Education
CEPIDE Lays Ground for Innovative Doctoral Education in Ugandan HEIs
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Mark-Wamai-150x150.jpeg)
Published
3 years agoon
![The Vice Chancellor-Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe (R) addresses participants as L-R Dr. Nora Mulira-NCHE, Dr. Sabrina Kitaka - Mak-RIF GMC and Mr. Timothy Sejjoba-MoES listen at the CEPIDE Research Dissemination, 28th January 2021, CTF2, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Makerere-CEES-RIF-CEPIDE-Research-Dissemination-28thJan2021-Story.jpg)
CEPIDE is an acronym for the Capability Enhancement Project for Innovative Doctoral Education at Ugandan Universities (CEPIDE). Funded by the Government of Uganda under the Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (Mak-RIF), this two-phase project aims to build institutional capacity and individual capabilities of doctoral supervisors at Ugandan universities by giving rise to a shift from traditional modalities to innovative approaches of doctoral education.
On 28th January 2021, stakeholders gathered in the Central Teaching Facility 2 (CTF2) Auditorium, Makerere University, to receive findings from Phase one of the project. This phase entailed conducting a baseline study of the state of doctoral education in Uganda. Phase one will also involve writing a course module for a specialized blended capacity building training for supervisors of doctoral candidates at Ugandan universities. Phase two on the other hand will involve implementing the course module developed in phase one as well as creating a database and an online platform for e-networking, knowledge sharing and professional support among doctoral supervisors in Ugandan universities.
The East African School of Higher Education Studies and Development (EASHESD) under which CEPIDE falls has aligned its activities along four thematic areas namely; Policy and advocacy, Research and Innovations, Leadership and Management, and Training and Learning. These thematic areas position EASHESD to contribute to research in the understanding of the field of higher education, with the CEPIDE study intricately feeding into this.
EASHESD is predominantly a graduate School offering Masters and PhD programmes and as such, the CEPIDE study on improving the quality of Doctoral Education and Training in Universities in Uganda is a fulfillment of its mandate. Addressing the dissemination workshop, the EASHESD Dean Dr. Ronald Bisaso elaborated that CEPIDE study is aligned to the School’s own practice and grounded in research undertaken therein.
“As Dean, I am happy to note that the members of staff from the East African School of Higher Education Studies and Development wrote proposals and received funding to support three projects under the Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (MakRIF). These projects include: i. Capability Enhancement project for Innovative Doctoral Education at Ugandan Universities (CEPIDE), ii. Enhancing Women to Leadership positions in Universities in Uganda (WOLEP) and iii. Pedagogical Leadership of Academic Staff in Higher Education Institutions to Enhance Graduate Work Readiness and Transition to Work (PLASHE-WIL).
“Through the aforementioned research projects, the School has ensured that key stakeholders namely female Vice Chancellors, the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE), National Planning Authority (NPA) and the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) participate in the research projects as well as actively engage with researchers during the dissemination of findings on higher education” remarked Dr. Bisaso.
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Makerere-CEES-RIF-CEPIDE-Research-Dissemination-28thJan2021-Group-1024x468.jpg)
He concluded by saying that the involvement of key stakeholders in research and dissemination has enabled EASHESD to build a network that connects research in higher education with Government agencies that focus on higher education and development as well as universities in Uganda.
Presenting an overview of the project, the Principal Investigator (PI) Dr. Irene Etomaru said the study was driven by the acute shortage of a critical mass of doctorates with requisite knowledge and skill sets to undertake translatable research and train innovative researchers in Uganda. “There are only about 26 researchers per million inhabitants in Uganda, which is well below the world average of 1,083, about 1,000 PhD holders in various disciplines are unevenly distributed across the academia, government ministries, agencies and research institutes and 80% of these are at Makerere University.”
The PI shared that through CEPIDE, it is envisaged that an Enhanced Postgraduate Environment (EPE) will be created in Ugandan universities. The EPE, she said, would lead to the nurturing of a new cadre of doctorates able to undertake translatable research, train innovative researchers as well as develop innovative models to address local societal needs and improve Uganda’s innovative capacity.
In terms of data collection, the CEPIDE team reviewed laws, plans, policies and reports, and held Focus Group Discussions (FDGs) with NCHE. Furthermore, they collected data from fourteen institutions offering doctoral education and training in Uganda and held in-depth interviews with a total of 49 participants.
