Drunkenness among pupils of Bulemwa primary school in West Division, Hoima City, has been cited as among the causes of poor academic performance at the school that has spent more than a decade without registering a single first grade in the final Primary Leaving Examination (PLE).
Mr Joseph Kamuhanda, the school head teacher, says some pupils go to school when drunk which derails their mental ability from comprehending what they are taught in class since alcohol consumption changes the body’s chemistry.
He attributes this to parental negligence – wondering how a child leaves their homes while drunk yet they live with their parents perhaps in the same house.
The head teacher adds that some parents veto their children from going to school so they can tend to their gardens at the expense of attaining formal education.
Such forces him to go to villages looking for pupils especially primary seven candidates to go to school.
“One time, I found out that a pupil had come to school when he had consumed and under the influence of alcohol. I counselled and told him the dangers of consuming alcohol. Sometimes, I move to villages like Bubaale looking for pupils telling them to go to school. This is very dangerous because parents don’t mind about the value of education.” He says.
Adding: “We need to sensitise the people of Bulemwa, Bubaale and the neighbouring villages about the beauty of sending their children to school. But together with my teachers and leaders’ synergy, we are fighting hard to see we have really changed this though parents are not so much supportive.”
Mrs Joyce Isingoma, a member on the School Management Committee as well as a parent, is not different from the head teacher, affirming that some parents stop their children from going to school to tend to their gardens; subjecting them to poor academic performance in their Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB).
“There is a serious habit: Some parents of Bulemwa primary school block their children from going to school so they can work in their gardens. By the time the children are allowed to go to school, they have already lost a lot in studies. Despite knowing that the future of these young children lies in their hands, parents don’t mind about the consequences as these children become a problem to them in future,” Mrs Isingoma says.
Mr Haruna Alinda, the Hoima City Sports Officer, says many sensitisation meetings have already been held and more are underway to ensure that parents support their children to school in order to record better academic performance at Bulemwa primary school particularly and other schools in the city especially government aided ones.
“Once we join efforts, automatically our children will start performing well.” He notes.
The area Member of Parliament, Dr Joseph Ruyonga, says during his visits to all schools in his constituency, he has observed that parents are playing a principal role towards their children’s poor academic performance resulting in failure as he finds most pupils almost without scholastic materials forcing them to stay at home doing domestic chores.
“A developing area and country needs to have educated people. Now, if we are to change Bulemwa, we need to have educated people who can create a difference in the community. Parents also play a key part on children’s performance in class. So, once we relax as parents, even the children will relax. But when we perform our duties, automatically the children will produce good results. So, we should join hands to advocate for good performance of our children at school for a better tomorrow of our families and communities,” Dr Ruyonga observes.
This at Bulemwa primary school where Dr Ruyonga donated 20 sets of revision papers and 28 mathematical sets to the school’s primary seven candidates.
