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including >>> attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way. >>> _______________________________________________ >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> WestNileNet mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> http://orion.kym.net/mailman/listinfo/westnilenet >>> >>> WestNileNet is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/ >>> >>> The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including >>> attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way. >>> _______________________________________________ >> >> _______________________________________________ >> WestNileNet mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://orion.kym.net/mailman/listinfo/westnilenet >> >> WestNileNet is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/ >> >> The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including >> attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way. >> _______________________________________________ > > _______________________________________________ > WestNileNet mailing list > [email protected] > http://orion.kym.net/mailman/listinfo/westnilenet > > WestNileNet is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/ > > The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including > attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way. > _______________________________________________
_______________________________________________ WestNileNet mailing list [email protected] http://orion.kym.net/mailman/listinfo/westnilenet WestNileNet is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/ The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way. _______________________________________________
