HOW TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE
IN RURAL SCHOOLS IN UGANDA?
DR CHRISTOPHER B MUGIMU
School of Education
Makerere University
Isaac Newton High School
1st February 2013
INTRODUCTION
 Getting better examination results is a challenge facing most schools.
 Given the shrinking resources, there is increasing demand for results
and quality education from schools/teachers by stakeholders (i.e.
parents, governments, donors, etc.)
 Examination results is the lens through which most schools are judged
to justify their existence and accountability
 Examination results usually reflect cognitive competencies/outcomes.
 However, schooling has many purposes beyond cognitive outcomes
 That are usually neglected such as valued outcomes of schools related
to attitudes, values, motivation, aspirations, self-concept, ability to
work in a group, oral presentation skills, and socialization
(Kellaghagan, et al 2009)
 Yet, many soft skills are critical in gaining employment.
INTRODUCTION CONT’UED
 It is not surprising that in Uganda the curriculum is generally
examination driven
 Getting better results is increasingly an important determinant of
school survival especially those that are private
 This has led to overly emphasis on getting better results, which
presents unnecessary pressure to schools in terms of competition ,
consequently;
 Examination malpractices are not uncommon
 Encouraged the tendency of teaching to the test i.e. narrowing of
classroom teaching to cover only what was on the national tests
 This leads to “test scores increases without actually experiencing real
student learning!!” (Charterji, 2003, p. 24)
 Makerere University recent School of Law Entry Examination is a good
example
INTRODUCTION CONT’UED
 Drawing on my 24 years experience in operation of a private secondary
school and as a researcher, We have battled with this notion of
producing better results for all these years up to this day.
 This is mainly because of the fact that many other out-of-school factors
that come into play to influence students’ achievement /performance
on the national assessment/examination.
 Factors such as characteristics of students, their prior performance,
conditions in which students live (family and community support), and
education policies in terms of resources and support to curricula and
teacher preparation school conditions and resources, competence of
teachers, etc.
 However, important question exist: what does education research tell
us about improving school performance in terms of examination
scores?
WHAT DOES EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH TELL US ABOUT
IMPROVING SCHOOL PERFORMANCE ?
I identify four major categories/areas important to enhance improved
school performance/ examination scores, namely: Teacher -related ,
student-related, school leadership –related, and parent-related.
TEACHER-RELATED
Ability to create a positive learning environment
Provide adequate subject content coverage
Recognize students’ assessment as an important component in the
learning process
promote learner-centered teaching /learning strategies
Provide quality teaching to enhance students outcomes (Altron-Lee, 2003)
Provide students’ guidance and counselling
Can help learners to learn how to learn
Form collaborations/networks with teachers in other better performing
schools
TEACHER EXPECTATIONS IMPACT STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
Teacher expectations of student impacts their academic achievements
i.e. The Pygmalion Effect
The Pygmalion Effect –asserts that the teacher’s expectation that a
student will do well can have a positive effect on the academic success of
that student. This is because teachers tend to treat high-and-low
achieving students differently to the detriment of low-achieving students
[p. 349]
Thomas Good lists several ways in which teachers most often discriminate
in their treatment of the high and low achievers.
 By paying less attention to low-achieving students than to other
students
 By calling on low-achieving students less frequently than other
students to answer questions
 By giving low-achieving students less time to answer questions when
they are called on than other students
 By criticizing low-achieving students more frequently than other
students for incorrect answers
 By giving low-achieving students less feedback and less detail in the
feedback they are given than other students
 By demanding less effort and less work from low-achieving students
from high-achieving students
[ p. 349-50]
STUDENT-RELATED
 Student discipline
 Student reading culture, home work, study habits, goal setting (Purdie
and Buckley, 2010)
 Student self-esteem and confidence
 [regular school attendance and retention are critical in acquiring basic
skills of literary and numeracy]
 Students bullying, peer pressure, cool to skip school
 Lack of career aspirations
 Low self-esteem
 High attrition rates especially in private schools
LEADERSHIP-RELATED
 A strategic core curriculum for your school
 Conducive physical environment and infrastructure –library, classroom
space, science laboratory, computer labs, etc.
