Rwanda Education Board (REB) started a new programme of remedial courses for lower primary pupils that is expected to help improve the skills and capability of slow learners.

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The educational remedial programme is all about extra class time offered to low-achieving learners to help improve their performance. It is offered in three subjects: Kinyarwanda, Maths, and English.

The one-month programme started on July 29 and benefits pupils in primary one, two and three who were not promoted.

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Claudine Mukeshimana, a teacher in Kayonza District who attended a four-day remedial training course, said that this was initiated after seeing that a big number of learners repeat class and others are promoted but are not competent. She said that after a healthy breakfast for the learners which starts at 8:30am, classes begin at 9:00am and end at 12:00, every day.

Eric Niyitegeka, a father of an eight-year-old boy attending the catch-up lessons in primary two, told The New Times that he is hopeful that the special teaching period will help improve his son's performance.

Teachers ‘worried’

However, some teachers who are implementing the programme are "worried” because they are not sure whether they will be remunerated for the additional month of work, according to a teacher from G.S Kagarama in Gasabo District, who preferred anonymity.

He explained that teachers often engage in other personal activities such as attending to their farms or small businesses, and studies, during holidays but "we were warned not to miss the remedial programme or else we shall be dismissed."

Another teacher from G.S Gitwa, in Nyamasheke District, said, "We are not given a meal just as the pupils are, meaning we should at least be given some money.

"Normally, holidays help us to be with our families because some of us work from far away, and parents seem not to have not enough information about the programme because we are going into their homes to remind them which delays our work.”

Over 20,000 teachers trained

But officials noted that some form of facilitation was considered.

Nelson Mbarushimana, the Director General of REB, on Tuesday, August 6, told The New Times that much is expected from the remedial learning programme.

More than 20,000 teachers were trained, for four days, he noted, to teach over 300, 000 learners during the one-month period.

Mbarushimana said: "They [teachers] were given 40,000 francs by then [during the training], and at the end of the programme, we shall give them 20,000 francs for transport”.

"The [three] major subjects we chose help pupils in numeracy and literacy, it is scheduled that learners will sit for final assessment exams in the last three days of the course and this will help teachers to know who gets promoted.”

Remedial programme is expected to help in reducing the rate of primary school dropout, which was 9.5 percent in the 2020/2021 academic year.