Prof. Fred E. K. Bakkabulindi another member of the research team tasked with the role of mentorship then delved into the context and history of doctoral training in Uganda. Statistics for the period 1970-2020 revealed that Makerere University at 90% had the highest number of PhDs among the five doctorate awarding Public HEIs in Uganda. Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) followed with 7.2%, Gulu University (GU) with 1.5%, Uganda Management Institute (UMI) with 1.1% and finally Kyambogo University (KyU) with 0.2%. The glaring difference in percentages could be attributed to the fact that whereas Makerere’s statistics stretch back to 1970, the other four HEIs only started awarding PhDs in the 2010s with GU coming closest in 2013.
The statistics shared by Prof. Bakkabulindi further proved the unfortunate fact that doctoral education and training in Uganda is biased in favour of males. Only 23.4% of the total numbers of PhD graduates in the aforementioned 50-year period were female. UMI led the percentages with 45.5%, followed by Makerere at 23.6%, MUST at 20.5%, GU at 14.2% while KyU is yet to graduate any female PhDs.
Prof. Bakkabulindi also examined the Science Technology Engineering Mathematics (STEM) versus non-STEM dichotomy with telling results. KyU proved that it is a predominantly STEM HEI by producing 100% STEM PhDs. KyU was followed by MUST at 79.5%, Makerere at 67.6%, GU at 40%, while UMI produced none.
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Makerere-CEES-RIF-CEPIDE-Research-Dissemination-28thJan2021-Dr-Balojja-Ms-Namisango-1024x575.jpg)
With the contexts established, it was time for the participants to hear the team’s findings from their baseline study. Dr. Tom Balojja who also doubled as the day’s emcee in delivering a summary of the findings shared that doctoral education and training in Uganda had low throughput rates. Furthermore, doctoral education and training is biased in favour of males and STEM disciplines, and has its capacity concentrated in Makerere University.
He then went on to present the findings in detail, as espoused by the European Commission’s Seven Principles of Innovative Doctoral Training. These seven are; Research excellence, Attractive institutional environment, Interdisciplinary research options (cross-disciplinarity), Exposure to industry and other relevant employment sectors, International networking, Transferable skills training and Quality assurance.
The CEPIDE study recommended that;
- Government of Uganda should integrate doctoral education and training in national development planning within the context of the policy objective of increasing the percentage of the GDP spending on Research and Development (R&D).
- National targets should be set and resources should be committed to achieve the set targets in order to address concerns about the inadequacy of the critical mass of researchers in the country.
- Government of Uganda should introduce a sufficient and well-structured legal framework necessary to regulate doctoral education and training. The legal framework should regulate the structure of doctoral programs and curriculum issues, support systems and staffing to improve the quality of the postgraduate training environment in HEIs in Uganda.
- Government of Uganda and institutions offering doctoral education and training should work out mechanisms which will enable them to work with the industry and other research institutions in promoting research and innovations.
- Institutions should transit from offering PhD by research to the taught PhD
- The scope of doctoral education and training should be broadened to incorporate other models of the doctorate such as PhD by coursework (taught PhD), Professional doctorates, Work-based doctorates.
- The role and funding of Doctoral Schools in Universities should be underscored to create enhanced postgraduate environment (EPE)
- More research and interventions into doctoral education and training in Uganda.
Reacting to the presentation, the Director Directorate of Research and Graduate Training (DRGT), Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi requested the NPA to come up with a PhD training strategy for Uganda that clearly outlines the demand for PhDs particularly in the industry as well as resources to train them. He emphasized the need to preserve the quality of PhDs trained as the drive for more PhDs is impressed upon HEIs. In the same breath, the Deputy Director DRGT, Dr. Robert Wamala advocated for a mechanism to ensure productivity of PhDs as a third factor to consider in addition to quantity and quality.
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Makerere-CEES-RIF-CEPIDE-Research-Dissemination-28thJan2021-Dr-Muvawala-NPA-1024x522.jpg)
Dr. Paul Birevu Muyinda, the Deputy Principal College of Education and External Studies (CEES) in his remarks commended Mak-RIF for changing the terrain of research and innovations at Makerere University. “CEES was one of the Colleges that wasn’t attracting much funding but with the coming of Mak-RIF, we have seen a very significant increase from only two research Projects to twenty.”
