Support for Primary Schools in Malawi
Netball strips and a long way to walk from beyond the hills
2011 In their eighth year of sitting on the floor
Enrolment for Primary School education in Malawi rose dramatically after it became free in 1994. The enrolment age had to be increased from 5 to 6 years to limit numbers and because the number of teachers was inadequate. However even now, UN 2022 report shows that adults, over the age of 25, still only have an average number of 4.7 years at school years. Males mean number of years tends to be higher than that for females. Whilst many have had 16 years in education, there are many with far less than the mean number of years and, very many adults in the rural areas without literacy or numeracy skills.
Primary education is for 8 years from Standard 1 to Standard 8. A pass in exams at the end of each year is needed to progress to the next year. Because of illness, death in family, caring for younger children, missing weeks at school is common resulting in children older than 14 years in Standard 8. Another reason for children being older can be that children who live a long way away do not start school until they are older as it may be too far for them to walk. For the first four years, teaching is in the local language but teaching from Standard 5 onwards is in English for all subjects except the local language, Chichewa. The exams are also in English.
Parents can’t afford exercise books for children to learn to write
2016 All pupils now have seats in classrooms
The Primary School curriculum is specified by the Ministry of Education. After 8 years in Primary School, pupils sit a national exam, the Primary School Leaving Certificate Examination (PSLCE). Results for each school, with names of successful pupils, are published each year on MANEB (Malawi National Examinations Board) and other websites. The very best pupils in the exam are offered a place in Secondary Education.
Teachers receive a salary of about 130 a month; goods are not cheap in Malawi. Some teachers live in relatively primitive conditions in houses belonging to the school, others live further afield meaning long and difficult travel to and from school, particularly in the rainy season or in the heat. A Head Teacher is expected to live adjacent to the school and to take care of it. As one of the best educated members of the Community, the Head Teacher is often sought for help with life events.
A teacher’s kitchen; not safe to use
Facilities in schools in Urban Blantyre are better than in Blantyre Rural. Urban schools may have mains water supply and electricity. Government funds do not provide for maintenance of school buildings or for teachers’ houses. Apart from inadequate funding, there is the additional difficulty of transport on potholed dirt roads which become dangerous or impossible for vehicles in the rainy seasonPupils in rural schools without outside support are invariably sitting on the floor and have insufficient simple educational materials such as jotters, ballpoint pens, chalk textbooks and chalkboards. Better teachers' houses at a school can attract better teachers.
Mitsidi Primary School, adjacent to Mitsidi Community Day Secondary School, receives support for buildings and education through a different charitable project. Milo Primary School has received some support from us in the past.