Sawa’s Warsay Yekealo Boarding school

Sawa’s Warsay Yekealo Boarding school Kidane Eyob, 05 Aug 2003 Is it a temporary logistical solution or a permanent quick fix?

The new education curriculum due to begin this academic year stipulates five years of elementary, three years of junior and four years of secondary school education.

The main difference to the current system being an increase in the number of junior school years from two (6^{th and 7th grade) to three (6th, 7th and 8th grade).}

Secondary school is still for four years but is 9th to 12th grade instead of the 8th to 11th grade as was practised since independence.

The subsequent implications are obviously lack of sufficient classrooms and trained teachers in all the secondary schools all over the country. To overcome this hurdle the MOE has rightly decided to use the infrastructure of Sawa to its advantage by sending 12th grade students to Warsay Yekealo boarding school in order to speed up the transition process to the new education curriculum. I fully support the MOE in its decision to implement the new education curriculum immediately and without wasting any time by using Sawa’s infrastructure for the betterment of our education.

However, this in my opinion should only be a temporary logistical solution and not a permanent quick fix to the failures of the current education system.

The permanent solution and the most sensible way forward is to construct additional classrooms in all the secondary schools all over the country. Both the GOE and the Eritrean people all over the world should double our efforts in speeding up the construction of these desperately needed classrooms. Equally important is the ongoing training of all teachers to the new education curriculum.

Furthermore, as the population of the students dramatically increases, Warsay Yikealo Boarding School would not be able to accommodate all the 12th grade students.

What lessons can we learn from the education reform that took place in Kenya in 1980s. Kenya initially had an education system of 7 years primary, 4 years secondary, 2 years pre-university ‘A’ level and three years university education. In the 1980s the Kenyan govt. decided to reform the education system to 8.4.4. which means 8 years primary, 4 years secondary and 4 years university education. The 2 years ‘A’ level pre-university education was abolished.

As a result of this reform, all primary schools were forced to build extra classrooms to accommodate the 8th grade students. Teachers were given brief training, the 8th grade syllabus was available and new textbooks were published in good time.

Both the public and the Kenyan govt. contributed money to fund the construction of these classrooms.

Perhaps if we start the construction process of the extra classrooms required and the ongoing training of the teachers now, the next batch of 12th grade students could carry out their 12th grade classes at their local secondary schools.

Glory To Our Martyrs Victory To The Masses.

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Kidane Eyob, who is solely responsible for the contents of this page, contributes the above article. For any comments, the writer can be contacted by e-mail: kidaneyob@yahoo.co.uk