{UAH} Uneb opposes Makerere pre-entry examinations: UNEB is too blame

 
 

Folks

The story in the Monitor at the link below about UNEB is interesting. I wrote about ths entry exams not long ago where students who supposedly got triple A cannot get 50% to pass.   The problem lies squarely with UNEB. UNEB has sleep on the job as exams are openly leaked.  There are schools where students how up to write exams only for show because the exams booklets have already been field d in. The students or candidates sit there to pass time and hand in the booklets.  

So for UNEB to try and attack Makerere Law School for not fully relying on UNEB results without asking the big question, which is: why? Why is makeree law school doing this? Well because UNEB slept on the job.  Makerere law school is trying to protect its reputation. If exam cheating and with it grade inflation was not an issue, Makerere law School and other places-I am told medical school will follow soon.

It may okay to have semi-literate lawyers,  but think about the cost of doctors who can't get it right because they are barely literate even though they got triple or Four As.  It is a stinging rebuke of UNEB.  Hopefully when the IGP aka Mr Tear Gas is done with his current focus on NRM goons and crooks he can turn his attention to known cheating schools. 

Folks, the integrity of the entire educational system in Uganda is on trial.  If UNEB cannot stop the leakages, the IGP should nab the culprits. And many are within UNEB as they sell exams in advance.  If I can know of the cheating schools, surely UNEB, police, the RDCs and Makeree must know. BTW, Makerere University law school has a very good idea about the schools I am talking about because they have produced students with 4ASs who barely scored over 30% let alone 50%

 So someone tell UNEB that the problem squarely lies with them and not Makerere law School. It is wrong for Dr Wamala to say the pre-tests are not working when the exam has only been in place for 2 years. Let us wait and see whether those admitted under the new regime will do better in LDC. I understand many recent graduates from law schools in Uganda cannot pass the bar exam. 

FYI, there are other laws schools that do not yet use the pre-test!  This means there will be data on the two groups, pure UNEB based admission vs NUEB plus 50% pass in pretest exam.  That will provide testable data once the screened out candidates get to LDC.

So the best time to judge the pretest is after a few cohorts have gone to LDC. If Makerere students do better than non-pretest students then we can conclude that UNEB is wrong and Makerere Law School is right. Actually we can run test the null hypothesis: Performance in law school DOES NOT depend on pretest scores.  Dr Wamala could not do this now because it is premature. There is no data. In 10 years, sure.

In the meantime UNEB should get their act together, plug the exam leakages and crack the whip, throw out entire exams of cheating students. Yes, disqualify them kabisa.   Mark you these 4As who can’t read or even crack 50% are the ones who get govt scholarships.  May be the govt should emulate the law school to weed out zombies.

BTW, who is the chief inspector of schools today? In those great days it was the legendary Mr. Mugoya and schools were good and UNEB or EAEC was dependable. I can say without fear of any contradiction that there were no exam leakages during his time in office. Exam leakages are a YKM phenomenon and the kids who grew up under him. Under this regime, cheating is tolerated and actually encouraged. To paraphrase YKM at the funeral of the late legendary Dr Bikanganga (RIP) “steal but do not divide the country”. Well for UNEB it is ‘steal as long as you don’t’get caught. Well Makerere is not buying that mantra. Good for them.

 

WBK

 
 
http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/Education/Uneb-opposes-Makerere-pre-entry-examinations/-/688336/2247886/-/tmu4vl/-/index.html