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Education in Namibia

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Education in Namibia is compulsory for learners in grade 1 to 11. The official governing body, the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture currently caters for 755 943 learners nationwide in 1 884 different government schools[1]with an added 100 schools that are privately owned.[2] The Constitution directs the government to provide free primary education; however, families must pay fees for uniforms, stationery, books, hostels, and school improvements. Namibian subjects' syllabi are based on the International General Certificate of Secondary Education which is apart of Cambridge International.

Educational strategies

Before independence

Before Namibia's independence, the country's education system was designed to reinforce apartheid rather than provide the necessary human resource base to promote equitable social and economic development. It was fragmented along racial and ethnic lines, with vast disparities in both the allocation of resources and the quality of education offered.[3]

After independence

The new Government of the Republic of Namibia (GRN) set about to create one unified structure for education administration. Currently, Namibia allocates more than 20% of its national budget to education. This represents six to seven percent of Namibia's total GDP and is one of the three countries with the highest percentage of GDP directed toward education in the world.[3] Educational institutions in Namibia and their portfolio are accredited by the Namibia Qualifications Authority (NQA). This institution evaluates and accredits national institutions and degrees, as well as foreign qualifications of people who wish to demonstrate the national equivalence of their degrees earned abroad.[4]

Researchers from the United States Agency for International Development opine that the investment is paying off. A new, uniform and learner-centered curriculum for grades one through twelve, finalized in 1998, has received recognition beyond Namibia's borders and significant progress has been made in the use of English (which replaced Afrikaans as the nation's official language) as a medium of instruction. About 95 percent of school age children attend school and the number of teachers has increased by almost 30 percent since 1990. Over 3000 new classrooms have been built. As a result of these improvements, repetition rates in all grades have been reduced. Whereas in 1991, half the learners in grade 1 were repeating the grade, by 2003, over 84 percent of learners were earning their promotions on time. Dropout rates have also plummeted.[3]

On the other hand, Namibia's former Minister of Education Abraham Iyambo summarily described the Namibian education system as "crippled",[5] citing dropout rates, lack of teaching facilities, financial difficulties, sub-standard vocational training, and absence of pre-primary development. A National Conference on Education, running from 27 June to 1 July 2011, was conferred to address the most pressing issues.[5]

The Namibian education system is experiencing many obstacles. It is faced with serious weaknesses in the provision of education to all. Additionally the quality of education, quality of teachers and the performance of learners is unsatisfactory. The Ministry of Education is drafting an improvement program that is known as the ETSIP (Education and Training Sector Improvement Program). The ETSIP aims to align the entire Namibian education system to Namibia's Vision 2030 and the needs of the Namibian population.[6]

In all government schools, primary education is free since 2013,[7] and secondary education since 2016.[8] Tertiary educational institutions, both private and public, charge tuition fees. Corporal punishment is not allowed.[9]

New curriculum and education sectors[10]

After the 2011 National Education conference, the ministry decided to revise the curriculum for learners in Namibia. This change applies to all learners and will begin phasing into schools in 2018.

Junior and senior primary phase (grade 1 to 7)

The revised curriculum now indicates that the junior primary phase will be from grade 1 to 3 while the senior primary phase will be from grade 4 to 7. According to Patrick Simalumba, the acting director of the National Institution for Education Development (NIED), the change will give pupils the opportunity to be exposed to pre-vocational subjects to lay the foundation for technical-vocational education.

The senior primary phase (grade 4 to 7) will consist of five promotional core subjects (for example 2 languages and Mathematics), five support subjects (for example sciences) and an added pre-vocational subject (such as Design and Technology or Home Economics). This gives learners 9 subjects in total.

Junior and senior secondary phase (grade 8-11)

The junior secondary stage, previously from grade 8 to 10, will now only consist of grade 8 and 9. This will require grade 9 learners to write a junior secondary semi-external examination at the end of their schooling year. This examination will be set and moderated centrally but is marked in the respective regions. This was done in an effort to reduce the chance of pupils leaving the school system at an early stage.

The junior secondary stage will consist of 7 compulsory promotional subjects, elective subjects and support subjects.

This significant change will result in the phasing out of the grade 10 external examination. Therefore, the Namibian Senior Secondary Certificate on Ordinary Level (previously NSSCO or IGCSE) will be a two year course offered in grade 10 and 11.

National Senior Secondary Certificate Advanced Subsidiary (formerly NSSCH or HIGCSE) (grade 12)

The NSSCH or HIGCSE certificate will now be replaced by the Advanced Subsidiary (NSSCAS) level, a one-year course to be covered in grade 12.

