The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
Polycarp Machira
9 May 2008
Owners of private secondary schools have defended their drop in performance in the just announced form six national examination results, saying their placing was still satisfactory.
They said some prevailing circumstances could have seen their students post marks below previous performances but that did not amount to poor standards.
According to results of the Advanced Certificate of Secondary Education Examinations (ACSEE) released on Monday by the National Examinations Council of Tanzania (NECTA), public schools this year improved in performance compared to private schools.
The NECTA executive secretary, Dr Joyce Ndalichako, said on average public schools fared better than private ones with an increase of 5.42 and 5.03 per cent respectively.
Private schools and seminaries enrolled 13,736 candidates this year, out of whom 10,290 (74.91 per cent) passed. This compares with 10,521, out of whom 7,352 (59.88 per cent) passed last year, an increase of 5.03 per cent.
Public schools registered candidates who sat for the exams were 14,099 , out whom 10,203 (72.37 per cent) scored between division one and three.
This compares with 7,889 (66.95 per cent) who passed last year, showing an increase of 5.42 per cent over last year's attainment level.
Over the past years, private schools have dominated the lead in national examinations.
But some of the common secondary schools that have always been in the top ten category like Loyola and Rubia, among others, have not made it this year. Further, Marian Girls and Maua have recorded a drop in the top ten list.
The Tanzania Association of Managers and Owners of Non Governmental Schools and Colleges (TAMONGOSCO), has defended the slight decrease in private schools' performance.
It said government schools always select the cream of students as private schools do not participate in the selection process.
Tamongsco's secretary general, Mr Benjamin Nkonya, told The Citizen that another factor which contributed to the results could be lack of enough teachers.
Mr Nkonya said since the government improved salary schemes for teachers, many have ditched private schools for employment in government schools.
He said private schools have to compete with public schools for the few teachers available. And so, in most cases, the former are forced to import teachers from neighbouring countries.
"We have to import teachers from Kenya and Uganda who, in most cases, take some time to familiarise with the Tanzanian syllabus and curriculum. This is also reflected in examination results", he said.
He said private schools operated under difficult conditions compared to public ones that get government subsidy.
The secretary general, however, admitted that despite the fact that some private schools have fully equipped laboratories and facilities, there were still some that completely lack such equipment.
Such schools, like most public schools, do not feature among the best performing schools when it comes to national examinations, he noted.
He added that the association has often pleaded with the government to consider giving them subsidies or tax cuts to operate above board.
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