The Zambian government has not done enough to strengthen science and technology education, according to Dr. Dennis Wanchinga, executive director of the National Science and Technology Council, which wishes to undertake an evidence-based assessment of Zambian schools.
“It is the absence of the best basic teaching aids for teaching science that is missing in schools,” Wanchinga said in an interview. “Pupils have never seen the chemical reactions. The laboratories are poorly equipped. We are not teaching much to develop our own local material for teaching science and depend on foreign material.”
While Lewis Mwape, a physics teacher at Matero Girls Secondary School in Lusaka, said the expense of equipment limits classroom experiments, he makes due with what he has.
“As a teacher, I improvise in some experiments, like on the demonstration of a wave in a ripple tank, and have been using the learning channel on DStv for pupils to learn about science and mathematics,” he said.
Zambia has been experiencing a “brain drain” effect, Wanchinga explained, with secondary school science teachers migrating to other countries for better pay.
“With the use of ICTs, there is need for the scientists in the diaspora to be involved in the country’s development by contributing their knowledge through distance learning and the use of e-learning,” he said. “We need to develop a good network through which schools can utilize ICT, which is becoming an important tool in delivering e-learning in education.”
Currently, 0.2 percent of the national budget is allocated to the Ministry of Science and Technology, which Wanchinga said is not sufficient. However, the Lagos Plan of Action by Heads of State has agreed that the ministry must receive at least 1 percent of national budget funds.
To improve the situation in schools, Zambia needs a strong policy framework anchored by the highest governmental office, Wanchinga said, and training qualified teachers and creating specialized education centers in science and technology must be placed atop the government’s agenda.
The IDG News Service
TITLE AND CONTENT MISS MATCH, HOWEVER DSTV IS COSTLY IN ZED
i think govt can do better than this ,why build so many schools which they cant maintain
twa culamu zambia
Gud stuff are yet to come from the Zed presido RB 72.
Viva H H a man with a gud Edu programme for Zed.
Our children in such schools will never know how a beaker looks like. Let alone know what apperatus are, a lab, test tube etc. We need to improve in education. Only those who have a privillage of going to a private school are lucky. Bwana Minister of Education please do something!
WE HAVE LOST DIRECTION…………..
NO WONDER WE HVE POOR GRADUANTS PA ZED
ALL AR CHONGOLOLOS……………..UN BAKED IF BAKED BANANYEKA
# 6 thru 8 chimbukutumukumbuta – shut up! Poor graduants…….you dont know what you are talking about!!
ZED produces the best graduates
# 6. chimbukutumukumbuta u are graduate from were and what do u do.i hope u not taking care of the aged in the eu
No wonder sata has boycotted going back to school
it is also technology and a sign that our teachers are inovative.They should be encouraged to use what is cheap and avairable.The best in our education system is in our making but not now.
#11, you are right, zambians studying abroad (esp for their first degrees) make a fuss about graduates from UNZA or CBU!!! #6…GET A REAL LIFE!
#6
FYI, Zambia produces some of the best graduates in Southern Africa.
we hve had some of the best graduates come out cbu unza and other colleges,look at how our acca students and cima have performed globally.having lived in europe its very diffcot to to get gud job and those who think are doing fine out of selling burgers shud come in da open and tell us which school they are in,its only in the olden days when we wud hear of our parents having made it at universites like oxford,manchester,liverpool,andrews and so on,imwe ba manje u just in colleges that cannot even compared to our own zicas.
Zambia’s education system can only improve with the goverment’s full involvemnet and support.Education is one area where the goverment has never paid any particular attention.They only make empty promises when they smell an elelction and after putting them in high office, they forget all about it. No wonder free education will never be realised.
How about this kid who committed suicide after a difficult grade 12 exam. Its because of such things, learners are unable to prepare adequately due to lack of proper equipment. Do something RB before we lose more lives!!!!!!!!!!!
Professor Lungwangwa despite him being educated is not doing much to improve education standards. The man just sits in his office in Lusaka and has no clue that some pupils learn in classroom with grass thatched roofs….Brian Chituwo did his best for the Education sector when he was minister….for the first time, there were no exam leakages.
I think the newly elected President has much to do inorder to better the lives of our upcoming brothers and sisters. Bembas say “imiti ikula empanga” meaning children of today are the leaders of tomorrow. Why not sucrificing the little we have on issues like this other than on political campaigns and sending these old recycled aids patients to expensive hospitals on the expence of tax payers money.
#7& 8, be real. Who are the graduates you say are half baked/bananyeka and are chongolololos?. Do you mean Zambian doctors, engeneers, lawyers, economists or teachers?. Be real, they are not just respected in Zambia.
Zambia produces good graduants because school is hard pa zed. For someone to get the degree, then hes been through alot. The only bad thing is that they are not exposed, and they never get to know how worth their knowledge is. Back me up buddies… this time I wrote sense!!!!
eduction in zed very important RB look into it Ba RB we have hope in u. please help the youny ones before HH comes in power. one up one down.
