It is Sunday morning, July 15 Sunday morning and students of Nganwa High School, Kabwohe in Bushenyi are expected to be preparing for mock exams for S4 and S6 while the rest of the school prepares for end of term exams.

But the students have a different idea; they want to punish the school authorities for what they call an 'embarrassment' on their part for having failed to satisfy their guests the previous day. The visitors had come for a debate.

The students went on rampage and destroyed school property including classroom windows, chairs and breaking into the canteen until the intervention of police.

When Daily Monitor visited Nganwa High School last year, the headmaster then, Mr Edward Mugisha, pointed out various reasons for strikes in schools. Mr Mugisha is now headmaster of Ruyonza School in Ishaka. Bushenyi Town Council.

Automatic promotion of students has played a big role in school strikes where students are pushed from one class to another at primary school level without sieving the high achievers from the low achievers.

"There are lack of morals and responsibility among the students," Mr Mugisha said "Most of the students these days are irresponsible and think they can do anything."

Mr Mugisha said other trouble causers are orphans so some of them who grew up independent feel they don't have to be governed by school rules and regulations therefore they abuse them.

He said liberalisation of education also leads to strikes; where education is taken as a kind of 'business', some students work for only two principle passes and take academics for granted well knowing they will be able to access university education because of the financial muscle of their parents.

Mr Mugisha said disgruntled teachers and workers have also been found to engineer school strikes.

The teachers reportedly use students as scapegoats and encourage them to cause havoc when actually the students have no grudge with the administration.

He said head teachers and other school administrators who 'overstay' as leaders cause students to seek for change in leadership by striking. This was common before the introduction of transfers after serving ten years as head teacher .

Mr Mugisha says there is also peer pressure of students from other schools. "When students hear that other school had a strike any slight provocation leads to them go on rampage."

From Mr Mugisha's experience residents at times prefer a person from their locality to lead the school so students can benefit of supply of commodities and others.

He says most of the schools that are prone to strikes always perform poorly due to loss of valuable time when students are sent home.

For the case of Nganwa High School, at one time, senior four and six students missed their exams while 60 students were expelled and only allowed to sit exams by commuting from outside the school.

The RDC Mbarara, Mr Clement Kandole says whenever students strike it goes not only in the annals of the school but also the individual student who is expelled. "It is up to an individual student to strive to see that he or she gets a clean record while still at school," Mr Kandole says.

Mr Mugisha says to avoid such scenarios there should be effective communication between students, teachers and the administrators. He says students should also be counselled and guided, have regular class meetings and sensitisation on their roles as students.