Our education system need a reform

By: John Jur Chol Dhuol

''In the face of impossible odds, people who love this country can change it''

-Barack Obama.

First of all, education is the process of transferring knowledge from one generation to another. If this is what is known as education, definitely what we are doing in the Republic of South Sudan is a little bit different.

What most of us consider as being educated is having a certificate, whether you deserve it or not.

Our educational system is not helping our country at all, because most of us cannot get a quality education at the initial stage because parents cannot afford to enroll their children in private schools while the public ones are not doing the needful because of the qualification of teachers and the learning environment.

Secondly, in the tertiary Institution, people are denied the right to education, whereas, you will apply for the course of your choice and get admitted into different course because of the lack of career guidance.

If you are not given the course of your choice, you may graduate with honours and remain unprofessional because you are forced to do what you haven't develop an interest in.

Moreover, Many teachers and lecturers found themselves in the said position as a result of being unemployed but not by being professional in the field. So, they are not qualified to be teachers or Lecturers, but unemployment left them with no alternative but to use the available vacant they can get.

In my opinion, the reforms or changes that need to be done are:-

1- Reform in the Examination department.

Sincerely speaking, there is too much malpractice in the examination system of our country like leaking of the secondary or primary schools examinations which made most of the students very relaxing not to read again because they know that something somewhere sometimes may happen and they will get access to the national examinations that are set, hence, in my own view, I suggest that all the examiners should be confined in one place during the months in which they set the exams until they students finish their exams then they are released from confinement.

2. Implementation of the emergency exam system.

If in case, there had been an ongoing rumors that certain school cheated or certain paper had been leaked, then, they emergency paper called B,C,D paper had to be brought immediately so that those who cheated don't get access to this exam or complete burning of that schools for specific Period of time so that the other schools do not tolerate such a malpractice again or imprisonment of those alleged teachers.

3. Increase of teachers salaries and incentives.

It had been in the attention of most of the parents that their children are not well taught because of the low payment and delays of the salary, This left most of the teachers to remains redundant because their salaries are not paid in time and also very low.

However, I suggest that the budget of the ministry of General education and instructions be increased to at least 15% of the fiscal year budget by the ministry of finance.

4. Donors should increase or charter their funding to education sector.

When most of the funding partners charter their funding to fund the education sector, this will bring much improvement into the education sector of the country because investing in education sector means investing in human resource development.

5. Review or Updating of the curriculum.

It would be good to update the teaching curriculum at least every four/five years by the curriculum development committee so as to adopt the new  education approach adopted by most of the countries.

 Finally, government is the only body that is responsible for reviving our educational system, because nobody can do it individually, but government can do, by providing job opportunities necessary assistance to teachers and organizing seminar or workshop regularly to the employed teachers.

Thank you

The writer is a 3rd year medical student at the University of Juba and can be reached via 

email johnjur95@gmail> Or.     +211925555883       +211916555511