(Published Wednesday, December 15, 2021)
By Ritah Mukasa
January 10, 2022 has been confirmed as the day for the official opening of schools. Children are warming up to resume physical classes, but there is a group of learners who had just started their education journey in kindergarten when schools closed in March last year. Even those in Primary One and two were left confused. Others have already made the age to start school, but the COVID-19 pandemic has continued to keep them home for close to two years now. Preparing these children for school will not come easy. It’s all new beginnings for them. Parents and experts shared their opinions with Ritah Mukasa
My Child Refused To Study
In January 2020, Jessica (second name withheld), an accountant, placed her son in Primary One at Namilyango Boys’ Primary School in Mukono district. She chose a boarding school because driving him to and from school had come with challenges, owing to her tight schedule.
“It was hard for me to drop and pick him from school in Kampala. We live in Kira. His father was not willing to help, yet my job is so demanding,” she shares.
Jessica adds that she felt guilty taking her young son and only child away from her to a boarding school, but she had no choice. Meanwhile, he had hardly got used to the school system when the lockdown happened in March 2020. He came back home.
I tried online classes and failed. My son was not interested. I pushed until I gave up and hired a teacher, but he still failed to cope,” Jessica recalls. Her son is seven years old, moving to eight.
“He now lives between my home and my parents in Jinja. He is happy to play with his cousins, nieces and nephews,” she narrates, adding: “Now that the reopening day has been confirmed, I do not know how to prepare him for school. I fear his classmates are far ahead of him.”
Also, Robin Semakula, an office messenger, shares the same story. His seven-year-old daughter was in Primary Two in a public school last year. She has never enrolled for any classes since.
“We kept expecting schools to open in vain. I cannot afford to hire teachers or enroll her for online classes because I do not have a smartphone,” he says.
Semakula also has two other children; aged four and five years, who have not been to school. He plans to enroll them in kindergarten, come January.
On the flipside, however, Stella Doris Adong, a mother and paediatrics nurse at Mulago National Referral Hospital, feels kindergarten learners can still catch up. One of her children was in Baby Class when the lockdown was announced. She is six years now.
“She did not go through year one and two in nursery. I have been buying her learning materials. She can now do Primary One work by herself,” Adong says.
However, her biggest fear is regression, because of the missed stages while at home. “I am going to try and push her to Primary One in another school. I pray she picks up. I have also counselled her,” she shares.
Adong adds that this arrangement has helped because her daughter is now willing and excited to enroll in a new school.
How To Re-Interest The Children?
Richard Kato Sembatya, an engineer, trainer and proprietor of Jerms Technology, says the lockdown has not been kind to school-going children at all levels, but the most affected are those in preschool and lower primary.
This category was not fully introduced to the education system. They were also left out during the phased reopening of schools, meaning they have been out of school since March 2020.
Kato adds that it’s a glaring issue in light of the much-anticipated re-opening of schools.
“Preparing them for physical school, after about two years away from the classroom environment, is a big challenge,” he says.
“It will take some considerable effort, empathy and patience to re-interest children with physical classroom settings,” he opines.
Peter Okware, a teacher and director of Teachers in Need (TIN) organisation and Teachers’ TV Africa, concurs. He advises parents and schools to create an intentional process which aims to gradually re-introduce children into the physical environment.
However, avoid overpumping them with lots of content, lest they will hate the entire experience.
Kato suggests compensating for the lost learning time by slowly introducing micro-modules with simple learning outcomes, over time. These will not overwhelm the learners.
Parents Should Fully Participate
Okware calls on parents to fully participate is the learning process of their children and to have confidence that quality learning is a marathon, not a sprint.
“Schools need your support and participation than never before,” he asserts.
“Rest assured that by the end of 2022, your children would have regained the learning momentum,” he assures. But also, Shillah Birungi, the founder of Habibi Foundation Uganda, encourages parents to do more revision with their children.
“Buy for them work from the New Vision and be present as they do it. Do corrections together no matter how busy you are,” she advises.
Kato is quick to appeal to parents and teachers to be more empathetic with the children along this journey.
“Appreciate the fact that learning will be slow at first, but learners will gradually pick with time,” he opines.
Also, both parties need to seek feedback and engage more in collaborative discussions. These include those between parents and teachers and teachers and children, but this will require transparency and openness.
Okware advises teachers to find more innovative ways of creating fun in the entire learning process. This can vary from child-to-child. But it takes additional attention by the teachers and parents to gradually bring children on board.
Introduce Them To Key Subjects
Jacque Namwase, a librarian, says parents should first consider the children’s basic need for education, which is to read and write.
Rachael Zalwango, a kindergarten teacher at St Marcelino Academy in Matugga, advises parents to introduce young leaners to the key subjects, such as reading, language and numeracy (math). These will enable them to read, comprehend and spell.
Where possible, liaise with the school to provide work for the learners. But help them go through it and after, ask a teacher to assess the learner’s ability to be promoted to the next class. For those in kindergarten, engage them in playing, singing and dancing. Let them have fun.
“Remember to impart in them morals, tell those Bible stories and pray with them daily,” she advises.
