The Weekly Sneak: Division Five.

So, the Ministry of Education is having an interesting week of it. The Standard VII National Exam results improved dramatically this year, which looks good in numbers because official statistics are the ultimate measure of education success, right? 

The Ministry then announced the new Form VI grading system and it took all of, oh, three seconds for the rain of pain to begin. Their old friend HakiElimu released a statement that pretty much says it all in official language. And this piece by Niwa Elisante is a great read as well. Insert your own joke about Division Five here :)

Funny, is it? 

"... the crop of potential candidates that will emerge in the various races leading up to 2015 are going to be the product of the past 20 to 100 years of public education in Tanzania. Yes, I know, there is always a soupcon of private education involved but let’s just suspend the disbelief for a moment.

Now. Doesn’t that thought put the Division Five issue into sharp focus? Does the quality of our public education matter, after all, in the shaping of a country’s trajectory?"

Discuss. Don't worry, the pass mark is set at 20% or you could just, you know, Division Five it. :)