UACE 2024: Performance in science subjects still low

The recently released A-level examination results by the Uganda National Examinations Board (Uneb) have once again revealed a continued trend of poor performance in science subjects compared to the humanities.

Whereas the numbers of candidates registering and appearing for mathematics and sciences are gradually increasing, the overall numbers have remained well below half of the total candidature.

Uneb observed that the low pass rates in sciences at the O-level probably explain the low numbers transitioning to A-level to pursue science combinations for the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) examination.

Speaking at the release held at State House Nakasero last Friday, Uneb chairperson Prof Celestino Obua warned that continued low grades in science subjects would significantly impact the future of science and technology as fewer students qualify for university science programmes. Obua, a professor of pharmacology and therapeutics, said such trends would ultimately reduce the number of scientists in the country.

“Without downplaying the importance of humanity subjects, we need the sciences to spur technological progress. Deliberate efforts must be made to increase the numbers of students offering mathematics and sciences to create a pool from which tertiary institutions can select students from various science programmes,” Obua said.

He added: “One of the ways is to improve on the pass levels, which is being implemented by improving the adequacy of science teaching-learning materials in many of our schools.”

A total of 141,996 candidates from 2,255 centres registered for the UACE examination that was conducted between November 11 and December 6, 2024. Of the total candidature, 140,888 appeared for the examination compared to 109,486 in 2023 – representing an increase of 31,402 candidates.

Out of the total, 61,598 (43.7%) were female and 79,290 (56.3%) were male. At A-level, the number of females is greatly lower than males’. However, Uneb figures show that few females complete this cycle, while the number of those sitting for the examination has increased.

GENERAL PERFORMANCE

The Uneb executive director, Dan Odongo, noted that a high percentage of candidates (98.8%) qualified for the award of the UACE, just as was in 2023. A candidate requires a subsidiary-level pass in a principal subject to qualify.

“Although there is a proportional drop in pass level, the actual numbers show more candidates passed at all the levels,” Odongo said.

For university admissions to degree courses where a minimum of two principal passes is required, 92,273 (65.5%) candidates qualified, compared to 80,816 (73.8%) in 2023. In other tertiary institutions where one principal pass and two subsidiary passes are considered for admission, 121,506 (86.2%) candidates qualified.

However, 1,632 candidates failed the examinations compared to 865 in 2023. These candidates can either repeat A-level or use their O-level results to pursue tertiary education. Female candidates, though fewer at A-level, performed proportionately better than their male counterparts in all humanity subjects, physics and general paper.

Odongo noted that the percentage of passes at the upper levels (three and two principals) was higher among females, while failure rates were lower. Of the 1,632 candidates who failed, only 432 were female.

SUBJECT PERFORMANCE

Uneb observed improved performance in economics, literature in English, physics and biology. However, signifi cant drops were noticeable in entrepreneurship, Christian religious education (divinity), geography, mathematics, agriculture and chemistry.

Overall, grades for all science subjects remained lower than those in humanities. Odongo highlighted poor question interpretation as a major issue in humanities. In history, for instance, inadequate critical thinking skills hindered candidates’ ability to analyse historical perspectives.

“The national Constitution is a major reference material in one of the history papers, but candidates exhibited limited exposure to the constitution,” Odongo said.

Similarly, in economics, candidates struggled to relate responses to real-life situations. Poor mathematical skills also aff ected their performance, while inadequate coverage of the syllabus observed in many centres led to wrong responses on several topics related to national income, market structures, taxation and monetary policy, among others.

In religious education, Uneb examiners reported a consistent challenge of candidates’ failure to quote and apply teachings from the Bible and Qur’an – key reference materials in the subject.

In geography, where performance dropped, candidates exhibited weak skills in using statistical methods to explain geographical phenomena and poor application of fieldwork skills to explain daily life geographical issues.

To Uneb’s surprise, the paper on the geography of Uganda has always been poorly done while the problem of inadequate map interpretation skills has persisted. Candidates who offered local languages demonstrated limited knowledge of cultural practices, proverbs and their use in sentences and lacked the appropriate vocabulary to write meaningful translations from English to local dialects. In the sciences, Uneb noted that general problems of inadequate practical exposure continue to impact performance.

According to Odongo, many candidates could not describe experimental procedures and failed to interpret setups from diagrams given in questions, especially in physics.

“Some candidates gave results from experiments without showing how they were obtained. There’s also the challenge of relating science concepts to real-life situations,” he added.

The minister of education and sports, Janet Museveni, recognised the need for improvement in sciences and mathematics. She said best practices in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education suggest a shift in the teaching methods of sciences.

“This change starts with the teacher adjusting their attitude toward STEM subjects. I call upon the teachers and parents to support your children as they navigate learning using the revised Lower Secondary Curriculum and now the A-level Curriculum, which employs similar teaching and learning methodologies,” Museveni said.

She added that the reconfiguration of curricula at both O and A levels into competence-based and learner-centred should drive uptake in STEM education. Ms Museveni also expressed the urgency for institutions of higher learning to review their respective curricula for initial teacher education and training.

“The mismatch where universities continue to graduate teachers who cannot utilise competence-based and learner-centred curricula is undesirable. For this mismatch to be cured in the universities and higher education institutions, the academic staff who train the teachers must also re-align their learning delivery methods,” she said.

PERENNIAL SCIENCE PROBLEMS

Commenting on the science results, the Uganda Professional Science Teachers’ Union (UPSTU) general secretary, Aron Mugaiga, said that despite the government salary enhancement for science teachers, improved performance remains hindered by perennial challenges in teaching science subjects.

Mugaiga insisted that it is too early to expect a significant impact from salary increments implemented two years ago. He was, however, optimistic that performance would gradually improve with mainly the recruitment of more science teachers and the provision of science equipment for practical learning.

“The ministry guidelines require A-level teachers to be degree holders in their subjects. However, many government schools lack science teachers, forcing diploma holders from O-level to teach at A-level,” Mugaiga said.

“We are not saying that science diploma holders are incompetent. The concepts at O-level are easily manageable, but A-level has slightly deeper tasks which are best delivered by degree holders.” Mugaiga, also a teacher of physics, urged the ministry to devise mechanisms of encouraging more females to study physics and biology, as the numbers are still low at A-level.

This is meant to increase the number of female scientists in the country. Meanwhile, all the 92,273 candidates who qualified for university admissions will be absorbed into 48 private and 10 public universities Joint across the country.

For government sponsorship, the Public Universities Admissions Board (PUJAB) will release successful applicants following the conclusion of the application window which ran from November 4, 2024, and ended on January 20, 2025.

The Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) pathway has a separate application process. The education ministry will soon announce dates for the April/May intake.

nangonzi@observer.ug