School in Uganda

Notice board from primary school in Kampala Uganda.

The education system in Uganda differs from the education system in the United States. The Ugandan system is more similar to the British system. The school year has three terms and usually starts in February and ends in December. For example, in 2023 term one went from February 6 to May 5 (89 days), term 2 went from May 29 to August 25 (89 days) and term 3 went from September 18 to December 11 (75 days).

Primary school tuition has been free in government schools in Uganda since 1997. But students, especially in rural area face serious challenges to finishing their education. For example, they lack school supplies like books and pens, they often have to study all day on an empty stomach since no meals are provided at school and schools are often overcrowded and have poor teaching methods. Besides government schools, there are many expensive day and boarding schools at all levels which provide better outcomes.

All classes are taught and assessed in English. The average teacher/student ratio is 1 teacher to 40 students but it can vary widely, sometimes as high as 1 teacher to 70 or even 150 students. The large number of students can make it hard to teach and learn. It is also not uncommon to have a wide age range of students in a class for example a third grade might include students from ages 7 to 16 years old.

Girls in Uganda are disproportionately discriminated against in terms of education; they face harsher barriers when trying to gain an education and it has left the female population disenfranchised, despite government efforts to close the gap.

Nursery/kindergarten (duration: three years)
This is the pre-school level of education in Uganda. Children usually start at the age of three and complete nursery school by the age on six. Some rural areas may not have nursery schools but they are becoming more prevalent throughout the country. Most children never attend nursery; they start their education at the age of five or six at the nearest primary school.

Primary School (duration: seven years)
In Uganda there are seven primary school years, primary one to primary seven. With a normal annual progression this means that primary school should last seven years (ages 6-13), but many students drop out part way through and return later or start late, so it is not unusual to find teenagers taking primary exams.

At the end of primary seven, students sit for their first major national exams — the Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE). Currently the PLE has four subjects: English, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. The best possible mark students can achieve is a total of 4 (which means one point - a distinction - in each subject, while the worst is a total of 36 (nine points for each subject, which means a fail).

Students with between 4 and 12 points pass the PLE with a first grade or division one.
Students with scores between 13 and 23 points get a second grade.
Students with scores between 24 and 29 points get a third grade.
Students with scores between 30 and 34 pass with a fourth grade.

Students who pass their PLEs can progress to secondary school.

Secondary School (duration: six years)
Secondary school has two stages. The first four years, senior one (S1) to senior four (S4) is the O-Level period. At the end of S4, students take the second major national exam known as the Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) or as they are more commonly referred to as O-level examinations.

Student who pass their O-level exams may progress to A-levels or the Higher School Certificate (HSC). This last two years, S5 and S6, after which students take the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) examinations, also known as A-levels. All annual national exams happen between October and December.

University and other Tertiary Institutions
Students who pass their A-levels may choose to go to university where they can study for degrees or to other tertiary institutions that award diplomas and certificates. The government gives about 4,000 university scholarships each year, and sponsors thousands of other students in other tertiary institutions. But tens of thousands of students who do not get the competitive government scholarships depend on their parents and guardians to pay their tuition and upkeep.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Uganda
https://www.theguardian.com/katine/2010/feb/08/education-system-explainer