He thanked NPA for accepting to conduct both virtual and physical training for staff at Makerere University who are interested in writing impactful policy briefs.
Dr. Sabrina Kitaka who represented the Mak-RIF Grants Management Committee (GMC) Chairperson, Prof. William Bazeyo commended the CEPIDE research team for recognizing that Makerere as a leader ought to strive to bridge the gap in doctoral training and education between itself and younger institutions. She thanked the Government of Uganda for providing funding to more than 500 Research Projects all aimed at informing national development priorities.
“The Volatility, Uncertainty Complexity and Ambiguity (VUCA) phenomenon created by the COVID-19 is teaching us how to be innovative by disseminating our findings both physically and online. Any innovation that results in training of scholars is not only exciting but brings closer the possibility of an education that is boundless” said Dr. Kitaka.
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Makerere-CEES-RIF-CEPIDE-Research-Dissemination-28thJan2021-Prof-Nawangwe-Dr-Muyinda-1024x575.jpg)
Mr. Timothy Sejjoba who represented Dr. Jane Egau, Director for Higher Technical and Vocational Education and Training – HTVET, Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) in his address congratulated Makerere University upon not only securing funding under Mak-RIF but also putting it to good use. “We believe that you are going to inspire other institutions to reach the heights that they should.”
He noted that the CEPIDE study had brought very interesting findings and conclusions to the fore and that his Ministry would be very glad to continue discussing these with HEIs. On the issue of quality assurance for PhDs Mr. Sejjoba advised that HEIs ought to be self-regulating so as to guarantee the brand of their programmes and graduates in the job market.
In his remarks, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe congratulated the CEPIDE team upon delivering possibly the most important Mak-RIF seminar to-date, owing to its addressing of the University’s core strategic direction head-on. He equally thanked the Government of Uganda for providing; i. Funding for over 500 research and innovations through Mak-RIF, ii. Increasing the monthly salary of a Professor to UGX 15million, and iii. Funding infrastructure development for research. “We now have some of the best labs anywhere in the world and there is no reason why as a University we cannot drastically contribute to transformation of our society.”
He reiterated Makerere’s commitment to support other HEIs to build their capacity in doctoral training and teaching and commended the decision by the Higher Education Student Financing Board (HESFB) to start offering loans for postgraduate study at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Uganda.
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Makerere-CEES-RIF-CEPIDE-Research-Dissemination-28thJan2021-Prof-Nawangwe-1024x592.jpg)
The Executive Director National Planning Authority (NPA), Dr. Joseph Muvawala in his address commended the ongoing policy work between the School of Economics, College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS) and his authority, noting that this ought to be duplicated between other Schools and Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies. He shared that increasing number of graduate students seems to be sufficient condition for Uganda to take off in terms of economic development and emphasized the importance of Makerere University implementing its new 10 year strategic plan, which he described as “good”.
He advised the CEPIDE team and all researchers to improve their capacity to write policy briefs, noting that policy makers lack the time to read research papers in their entirety. “I am here to say that you have our full support as NPA and my colleague Dr. Mugendawala will draft a concept on how to connect graduates to industry.”
Concluding the day’s remarks, the Chief Guest Dr. Nora Mulira who represented the Executive Director NCHE, Prof. Mary Okwakol acknowledged that the Council as a participant in the CEPIDE study had gleaned a number of lessons to incorporate in the UNESCO instrument that feeds the state of Uganda’s Higher Education. She added that the study provided a number of options on how to advance the National PhD programme and thanked the Vice Chancellor for effectively using the funds received from Governement of Uganda.
“To the Principal Investigator, this is a pivotal study that is going to move Uganda ahead and is well aligned with strategic development framework as enshrined in NDPIII and Vision 2040, which look at research and innovation as a driver for development” commended Dr. Mulira.
She urged the research team to formulate an output plan that stipulates the specific actions that need to be undertaken by particular stakeholders within set timelines.
Article by Public Relations Office.
