Combining PEAS’ experience with international children’s organisation, Ark, we put a rigorous focus on quality and measuring results, radically improving the life chances of every students in an Ark-PEAS school. One of the first schools in the ARK-PEAS(Promoting Equality in African Schools) partnership is Ark-PEAS High School in Namutumba. Namutumba is a relatively new district in Uganda, populated mainly by subsistence farmers with women and children contributing around 80% of family labour.
Teenage pregnancy and early marriage are big issues in this area, an indication of the need for secondary education for girls.
At the moment there are 202 primary schools in Namutumba district with only 19 secondary schools catering for the area. This means that many young people who complete primary school find that there is nowhere for them to continue their education. Generally our research found that people in the district place a high value on education but unfortunately circumstances mean that many young people are unable to access a secondary education.
The need for a new secondary school was very apparent with high student drop-out rates due in part to the large distances that many students have to travel to get to school. One teacher we spoke to in Namutumba said:
[related_posts]“Pupils who come from afar often arrive late and it’s a real problem. There is no time for students to their homework and class performance is affected. A new school would really help the community”.
This school is jointly managed by Ark and PEAS and lead by School Director Michael Bulumba and Headteacher Pheona Mirembe and offers 10 ‘O’ level subjects. It also has an arable income generating project growing maize and beans.