Africa-Press – Botswana. An experienced primary school teacher has developed a programme to assist pupils to do better in their Primary School Leaving Examinations (PSLE).
Ms Tebogo Lebanna, who has taught at Ramatlabama, Papatlo and Moshupa primary schools, has developed a PSLE mastery programme for Standard 5 to 7 pupils and is currently teaching pupils on weekends at Baobab Primary School in Gaborone.
In an interview, Ms Lebanna, who is currently completing her Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PDGE) at the University of Botswana, said her programme sought to address a challenge she noticed in learners.
“The 2021 Botswana Examinations Council (BEC) PSLE report noted a general challenge of candidates not being able to fully express themselves and lacking creativity in writing examinations for language subjects such as English and Setswana leading to lower grades,” Ms Lebanna said.
She said the report corresponded with her own experience as she had noticed that even the most gifted and intelligent pupils lacked self-confidence. She added that in her teaching experience with standard seven pupils, she came across very smart children who failed their examinations because of low self esteem and fear.
“So we focus on improving their confidence, boosting their self-esteem and motivating them to enter the examinations room with better self-assurance,” Ms Lebanna said. She added that they also focused on improving their creativity as well as English and Setswana essay writing skills.
Ms Lebanna also said their maximum number of pupils per class was 26 in order to ensure effective personal learning took place. “We seek to develop better equipped examination candidates,” Ms Lebanna explained.
She said the programme started this month and would end in September for pupils to focus on preparing for their year-end examinations in October.
“Our key outcomes include achieving better results and mastering examinations as well as providing a better understanding of the curriculum,” she said.
For More News And Analysis About Botswana Follow Africa-Press