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![The Principal CEES, Prof. Anthony Muwagga Mugagga and Deputy Principal, Associate Prof. Ronald Bisaso with other members of the Academic Procession. Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Makerere-Graduation-CEES-Academic-Procession.jpg)
The Year 2023, has been a memorable one in the life of the College of Education and External Studies. The college has made a number of salient achievements, notwithstanding the challenges which when solved made us stand high as a prime graduate teacher training facility in the region and Uganda in particular.
This year’ s annual report 2023 presents the key activities, achievements, networks and challenges registered the college as it embarked back on the journey towards the second epoch of Makerere’s centenary celebrations in 2022 and existence.
With its tripartite mission of: Teaching, Research and Community outreach, the following have been registered:
The year begun with council approving the Makerere University Institute for Teacher Education and Research (MITER). MITER was incepted with a goal of contributing to the University Research Agenda cognizant of the current strategic direction of Makerere University which is skewed towards research led university. MITER was also meant to contribute to the National Teacher Policy (NTP, 2019) – which aims at professionalizing teacher education in Uganda through research.
To achieve its prime goal of professionalizing teacher education in Uganda, CEES, through MITER and in collaboration with the National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) has initiated a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to incept the desired critical pedagogy which is not only of importance to secondary education, but is key to revitalizing university and tertiary education in Uganda. The college is ever grateful to the Vice Chancellor Prof. Nawangwe Barnabas, the Deputy Vice Chancellor- Academic Affairs Prof Kakumba Umar and the Director NCDC Dr Baguma K. Grace. who have linked up Makerere University with The National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) which is a body responsible for the development of educational curricula for Pre-primary, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary institutions in Uganda. Cognizant of the fact that CEES –School of Education mainly serves the constituents of Pre-primary, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary institutions in Uganda.
To realize and fulfill its networking mandate, the college has signed a number of MoUs for example: IODeL signed an MOU with MS Seed Global Health to provide e-Learning and e-Content Development Training for Lira University academic staff members. Forty (40) staff trained and developed e-content for their respective courses. The college also signed an MoU with Uganda police to train Uganda Police officers and men in soft skills. The college through CLL has continued to train and reach out to the most disadvantaged mostly girls through its collaboration with Love Binti International https://us.lovebinti.org “ Love Binti pushing Women empower Project and eyes” on helping their basic needs for sanitary pads and clothing by teaching them tailoring and other sift skills not requiring credited academic programmes.
This year, a number of memorial lectures, conferences, workshops and educational webinars have been arranged in the course of the year for example: Nsumba Lyazi Memorial Lecture of “the unforgettable education Legacy, the Prof. Senteza Kajubi memorial lecture where Senteza was eulogized for enormous contribution towards the education sector. The college also on July 24, 2023, hosted the Distance Education and Teacher Training in Africa (DETA) Conference. In the conference: Researchers discuss transformation of e-learning with a call to embrace distance and e-learnings and address the challenges associated with emerging Information and Communication Technologies. The Centre for Teaching and Learning Support, CEES in collaboration with the University College London, UK organized an Educational webinar entitled: Omissions in Sloane’s Jamaican collections: African slave trade and modern slavery building shared futures. The college also organized a dissemination workshop on ‘Increasing Access to Inclusive and Quality Business, Technical, Vocational Education and Training through Open, Distance and e-Learning.
The project was funded by the Government of Uganda under the Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (Mak-RIF). The college is ever grateful to the government of Uganda and the Ministry of Education and Sports. Staff in the College of Education and External Studies have embarked on a number of micro and macro educational research projects either sponsored by Makerere’s development partners or the government of Uganda through Mak-RIF. The college received a number of foreign students and vising scholars for example: CEES hosts 21 students from University of Agder, Norway. It also hosted professors from the university of Hiroshima, Japan. At the same time a number of faculty went for post-doctoral studies in USA, Finland and Norway. The Malmo-Makerere University staff and student mobility program has been renewed. It is hoped CEES –ECD/ECCE staff and students will benefit from the mobility to Malmo –Sweden. The college will this year present close to 939 students for graduation, 370 of them male while 569 are female. This number excludes the graduate students who are still defending their study projects. The college is very proud of its undergraduate students who incepted a project called “Teachers on the drive to keep Makerere University clean and off liters “.
