Education in Tanzania
[8] The Tanzanian government's commitment to education as an integral part of its social and economic development started shortly after independence.
Universal primary education (UPE) was emphasized in the Musoma Declaration of 1974 as a way of transforming rural society and agriculture, from which it was acknowledged the vast majority of the population would derive their livelihood.
Tanzania's relationship, however, with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was tense because of differing perspectives on the root causes of the economic crisis and how to handle it.
The government also committed to the goals listed in the World Declaration on Education for All: Meeting Basic Learning Needs,[10] which was issued in Jomtien, Thailand in 2000.
[11] Within the larger ESDP, the government, together with civil society stakeholders and donors, formulated a Primary Education Development Program (PEDP) that took effect 2 January 2002 and ran to 2009.
[12] The government's National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (2005) had a focus on inclusive education as part of its second cluster that deals with social well being and quality of life.
Schools are beginning to focus on groups that have been traditionally excluded from education opportunities, regardless of physical, intellectual, social, or other condition within their environment.
Around 60 percent of all teachers are under qualified, there is a lack of incentive and instructional materials, and many of the public schools are located in extremely poor areas.
Private schools have smaller class sizes and better resources but charge tuition of around TSh 1.5 to 2 million per year, which is not feasible for the majority of families.
By building these houses we could have reduced the problem of teachers lacking accommodation, especially for schools situated in remote rural villages.
[16] In the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Tanzania ratified in 1991, there are two arguments that emphasize the importance of Early Childhood Education.
[18] The Arusha Declaration in 1967 provided for Tanzania to adopt a community-based learning education system, where each area, regardless of its wealth or urban or rural character, assesses its own needs and makes appropriate policies to meet them.
[26] The curriculum is composed of twelve subjects: Kiswahili, Mathematics, Science, Geography, Civics, History, English language, French, Religion, Information and Communication Technology, and school sports.
The focus of the curriculum is the development of the following competencies among learners: critical and creative thinking, communication, numeracy, technology literacy, personal and social life skills, and independent learning.
According to UNICEF, results from 2014 primary education leaving exams revealed that only 8 percent of students in second grade were able to properly read and do basic math like adding and subtracting.
[34] The secondary schools that perform highest in the national examinations employ better-trained teachers, including experienced graduates.
[35] Additionally, while secondary education often faces a dramatic drop in females because of the financial burden, Tanzania has reached gender parity in enrollment.
[38] The core and compulsory subjects in Forms 1 and 2 that are offered by all schools include Mathematics, English, Physics, Chemistry, Kiswahili, Biology, History, Geography, Civics and Religion.
[26] The core subjects in Form 3 and 4 offered by all schools include Mathematics, English, Kiswahili, Biology, Civics, Religion, History, Geography, Physics, and Chemistry.
[42] The majority of the country is religious, primarily Muslim or Christian, and in history, that has been used as justification to not include disabled individuals in "normal society.
[44] Since the 1950s, the Tanzanian government has implemented multiple development plans and has incorporated programs for students with auditory and physical disabilities, but there are still issues of teachers not having proper training in this area.
Attending primary schools with TSL-competent teachers is described as positive and liberating by deaf people, often the first chance to acquire language skills and have meaningful conversations.
Their experience and success depends largely on whether the respondents went to a regular university/college or whether they went to one of the three universities offering some special services for the deaf: UDSM, DUCE & SEKOMU.
[49] While most malnutrition-related neurological disorders are preventable, people are not often educated and aware of this, and a lack of vitamins and other nutrients can not be diagnosed with no regular healthcare checkups or system.
[52] Because the education system for most of the nation's history did not accommodate these children, the alternative to staying home was often attending school and experiencing bullying or isolation that was not conducive to learning.
[citation needed] Due to cultural influence and lack of adequate educational testing, children with language impairments are often diagnosed much later on than average.
[54] It is especially difficult in the public secondary education system because of the language change from Kiswahili to English, which is a significant transition for the average student.
[37] Tanzania faces a shortage of speech-language pathologists and therapists, and because there is no individualized training in the disorders and speech deficits are typically not the same in two people (perception, production, etc.
Their policy on Disability as of 2002 emphasized that educators should be well versed on identifying students' developmental needs and being able to create a curriculum and classroom setting that is inclusive.
[56] Organizations for disabled individuals and allies have been developed, schools are becoming more inclusive so that all children can bond over experience and build relationships, and families have support groups that they may part take in.
