When high expectations fail performance: Rethinking how schools should prepare children for PLE, UCE & UACE

The release of national examination results by the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB), announced by the Minister of Education and Sports, is always a defining national moment. Celebration, disappointment, relief, and quiet heartbreak sit side by side in homes and schools across the country. Yet beyond individual scores lies a deeper and more uncomfortable question that we must ask honestly as schools, educators, parents, and policymakers: Is the pressure we place on children proportionate to the outcomes we are seeing?

For many learners, the journey to PLE, UCE, and UACE is marked not by curiosity and growth, but by fear, anxiety, and exhaustion. When results fall short of expectations despite relentless pressure, it is time to interrogate not the child, but the system, particularly how preparation happens at school level and how national assessment culture is shaped.

When high fees do not translate into high outcomes

One of the most painful realities for parents today is the financial cost attached to hope. Many private primary schools charge fees that rival or even exceed those paid in some universities and other tertiary institutions. On top of tuition, parents meet additional demands such as mock exams, remedial classes, holiday packages, special uniforms, meals, transport, and examination-related charges.

Parents invest heavily, believing that higher fees guarantee better teaching, closer supervision, and superior outcomes. They hope these sacrifices will secure admission to top secondary schools, strong UCE and UACE performance, and possibly government-sponsored university placements. Yet when results are released, performance does not always match the financial and emotional investment. For many families, the disappointment is not only academic but economic.

This disconnect should compel schools to reflect honestly. If the pressure, time, and money invested are not yielding proportionate improvements in learning outcomes, then aspects of the teaching and preparation approach require review. Education should not become a high-risk financial gamble for families. The growth of private schooling must be matched with accountability for both academic quality and learner wellbeing.

When hard work turns into harmful pressure

There is a fine line between discipline and distress. In many schools, especially in P.6 to P.7, S.3 to S.4, and S.6, learning becomes a marathon of early mornings, late nights, endless tests, holiday “boot camps,” and constant reminders that failure is not an option. Co-curricular activities are often suspended entirely for candidate classes.

Such environments can suffocate the very capacities children need in order to perform well: confidence, creativity, focus, and emotional stability. A fearful child may memorise content temporarily but struggle to retrieve it under tension in examination conditions. When outcomes do not match the intensity of preparation, escalating pressure further is not the solution. Reflection is.

Stop labeling children as weak or less academic

Few things damage a child more deeply than being told, directly or indirectly, that they are academically weak. Labels such as “slow learner,” “non-candidate,” or “you cannot manage first grade” shape a child’s self-image long before they enter the examination room.

Once a learner internalises low expectations, performance declines, not necessarily because of limited ability, but because belief has been diminished. Teachers must recognise the power of language. Encouragement fuels effort; humiliation extinguishes it. Every learner deserves to be taught with dignity. Differentiated instruction allows teachers to support struggling learners without shaming them. No child should carry the burden of a teacher’s frustration or impatience.

Creating learning environments where children can thrive

Schools must redefine what effective preparation looks like. Quality learning is not measured by the number of hours a child sits in class or the volume of tests administered, but by how deeply a learner understands concepts and how confidently they can apply them independently.

Learner-centred teaching approaches that emphasise understanding rather than cramming produce more sustainable results. Continuous assessment should be diagnostic and supportive, not punitive. Feedback should guide improvement rather than induce fear.

Children also need balance. Play, rest, music, sports, and peer interaction are not distractions from academic success. They are essential components of healthy cognitive and emotional development. A child who is rested and emotionally secure is more likely to perform consistently than one who is chronically anxious and fatigued.

Addressing exam anxiety as a learning Issue, not a discipline problem

Exam anxiety remains one of the silent barriers to performance in our schools. Yet it is frequently misunderstood and punished rather than addressed. Children who “freeze” during exams are sometimes labelled lazy or unserious, when in reality they may be overwhelmed.

Schools should integrate psychosocial support into academic programmes in practical ways. Guidance and counselling departments should not exist only during crises. Teachers need training to recognise signs of stress, burnout, fatigue, and anxiety, and to respond with empathy. Teaching basic coping skills such as time management, relaxation techniques, and positive self-talk can significantly improve performance without increasing academic pressure.

Restoring integrity by reducing desperation

Excessive pressure has broader consequences. When schools measure their worth solely by grades and league tables, desperation can replace integrity. This environment contributes to examination malpractice because institutions and individuals feel compelled to protect reputations at any cost.

Reducing pressure is therefore not only a child welfare issue but a moral one. When learners are prepared in balanced, ethical environments that value effort, honesty, and reflection, passing on merit becomes both achievable and sustainable. An education system built on integrity ultimately commands greater respect than one driven by fear of failure.

What parents must do differently

Parents are often silent enforcers of school pressure. Heavy financial investment can unconsciously translate into heavy emotional expectations. Yet children are not investment projects. They are developing human beings.

Parents must resist the temptation to compare schools, grades, and children. PLE, UCE, or UACE is a milestone, not a final judgment on a child’s future. Emotional safety, encouragement, adequate rest, and realistic expectations often contribute more to long-term success than pressure ever will.

Parents should also ask schools thoughtful but firm questions:
How do you support learner wellbeing?
How do you handle struggling children?
How do you prepare candidates without inducing fear?
How do you protect time for rest and co-curricular development?

These questions shift the focus from performance alone to holistic preparation.

The role of the ministry of education and sports

The Ministry of Education and Sports must take leadership in resetting the culture around examinations. Clear guidelines on instructional hours, monitoring of learner welfare, and enforcement against harmful preparation practices are necessary safeguards.

Teacher training programmes should emphasise child psychology, ethical assessment practices, and professional communication. National messaging must consistently affirm that learning is a process and that success has multiple pathways beyond a single examination result.

Towards a child-centred assessment culture

National examinations should assess readiness for the next stage of learning, not induce trauma. A child-centred education system asks not only how many passed, but how children experienced the journey toward those results.

As conversations about results fill our homes and airwaves, we must pause and reflect. The true measure of our education system is not how much pressure it can impose, but how effectively it nurtures confident, capable, and ethical citizens.

Reducing pressure is not lowering standards. It is raising them by aligning academic excellence with wellbeing, integrity, and meaningful learning. An education system that protects dignity while demanding effort will ultimately produce stronger and more sustainable outcomes than one built on fear.

Congratulations to all our learners who have completed this important milestone.

The writer is the Executive Director of Hope Regeneration Africa, a parenting coach, marriage counsellor, and founder of the Men of Purpose Mentorship Program.