Rwanda’s education system has undergone some significant changes over the past couple years. The introduction of the 9-years Basic Education Program stipulates that all children deserve the right to a free education for at least the first 9 years (grades 1-9). In addition, Rwanda recently switched from a Francophone teaching system to an Anglophone one. These changes posed several challenges for students, teachers and schools. Most students have (and still have in many cases) only a beginner level English; teachers who were used to teaching in French and Kinyarwanda now must teach in English (some took intensive English classes sponsored by the government to improve their skills); and many schools have been scrambling to build more classrooms and desks to accommodate the increase in students.
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| Primary Level Class |
Today, when you visit a typical school, you may here Kinyarwanda being taught in the lower primary levels (grades 1-3) and English being taught in grades 4-9. Rural schools usually have between 600-1500 students in the primary level and 100-300 students in lower secondary level; all on the same campus! Most schools teach in shifts, dividing students into a morning group and afternoon group, in order to have room for this many students.
Our Community Aid projects have helped the 9-years Basic Education Program by building more classrooms at Gihinga, Muhehwe, Kagogo and Vumbi schools (see previous blog postings). In addition, this year we started English tutoring classes on the weekends for the Senior 3 level students (grade 9). These students are getting a chance to practice English and improve their vocabulary during the 3 hour long classes held on Saturdays and Sundays at each of the four schools we support. The extra classes will also help the Senior 3 students prepare for the National Exams which take place at the end of the school year. The National Exam is conducted entirely in English and determines whether or not a student is able to continue on to upper secondary level to finish his/her studies.
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| Secondary Level Senior 3 Class |
With programs such as these, it is clear Rwanda has a strong focus on education and the development of the next generation of leaders. Rogers Family Company hopes to continue supporting these schools and the initiative to promote English education for Rwanda.