Lab Equipment Shortage Hampers Hands-On Science Education in Ugandan Schools

Science lessons in many Ugandan schools are suffering due to a critical lack of laboratory equipment, limiting students’ ability to conduct hands-on experiments. At Namilyango High School Gulama in Mukono District’s Goma Division, A-Level students like Faith Elizabeth Awor, who studies Biology, Chemistry, and Mathematics, express frustration over teachers demonstrating experiments for the entire class instead of allowing individual participation.

“We lack enough equipment for practical work, leaving some of us confused after watching demonstrations,” Awor noted. Similarly, Senior Five student Henry Sobina, pursuing Physics, Economics, and Mathematics, rarely gets to perform physics practicals due to insufficient apparatus, despite adequate lab space.

The school’s Director of Studies, Fred Kiyaga, highlighted that over 100 Senior Four and 50 A-Level science students are impacted, with group work failing to provide the individual skills needed. Despite solid academic results—such as last year’s top science student scoring 17 points in BCM—the school aims higher with better resources. Biology and Chemistry head Julius Nangoli pointed to the high cost of chemicals, often leading to improvisations.

In response, the Rotary Club of Mengo donated equipment worth Shs7 million, as announced by President Ronald Migadde Musoke. This initiative seeks to boost science performance, with plans to track the school’s progress. Headteacher Betty Nasali Vumilia noted the two labs have long been under-equipped.

Mukono District alone has 19 government and 209 private secondary schools grappling with similar issues. Nationally, the Auditor General’s latest report on 157 local governments reveals 136 schools without science labs and 270 with inadequate ones, alongside problems like overcrowded classrooms and poor infrastructure.

Source: Daily Monitor (Uganda)