A total of 2,664 candidates in Teacher Training Colleges (TTCs) yesterday began their national examinations.

The number of students from 13 institutions across the country this year increased from the 1,600 who sat the examinations last year, with 8 per cent of them being private candidates, according to the University of Rwanda’s College of Education.

The increase is attributed to introduction of nursery programme.

The candidates are examined in Social Studies, Languages, Nursery Education and Mathematics.

Speaking at the exam launch at Gacuba II Teacher Training College in Rubavu District, George Njoroge, the principal of the College of Education, urged the student teachers to act as agents of change.

"You are special people. You are the ones to promote national values across the country and we are here to strengthen partnership with you. Knowledge and skills should go hand-in-hand with national values and trigger development,” Njoroge said.

The Dean of the Faculty of Education, Cyprien Niyomugabo, said the student teachers were well equipped to translate skills into concrete actions and match them with national values.

"We gave candidates full package, including professional and national values to enable them translate theoretical skills into hands-on skills,” he said.

Dr Alphonse Uworwabayeho, the University of Rwanda’s director for TTCs, said they remain committed to promoting hands on skills to achieve quality education in nursery and primary.

"We are putting much emphasis on hands-on skills by extending schedules of school practice to ensure that we have qualified teachers who can help us implement the new curricula from nursery so secondary schools aimed at achieving quality education,” Uworwabayeho said.

He said the current crop of student teachers was expected to fill the skills gap in nursery schools.

"Before every one would wake up and put in place a nursery school with no official guidelines, no appropriate aids and employ unqualified teachers but now nursery schools must be recognised and we shall ensure that they employ trained staff from colleges. We will use them to implement the curricula from the nursery level,” Uworwabayeho added.

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