Summary

  • Grade 1 to 3 is called the junior primary phase.
  • Grade 4 to 7 is called the senior primary phase and consists of 9 different subjects; all of which develop pupils' vocational skills as well as knowledge and understanding.
  • Grade 7 learners can advance to the junior secondary phase (grade 8) if their marks, discipline and attendance is satisfactory.
  • Grade 8 to 9 is called the junior secondary phase.
  • In grade 9, all learners write a semi-external examination which is marked nationally but moderated and set up by ministry officials in the capital, Windhoek.
  • Grade 10 and 11 replaces the former NSSCO or IGCSE syllabus and is called the senior secondary phase.
  • In grade 11, all learners write an external examination which is set up, moderated and marked centrally.
  • Learners are freely allowed to leave the schooling system after successful (or failed) completion of their grade 11 external examination. Using this official certificate, they may apply for admission at tertiary institutions or apply for a job.
  • Only learners whose marks are satisfactory are allowed to proceed to the senior secondary advanced subsidiary level (AS-level), formerly known as NSSCH or HIGCSE. This means that there is only one year to complete additional content set out by the AS-level syllabus.

Tertiary education

Universities and colleges

Main article: List of universities in Namibia

Namibia has two public tertiary institutions of general education, the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) and the University of Namibia (UNAM) and one private University, the International University of Management (IUM). At NUST admission is based on grade 12 certificate with a maximum of five qualifying subjects with a total score of 25 points or more and a E symbol or better in English.[11] At the University of Namibia's basic requirement for entrance to undergraduate degree programmes is a Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate (NSSC) with a pass in five subjects with a total score of 25 points, on the UNAM evaluation scale, or more in not more than three examination sittings.[12]

There are a number of specialised tertiary educational institutions such as the College of the Arts (Cota) in Windhoek,[13] The University Centre for Studies in Namibia (TUCSIN) in Windhoek, Oshakati, Rundu, and Rehoboth, the Namibian Maritime and Fisheries Institute (NAMFI) in Walvis Bay, and the Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) in Arandis.

Namibian plumbing students

Vocational education

The Namibian Training Authority (NTA) controls seven vocational centers and supports a number of other institutions like Namwater. They offer a range of courses for school leavers, including; Plumbing, Welding, Electrical general, Automotive electrical, Bricklaying, Cabinet making, Technical drawing, Dressmaking, Hospitality, Office management and Automotive mechanics.[14]

Vocational students in Namibia are given a small amount of money from the government to assist them in attending Vocational Training Centers.

Statistics

In 1997, the gross primary enrollment rate was 130.6 percent, and the net primary enrollment rate was 91.2 percent. According to the Ministry of Labour's child labor survey, 80 percent of working children between the ages of 6 and 18 continue to attend school while they are employed.[15] In 1998, there were 400,325 Namibian students in primary school and 115,237 students in secondary schools. The pupil-teacher ratio in 1999 was estimated at 32:1, with about 8% of the GDP being spent on education.[16]

In 2011 the Namibian education system accommodated approximately 600,000 learners of which 174,000 were senior secondary students and below 10,000 were pre-primary pupils.[17] While teachers are seen as generally adequately educated they lack specialised training. Schools consistently perform below expectation; failure and dropout rates are high. Only 12% of learners proceed into tertiary education of any kind due to limited places in universities and vocational training.[18]

References

  1. ^ "Ministry of Education Namibia - About the MinistryAbout the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture". www.moe.gov.na. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  2. ^ Fischer,G. "The Namibian Educational System" (PDF). Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Windhoek, Namibia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
  3. ^ a b c "Namibia Africa: Strategic Objectives: Quality Primary Education". United States Agency for International Development. 2008-08-26. Archived from the original on 2008-08-16. Retrieved 2008-08-04. This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain.
  4. ^ "NQA:: History". Namibia Qualifications Authority. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
  5. ^ a b Nakale, Albertina (28 June 2011). "Education 'crippled'... Let's fix it - Dr Iyambo". New Era. Archived from the original on 9 May 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  6. ^ "The Program Basic Education Namibia". NIED. Archived from the original on 2011-03-11. Retrieved 2010-09-25.
  7. ^ "Free Primary Education from 2013". Government of Namibia. 20 December 2012.
  8. ^ "Free secondary education in 2016 – Hanse-Himarwa". New Era. 10 November 2015.
  9. ^ Menges, Werner (6 September 2016). "School beatings ruled illegal". The Namibian. p. 3.
  10. ^ Namibian, The. "Understanding the New Curriculum". The Namibian. Retrieved 2019-10-05.
  11. ^ "Admissions". Polytechnic of Namibia. Archived from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2010-09-25.
  12. ^ "General Admission Criteria for Undergraduate Programmes". University of Namibia. Retrieved 2010-09-25.
  13. ^ "Cota turns 40". New Era. Art Life weekly supplement. 29 July 2011. p. 3.
  14. ^ "The Vocational Training Center Support". Namibia Training Authority. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  15. ^ "Namibia". United States Department of Labor. Archived from the original on 2008-09-05. Retrieved 2008-08-04. This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain.
  16. ^ "Namibia – Education". Encyclopedia of Nations.
  17. ^ Sasman, Catherine (28 June 2011). "Education under spotlight". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 2012-05-31. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
  18. ^ Sasman, Catherine (28 June 2011). "Quality, shortages, and concerns of teachers". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 2012-05-31. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
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