Flop ghost still haunts Jangwani ...Ndalichako accuses teachers of negligence, wants them held accountable

NELLY MTEMA in Dodoma

JANGWANI Ward Education Officer (WEO) and teachers at the girls’ school face stern disciplinary measures over gloomy performance in the just released national form six examinations. Already the School’s Headmistress has been suspended pending investigations over the miserable results in the

national exams.

Education, Science and Technology Minister Professor Joyce Ndalichako yesterday ordered that the WEO and school teachers be held answerable for the school’s poor performance. One of the country’s oldest public schools, with many prominent leaders on its credit, emerged among the ten least performing schools in the National Examination for Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education Examinations (ACSEE) this year.

Dar es Salaam-based Jangwani Secondary School was third on the list of poor performing schools after Morogoro- based Forest Hill Secondary School and Jang’ombe Secondary School in Zanzibar, which came first and second, respectively.

Prof Ndalichako blamed the poor performance on teachers’ failure to attend classes, with the WEO failing to closely monitor and control the teachers’ attendance in classes. The minister was speaking at the handover of 47 vehicles for education quality control coordinators and 2,894 motorcycles for WEOs, countrywide.

She said Jangwani, one of the best public schools, has lately lost the prominence due to a number of factors, including teachers’ negligence. “Teachers and the WEO have played a key role in this menace…they must be held accountable,” Professor Ndalichako said, hinting that the school headmistress has already been suspended pending investigations.

She added: “Jangwani Girl’s being among the ten schools at the bottom has many reasons, including the tendency of teachers signing in attendance book and leaving for their other businesses, with students given notes to write and study on their own,” she said.

She said the students lacked teachers’ academic guidance while the WEO did not closely supervise teachers to ensure they teach as required. Prof Ndalichako said with 87 teachers, the school has no problem with teaching staff, adding that Jangwani has all the perquisite learning and teaching equipment: “The failure simply lack of academic guidance from the teachers.”

She said the government is working round the clock to create conducive education environment for both teachers and students, directing the WEOs who have been provided with the motorcycles to use them for the intended purpose.

“You must go and enforce discipline, hard work and ethics in your respective areas as you have transport and the 250,000/- monthly allowances… we must get high quality of education as reward,” said Prof Ndalichako.

She warned the Education Quality Assurance Coordinators to whom the 47 vehicles will be given against using them criminally or as family properties, maintaining that using the vehicles against the intended purpose, will lead to disciplinary measures against the offenders.

Acting Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Prof James Mdoe called on the quality education quality assurance officers to strive for the improved standard, challenging them to go down to particularly remote area based schools to ensure they improve performance.