PRESS RELEASEParliamentary Committee receives sample set of Primary Textbooks
Juba, May 28, 2013 (SSNA) — Hon. Samson Ezekiel Ndukpo, Chairperson of the Committee of Education, Research, Science and Technology of the National Legislative Assembly in Juba received three sets of the new textbooks and teacher guides. The sample sets will assist the members to formulate policy around primary and adult education in South Sudan. The reading materials which are currently being distributed to all primary schools in South Sudan, were handed over by Mr. Charles Bayley of Charles Kendall and Partners (CKP), the company which is responsible for the book distribution throughout South Sudan. The national textbook distribution is supported by UK-Aid.
The sample includes copies of the student books and teacher guides for primary grade one to eight. The books, which cover the 5 core subjects of English, Science, Religious Education,
Mathematics and Social Studies, are the first revised textbooks that have been written and designed by South Sudanese educationalists for South Sudanese children under the current national curriculum. The initiative of the Ministry of General Education and Instruction (MoGEI) will benefit students, pupils and teachers in all ten States of South Sudan.
Students in South Sudan face enormous challenges accessing reading materials with at times as many as nine students sharing one textbook. This lack of books stifles quality education and is one of the main causes for the high drop out from primary education. According to a publication of the UK Aid Department for International Development fifteen percent of the students who did not complete primary education in 2008-2009 mentioned the lack of textbooks as the key reason for not attending classes.
The ongoing textbook distribution aims to provide enough books to ensure that all pupils in primary grade one to four will have access to their own books while every student in grade five to eight will share the textbooks with about two colleagues. This will help two million students become the literate and skilled young people South Sudan needs to better support itself longterm.
Thus far, the national textbook distribution, which started in December 2012, has supplied textbooks, teacher guides and readers to half of the Primary Schools and Adult Learning Program (ALP) centres in South Sudan. The deliveries to most schools in Western Bahr el Ghazal, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Lakes, Central Equatoria and Warrap States have been completed while the distribution in Eastern Equatoria, Unity, Western Equatoria, Jonglei and Upper Nile States is in progress. In total, more than 5,000 primary schools and ALP centres will be supplied with 9.6 million textbooks, teacher guides and readers.
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For more information on the textbook distribution or requests for interviews please contact: Huub Gales / [email protected] / 211-(0) 955 05 33 77