 Staffing and teacher qualification
 Extra-curricula activities
 Encouraging parents’ participation in all school activities
 Sharing resources and ideas with other schools
 Teacher motivation and welfare
 effective teacher supervision
 Instructional leadership: defining school mission, managing the
curriculum and creating a task oriented learning climate
 School leaders facilitate effective instruction
Leadership/instructional leadership/ADMINISTIVE RELATED
Relevant personality and
competencies
Leadership style
Extraversion social
appraisal skills
Leadership behavior
Effectiveness enhancing
factors
External contacts
Buffering
Enhancing teaching time
Intelligent motivation
internal locus of control
Domain specific
knowledge
conscientiousness
Task-related
Direction setting (goals
standards monitoring
curriculum instruction
(managing instructional
programs)
Clear goals and standards
Opportunity to learn
Student monitoring
& feedback
Structured teaching active
teaching
Active learning
Extraversion social
appraisal skills
Self confidence
Person-related
HRM & HRD
Couches teachers
Recruits teachers
Builds consensus
Cohesion among teachers
Professionalization
Teacher competency
Teacher sense of selfefficacy
Set values
Creates climate
Shared sense of purpose
among teachers
High expectations
Disciplinary climate
Supportive climate
Basic human values
General moral beliefs
Role responsibilities
Table 1 Intermidiary causal structure of leadership at school (adopted from Jaap Scheerens, 2012, p. 136)
LEADERSHIP RELATED CONT’UED
Characteristics of failing schools according to Stringfield (1998)
cited in Jaap Scheerens, 2012 include:
 Lack of academic focus
 Teachers working in isolation
 Academic periods starting late and ending early
 Lack of coordination between teachers in the use of books
 Bureaucratic leadership, not curriculum or instruction oriented
 Head teacher passive in teacher recruitment
 Lack of teacher assessment
 No public rewards for students’ excellence
 Difficulties in maintaining funding
 Underutilization of library
LEADERSHIP RELATED CONT’UED
Strong school leaders can “turn around failing schools” [identify the need
for change; maintain a strong focus on improving instruction; make visible
improvement early in school turn around process (quick wins); builds a
committed staff
Slavin (1996, 1998) talks about “seed schools –such schools in which staff
is cohesive, excited about teaching, led by a visionary leader to involve
the entire staff in decisions, and broadly aware of research trends and
ideas being implemented elsewhere” (p. 1309)
PARENT RELATED
 Parental involvement is the key predictor of students’ academic success
(Burge & Loges, 2003)
 Involvement and participation of parents in their children school work,
discipline, welfare, guidance and counseling
 Research shows that higher SES, “middle and upper class families are in
a better position to work through the education system to their
advantage by ensuring that their children attend the best schools and
get the best teacher and are more likely to invest in out-of-school
activities that improve school outcomes such as tutoring programs,
camps, and travelling” [ Ladd, 2011, pg. 3]
 Constructive teacher-parent communication –monitoring a child’s
academic performance
 Encourage parents to inform teachers about their children
inappropriate behavior at home that could distract their
learning/academic excellence
PARENT RELATED
 Meeting school requirements in time –many students spend most their
valuable time being sent home for exercise books, fees, etc.
 Encourage
 Parent attitudes towards school
 Un supportive home environment
 Parents condoning absenteeism
 Parents failing to assure their legal responsibilities
TEACHER-RELATED CONT’UED
Raj Chatty et al (2011) revealed that “middle school teachers who help
raise the standard test scores seem to have a wide-ranging, lasting
positive effect on students’ lives beyond academics,--lower teenaged
pregnancy rates, greater college matriculation and adult earning.
Indeed good teachers facilitate students learning, according to Pardie et
al (2010, p. 6-7) by
“Create learning environments that are more responsive to the needs of
young people by ensuring that their voices are heard, modifying school
practices; developing models for community access to school resources;
increasing the availability and quality of career advice; providing quality
learning opportunities for young people at a risk of disengaging or who
have disengaged from education and training.”
Remember:
Teacher expectations influence students’ achievement
So have high expectations of your students!