On the other hand, Edith Nagujja, a teacher, human rights activist and founder of Pain No More Foundation, reminds parents to avail children with learning materials to empower their minds to switch to studying mode. Introduce them to books, charts, newspapers and online tutorials.
However, Namwase warns about leaving children to study online without supervision. She says parents are instead creating tech addicts. They will find it hard to fit in and interact with others at school.
Start Home Schooling
Rosemary Zawedde, a mother of three and businesswoman, is preparing her nursery children for the physical school through home schooling. She failed to enroll them for online classes due to her tight work schedules. Zawedde failed to supervise them, so they lost interest and concentration. Zawedde hired a teacher who helps the children thrice a week.
“I also download learning materials, including songs. They sing and do those age-appropriate critical thinking exercises. They will interest them with school,” she says. Alternatively, some schools have audio recordings of the very songs they sing in class. So, parents can get them and play them for the children such that when they resume school, they will be familiar with the songs.
“We also have scenarios where a child cries for the first one month at school. That means the school environment is so alien to them,” Zawedde notes, adding; “It’s what I did with my first born. He was familiar with the songs. So, he did not cry at all. He even topped his class.”
Familiarise With School Schedules
Nagujja supports the idea of parents to start familiarising their children with school schedules.
For example, get them ready to practice the school program. Start waking them early enough to prepare for the day. They should bathe, dress up and do work.
“Also, ensure they revise and get familiar with schoolwork,” she advises
Similarly, Denicah Aine, a mother of four, says parents can use pretend play to explore the idea of a school. A parent can read pre-school books with their child and also play race games to enhance self-help skills. For example, putting up a race to see how fast your child can put on their shoes or dress up.
“You can also visit the school and let the child play for some hours to orient them to the environment before schools open,” she suggests.
Away from that, Nagujja advises parents to start mobilising resources early enough and also pay school fees on time.
“A leaner that has been home for long will easily drop out of if they are disturbed at school,” she says, adding, “Pay their school fees on time and provide school requirements and necessities.”
Don’t Skip Classes
Okware cautions parents against making children skip classes, thinking they will be benefiting from the situation.
“Some are planning to skip two or more classes, but you will be cheating your child and that might affect them for the rest of their learning cycle,” he warns.
Zawedde concurs with Okware, saying there is no need to rush.
She likens this to taking a child to a new class just because they are on top of their current class. They might not perform as well as they did because they need time to fit in the environment while absorbing the new content. It is time and energy consuming in the long run.
“This is what most parents I have interacted with are looking forward to doing when schools open. But they will put their children’s education future at stake,” she cautions.
Don’t Be Under Pressure
Okware requests parents to lower their expectations.
“Don’t expect cream performance from learners. Some of them have even forgotten the basics of reading, spelling, handwriting and concepts of various subjects,” he says, adding that those were replaced by play and stress.
He adds that some parents might shift the entire burden on schools, which will transfer it to the teachers, who are also depressed. Remember, many have been struggling to survive, while others lost their loved ones.
Away from that, Simpson Muhwezi, a teacher and creative director of Wandiika writing prize, urges parents to prioritize the health and safety of children. “Equip them with relevant information on COVID-19 prevention before they resume school,” he opines.
Muhwezi adds that learners need to know the importance of observing COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs); regular hand-washing, mask wearing and social distancing.
Children Need Talking And Counselling
Susan Kiiza Busingye, a mother of two and university lecturer, advises parents to keep talking to their children about all things school-related.
“You shouldn’t wait for January to overwhelm children with lengthy talks. They won’t make sense to them. Start now. Let them know what to expect when schools open,” she explains.
In the same vein, Dr. Vicky Kobusingye Ndyanabangi, who works with Baylor Children’s Foundation Uganda, says she has made it intentional to engage her two children on school matters. The boys, who are in Primary Four and two respectively, have been studying online since schools closed. But they are excited to resume school and meet up with their friends and teachers.
“I keep reminding them that physical classes will start next year and that they will be promoted two classes ahead,” she shares, adding: “Therefore, they need to be mentally prepared for their new classes.”
Ndyanabangi also ensures that her children follow the routine assigned for online learning. But the boys are aware that the schedules will change next year. They will be studying five days a week and will have face-to-face classes with the teachers.
“We are all looking forward to physical school,” she affirms.
Aine echoes Ndyanabangi’s parenting preparations. She also listens to her children’s ideas as far as schooling is concerned. She, however, stresses it to them that it is normal to feel happy, sad, excited, scared or worried about going back to school. She also pays attention to their behaviour and non-verbal messages.
Robert Ibanda, a father and businessman encourages his children to do more revision, all while talking to them about school.
On the other hand, Joyce Nalunga, a mother of nine and lawyer with the Leadership Tribunal, requests teachers to ease the curriculum for the young learners. It should tickle their minds that have been in ‘home relaxing mode’ for two years. Such a curriculum must be interactive and full of extra curriculum activities.
“Parents should also get involved because this is teamwork. We can no longer afford to sit and watch from the sidelines,” she says.