Yangu tata! Chansoni sana pa Zed.
let our education impove mr RB please this time around before HH takes over
hh taking over what? to hell with his selfish motives
LT can you please dig deeper and give us some information regarding the new ZAMBIAN PASSPORT? Some of us in diaspora are going to be in deep trouble when our passports expire because it is taking too long (more than 4 months) to get our passports renewed, It is not possible to get a visa without a valid passport!! Can you please check with the passport office in Lusaka and find out what’s happening there?
LT can you please dig deeper and give us some information regarding the new ZAMBIAN PASSPORT? Some of us in diaspora are going to be in deep trouble when our passports expire because it is taking too long (more than 4 months) to get our passports renewed, It is not possible to get a visa without a valid passport!! Can you please check with the passport office in Lusaka and find out what’s happening?
great comment miss air…check your shallow comments guys grow up this site is read even by non zambians…what would they think of us…
TALKING ABOUT PASSPORTS IN ZAMBIA, CAN SOME OME IN CHARGE REMOVE THOSE THREE LADIES AT PASSPORT OFFICE CAIRO ROAD, THEY ARE SO CORRUPT.(MWAPE AND HER FRIENDS)
RB wake up mate,it is tueday kids are at school already.
Teachers please stay away if you have no equipment to use. DSTVs are too expensive.
Mr Mushili (Ndola Central): Madam Speaker, with the introduction of the new machines and centralisation of the issuing offices to Lusaka, Livingstone and Ndola, how will people be issued passports without being subjected to queuing up at the passport offices as this is what has caused a lot of corruption?
Lieutenant-General Shikapwasha: Madam Speaker, queuing up will be eradicated totally because the new equipment that we have put in place produces more than 1000 passports in 24 hours. Therefore, because of this new technology, there is no need for our people to queue up.
Guys there is one strange thing i have noticed about news ever since the elction. Things in Zambia are all negative, i dont know if you have noticed that.
Anyhow #2. Georgia Russia , you have a point there why build more school if you cant maintain the little we have?
Given the circumstances prevailing, DSTV’s just fine. At least its better than nothing though second to the ‘do it yourself experiments’. The students just have to concentrate, they have no choice. Such is the state of things in Zambia.
Kasama Boys come to Israel, nga mwacula mu Zambia.Am believe President Obanda will deliver, oh sorry Banda.
I see no future for our country,Its like everyone is now concerned over himself. the so leaders of our country are also interested in money and nothing else, Kabili bena balisambilila and they take their kids to better schools abroard. I worn you leaders, GOD WILL FACE YOU ON THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT
The use of DSTv should not be viewed as wrong. The fact is that it should contribute to the process of learning( use of ICT. However, there is need for govt to provide the both the framework and the equipment for training in science and technology. The state of affairs in our schools a far a science training is concern is scary. labs have been turned into ordinary class rooms, all the lab equipment is “gone”. If you can do a science course whether degree, diploma or high school certficate and you have not done all the practical work needed under the particular curriculum, then you are half baked. by the is there anyone with the idea about how much govt allocates for science ant technology?
UNZA Produces best graduates not only in Southern Africa, but the entire world including me.
THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN ZAMBIA HAS GONE TO THE DOGS.THE QUALITY OF STUDENTS WE ARE PRODUCING NOW CANNOT COMPARE TO THE QUALITY THAT WAS 20 YEARS AGO.STUDENTS ARE STUDYING TO PASS THE EXAM AND NOT TO KNOW THE TOPIC.THIS MINISTRY NEEDS A REVISITATION BECAUSE ITS NOT EVERYONE WHO CAN AFFORD TO TAKE THEIR CHILDREN TO PRIVATE SCHOOLS.MAYBE THE WHOLE SYSTEM NEEDS A COMPLETE OVERHAUL.INFACT EVEN IF YOU FAIL AS LONG AS YOU HAVE MONEY YOU GET YOUR DEGREE! EVEN IN WORK PLACES YOU FIND SOME GRADUATES WHO CANNOT DELIVER BUT PAPERS THEY HAVE.SO LETS DEAL WITH THE ROOT PROBLEMS AND NOT SYMPTOMS.
#40 Please write in small letters. Its difficulty to read what u are writing.
…but #39, bear in mind that you used crooks too much, and uku datulula saana. Its part of life. but bear in mind that your intelligence wont be judged as a group.. nipalobe. Even harvard has dull people!!!
I only used crooks in first year pa NS. Kabili muli bu fresher ilakosako. But ngawaikata line ni poridge.
HEAVENLY FATHER PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE NOR FORSAKE US. HELP OUR LEADERS TO REMEMBER THE PEOPLE THEY SERVE. GUID AND GIVE THEM LOVING HEARTS. WE PRAY FOR YOUR FAVOUR ON OUR ZAMBIA THE PRECIOUS GIFT YOU GAVE US. WE BELIEVE IN THE NAME OF JESUS
#44 Write in small letters. Uletukalifya amenso.
Just a few weeks ago, LT reported something about Zambian education being effective and that foreigners were sending their children to Zambian schools. Now this? Lekeni ukutubepa ubufi!!!