As we enter the new year, 2024, the college of education is embarking of transforming its face and to refine its facilities to meet the national and international standards for Increased Access to Inclusive education, given its ever increasing numbers of special needs students. This year in the academic year 2023/24 the college received a pumper harvest of close to 1200 undergraduate BA. ED and BSc. ED student intake. It also saw an approximately 60% increase in the number of its graduate student and PGDE numbers.
The college also hopes to enhance its national and international visibility in e-pedagogical practice and research through IoDEL. The college given its strategic direction drawn from the Makerere University-research –led mantle, which pivots on enhanced staff and student’s capacity in educational research. CEES hopes to expand and grow the EASHESD by setting up a modern graduate training Centre with facilities such as smart and educational PhD conference study rooms at CEES-book bank.
The college hopes to increase its visibility in Uganda’s primary and secondary school education space since the DSTVE staff who are key in Ugandan STEM terrain have been oriented on the New Lower Secondary School Curriculum by NCDC staff courtesy of the CARNEGIE (CECAP) departmental grant. The college in the year 2024 also hopes to realize its dream of having the Early Child Study and Child support Centre built.
I do thank the entire College team for work well done in the year 2023. Specifically I thank Associate Professor Ronald Bisaso, the Deputy Principal for steering the academic mantle of the College, the Deans, Assoc. Prof. Mathias Mulumba, Dr. David Onen the out-going Dean East African School of Higher Education Studies and Development (EASHESD), Dr. Twine Bananuka , the outgoing Dean School of Distance and Lifelong Learning (SoDLL), Dr. Harriet Nabushawo , the incoming Dean SoDLL, Prof. Julius Kikooma who pacified the EASHESD, the various Heads of Departments (Dr. Nicholas Itaaga, Dr. Muhammad M. Kiggundu , Dr. John Ssentongo, the Directors of Institutes: Assoc. Prof Paul M. Birevu, Prof. Fred Masagazi Masaazi and not forgetting the CEES-Centre Coordinators: Dr. Oscar Mugula, Dr. Kabugo David, Dr. Dorothy Ssebowa and Dr. Miiro Farooq in AG. I would also wish to thank the staff who have carried out the teaching mission of CEES.
The College Leadership, staff and students do thank the University Council for providing the pedagogical and non-pedagogical facilitation requisite for their work. Specifically, they thank the Chair Council Mrs. Lorna Magara and her team who took time to visit and talk to the staff of CEES in this particular year ending. Such visits are not taken for granted, they boost staff and cause meaningful accountability on part of staff and the College Leadership.
We, in a very special way thank the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe and his team for always providing an understanding ear to our challenges and providing prompt solutions as well as providing the necessary mentorship to us all. Thank you very much.
I do thank the government of Uganda and the various national and international agencies which have funded our teaching, research and enabled us to network as our mandate dictates. We do thank you all and always will count on your support.
As We Build for the Future.
Prof. Anthony Muwagga Mugagga
PRINCIPAL
Education
Call for Applications: Full-Time Scholarship for Master Programme in Global Development, Crisis and Change at UiA
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Ms-Betty-Kyakuwa-150x150.jpg)
Published
1 week agoon
April 29, 2024![Masters Graduates from CEES on Day 2 of the 74th Graduation Ceremony at Makerere University. 74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Freedom Square, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Makerere-74th-Graduation-Day2-30thJan2024-CEES-Masters-Graduands.jpg)
Attention Graduates of Makerere University‘s Bachelor of Adult and Community Education program! UiA Norway presents a golden opportunity with a full-time scholarship for our Master Programme in Global Development, Crisis, and Change, running from August 2024 to June 2026.
We cordially invite outstanding individuals from Makerere University, particularly from the Department of Adult and Community Education, to apply for this prestigious scholarship opportunity.
Key Details:
- Programme Duration: August 2024 – June 2026
- Location: University of Agder, Kristiansand, Norway
- Accommodation: Students will reside on the UiA campus throughout their studies.
- Instruction Mode: A blend of classroom-based and e-learning courses will be provided each semester.
Eligibility Criteria:
- Bachelor’s Degree: Upper Second-Class degree from Makerere University, with a first-class degree being advantageous.
- Age Range: 20-30 years.
- No prior Master’s degree.
- Gender Priority: Female candidates will be prioritized.
