The Ministry of General Education says agricultural science will continue to be an optional subject despite government’s pronouncement to diversify the economy from mining to agriculture.
Ministry of General Education spokesperson, Hillary Chipango said agricultural science is a practical subject which needs vast land for where pupils can practice agricultural farming practices and techniques.
ZANIS reports that Mr Chipango said most schools do not have enough land for farming activities as they are located along the line of rail and urban settings that do not have access to land to do some farming activities.
He observed that making agricultural science a compulsory subject would disadvantage some pupils from schools that are located in the line of rail that do not have land for farming activities.
Mr. Chipango stressed that agricultural science is one of the vocational skills training courses that have since been introduced under the new curriculum to ensure that learners are empowered with skills.
He said that the revised curriculum will enable school drop outs and those that can’t find formal employment to use the acquired skills to survive.
Mr Chipango however noted that in the ministry’s quest to deliver quality education to the nation, the ministry will ensure that agriculture science becomes one of the key subjects so as to help young people work hard and acquire the skills.
Ba LT where was he speaking from? Headline and picture in total contrast
The quagmire caused by~ not everyone wants to be a farmer~but chewing on & doing what they desire to do. Even a scientist or a kaponya needs food to eat. If being a kachema~farmer is an option in schools, let it be..even specialisation is choice. Give the schools land to empower students to be best kachemas for the country to even feed bandits with nutritious food.
…farming is not for everyone but eating the farmers food by everyone else is~gooooduuu~milile.
How much is mealie meal or SALT today?
The Skeleton Key
~206~
Let there be a distinction between Agriculture Science and Production Unit. In the Unip days we used to have PU where the kids would be asked to carry ulukasu na fikwakwa. I believe the govt should bring back Production Unit (PU) it instills discipline in the kids and teaches them practical lessons on farming for themselves- the only problem with PU was these teachers used to use the kids as cheap labour but if the kids themselves benefit from say the maize they plant on school grounds and not the way it is where chi greedy teacher takes everything for itself etc then why not?
I know of schools around the country that are FORCED to each “science ” and yet have no laboratories and the the learners have not even seen a test tube. Not every person will use a test tube in a home but every Zambian will use greens, meat, cassava, fish , maize, etc in a home whether this be grown in a tin, plastic bag, garden or a field. These very people who have never done agricultural science at school are the ones that have bought big chunks of land in the name of farming but only to use the land to hide their criminal activities. Some of them we have learnt that they had hidden trunks of money underground in some farm. Ask Skelton Key “how much does the bag of military mealin meal cost?”.
Meant to write – how much does the bag of mealie meal cost?
Nonsense! We must have Agric Science as one of major subjects if we are to be masters of our land. We are busy dishing out land with excuses like Zambians cannot produce!! We must take charge of our land and other resources via a compulsory offering of agric. science.
First paragraph says ag science optional, then goes onto say to introduce it would disadvsntage and in final paragrapg it is introduced into the new curriculum so that govt policy on agriculture is reflected…
Some one has the reporting wrong