#44 Please keep praying mate God is listerning. I have completely lost strength with the present situation in Zambia. At first it was high milliemeal prices, secondly children in Choma village abandoning school due to starvation and now inavailability of school equipment. Without your prayer I can see Zambia being swallowed by a mega Luapula Fish next I tell you.
#43, dont worry, its normal using crooks. Even JZ bio know that. Crooks exists everywhere, its just the name which changes, and places where to find it. Whats the point of suffering when our big brothers suffered for us?
“While Lewis Mwape, a physics teacher at Matero Girls Secondary School in Lusaka, said the expense of equipment limits classroom experiments, he makes due with what he has.”
Are there no sub-editors at Lusaka Times? It is less cumbersome and more grammatically correct to simply say “the cost of equipment” than to use the grating “the expense of equipment”. I am sure Mr Mwape makes do with what he has. He certainly does not make “due with what he has”.
#48, That is very correct, crooks is everywhere especially at undergraduate. Having been at UNZA in NS, crooks was part of the course. But once you advance to higher years you tend to understand things better to do it the correct way. Even here in China its common to see young undergraduates engage in crooks. Most chaps who have never been at UNZA or CBU who did 1st degrees abroad think ZED education is useless. Those of us who have passed through UNZA and studying abroad are competing favourably with Graduates from other countries even doing much better than them. VIVA UNZA..
@50, you must be a seasoned English Language scholar eeehh.. I am impressed with your eye catching observations though.
may i ask most of you chaps? are you commenting on the story or just giving opinions on other matters. you not different from writer of story at hand where the title and story contents have been mismatched.
Guys stop the fuss. Its us to develop Zed and not the Chinese, british, americans. Abena Mulongoti stop stealing. i watched a clip on youtube on poverty in Zambia. My a-ss when campaigning do our leaders notice the suffering the street kids are going through. Look at congo Dr. nkunda and Kabila are fighing for places which dont even have roads. Money spent on bullets can biuy food. In Zambia we say there is poverty when in shops you find cheap rice and other stuff. Lets use GMOs. America is fed on GMOs. To hell with the european union lets get the GMO technology from Obama and grow food.Lets diversify our staple food. Akabwali daily don’t get me wrong buts thats primitive.
what have the zambian engineers done, we still bring foreigners to do our roads and bridges, we still import simple things like needles and buttons
Elo lwanya nomba!! technology at its best!
No. (37) I am sure you meant to say ‘YOU WILL FACE GOD ON THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT and not the other way round – happens.
@54, BASHI NTWENO, Yes you are right but how do you explain the situation where Zambian trained engineers are ticking in foreign land? Working in large multi-national firms? Given the resources any Zambian Engineer can form a company to carry out road construction, make needles etc. Engineers are not like lawyers, to form a company as a lawyer, you just need to buy books, constitution, etc and rent an office. Engineering requires great investment my dear.
instead of building more schools govt should also improve education
#49 Malaika thanks for your analysis, I wonder what sort of people they engage to edit these stories, probably school drop-outs. LT mutamfyeni incito uyo ule patula ifisungu umusango yu!
“While Lewis Mwape, a physics teacher at Matero Girls Secondary School in Lusaka, said the expense of equipment limits classroom experiments, he makes due with what he has.
“As a teacher, I improvise in some experiments, like on the demonstration of a wave in a ripple tank, and have been using the learning channel on DStv for pupils to learn about science and mathematics,” he said.”
This is why I am for a PHYSICIST to be in the top 3 in the President RB Banda Administration because physics and physicists are practical and form the backborne of every advanced society.
In w w w . lusakatimes . c o m / ? p =5458
“While Lewis Mwape, a physics teacher at Matero Girls Secondary School in Lusaka, said the expense of equipment limits classroom experiments, he makes due with what he has.“As a teacher, I improvise in some experiments, like on the demonstration of a wave in a ripple tank, and have been using the learning channel on DStv for pupils to learn about science and mathematics,” he said.”
This is why I am for a PHYSICIST to be in the top 3 in the President RB Banda Administration because physics and physicists are practical and form the backborne of every advanced society.
So another unknown, crazy chap will echo what Chulu is saying. I know how these guys behave, thats their style. Watch this space.
Oops! wrong thread. Sorry guys.
Iam not from Zambia first of all. It seems to me that everyone commenting are abroad and criticising your goverment of the day. Let me say something why dont you go back and prove what you are saying cos i believe your action speak louder than your words. To put words into action is much difficult that what you think. So come my brethren let us built the nation with our action and not criticism.
Ba #64, who got your goat? If you’re not Zambian…why aren’t you where you come from? Una taba njala ufuno tipasa ka lecture? We left to make money, get exposure and education.
Nkala che.
Those that have a misconception about Zambian education should keep quiet. The truth of the matter is that Zambian students in general have good academic foundation after they complete secondary school. Those that go to first world countries do extremely well up and beyond the level of the indigenous citizens. We all have a role to play to make our education system tick. We must establish alumuni associations that must assist the schools by donating books, equipment, and where possible sponsor students using established endowments. I am sure it can be done if we stay united and show a caring spirit for each other. Let’s do it.
#66, ZIT GRADUATE, great posting fellow Zambian Citizen. What more must I write.