- Return to Home Country: Students are expected to return to their home countries upon completion of their studies in Norway.
- Recruitment Process: interested applicants should contact the Exchange Coordinator for the Official Application Form via email: joseph.watuleke@mak.ac.ug. and copy to the Postgraduate Coordinator at: dianah.nampijja@mak.ac.ug
Scholarship Coverage:
- Tuition Fees; Living Expenses; Visa and Travel Expenses
- Fieldwork Budget: Each student will receive a budget for fieldwork in their home country.
Application Deadline: A fully signed Application form with certified copies of Academic documents should be sent to the above emails no later than Friday 10th May 2024 at 1700hours
Education
Government Asked to Make Fine Art Compulsory in Secondary Schools
![](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Ms-Betty-Kyakuwa-150x150.jpg)
Published
3 weeks agoon
April 19, 2024![Group photo of workshop participants. Launch of findings of the pilot report for the Visual Arts Curriculum Review by the College of Education and External Studies (CEES) on 17th April 2024, E-Learning Centre, Frank Kalimuzo Central Teaching Facility, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Makerere-CEES-Visual-Arts-Curriculum-Review-17thApr2024-Group.jpeg)
Government through the Ministry of Education and Sports has been called upon to find ways of popularizing the subject of art and crafts in lower and higher secondary education.
Prof. Anthony Muggaga, the Principal of the College of Education and External Studies at Makerere University, said yesterday that the government should explore measures including making the subject compulsory.
“We should have at least a module for one term like we have General Paper or computer,” he said.
![Prof. Anthony Muwagga Mugagga. Launch of findings of the pilot report for the Visual Arts Curriculum Review by the College of Education and External Studies (CEES) on 17th April 2024, E-Learning Centre, Frank Kalimuzo Central Teaching Facility, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Makerere-CEES-Visual-Arts-Curriculum-Review-17thApr2024-Prof-Muwagga-Mugagga-1024x683.jpeg)
Prof. Mugagga believes that without popularizing Fine Art, the education sector will continue churning out students who lack critical thinking.
“Fine Art is what will cultivate a critical mindset amongst our learners. That is why we encourage children in nursery school to draw; we are trying to bring out what is in their minds,” he said.
“It is the same reason that art is considered therapy for mental health patients. When they draw, they express what is taking place in their minds.”
Prof. Mugagga was speaking at the launch of the findings of the pilot report for the Visual Arts Curriculum Review.
![Dr. Julius Ssegantebuka. Launch of findings of the pilot report for the Visual Arts Curriculum Review by the College of Education and External Studies (CEES) on 17th April 2024, E-Learning Centre, Frank Kalimuzo Central Teaching Facility, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Makerere-CEES-Visual-Arts-Curriculum-Review-17thApr2024-Dr-Julius-Ssegantebuka-1024x683.jpg)
Dr Julius Ssegantebuka from Makerere University College of Education and External Studies and the lead researchers said the curriculum review project is intended to prepare secondary school art and design teachers, by equipping them with practical skills and values that match the modern world.
“During this second phase of the project, we had trial lectures and discussions with the teachers. We also embarked on removing obsolete content and replaced it with new content and also separated some of the art disciplines that were formally combined,” he said.
The updated curriculum he said, puts emphasis on research, group discussions, and field studies among others.
![Dr. Grace Baguma, Director NCDC. Launch of findings of the pilot report for the Visual Arts Curriculum Review by the College of Education and External Studies (CEES) on 17th April 2024, E-Learning Centre, Frank Kalimuzo Central Teaching Facility, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.](https://news.mak.ac.ug/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Makerere-CEES-Visual-Arts-Curriculum-Review-17thApr2024-Dr-Grace-Baguma-NCDC-1024x683.jpeg)
Speaking as chief guest at the launch, Dr Grace K Baguma, the Director National Curriculum Development Center commended the initiative.
“I commend Dr Ssegantebuka and the team for this initiative, which is aimed at contributing to the development of quality curricula that employ modern pedagogies that respond to societal needs,” she said.
On her part, Dr Moreen Muwanga from Kyambogo University called for the integration of ICT in the teaching of visual arts.
“Many of us have a phobia of handling a computer. Yet the students we are teaching are flexible and conversant with ICT,” she said.
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