How To Get Through A PhD Journey: A Personal Reflection And Experience

Being the highest degree programme in education globally, a PhD degree programme has the highest requirements which the candidate has to fulfil. Therefore, studying towards a PhD may be a very demanding, tiring and tedious experience for many candidates. One factor which contributes to a PhD being that challenging is that it is research-based and candidates are supposed to conduct it independently, with some guidance from research supervisors. In addition to that, some candidates may not have enough information on what is expected of them and, therefore, may not know how to approach it. This article is a reflection on a PhD journey and focuses on how the different aspects of a PhD research can be approached by PhD students based on personal experience with a PhD journey

Postcolonial language-in-education policies in Africa: The case of Kenya

The issue of language-in-education policy in postcolonial countries is of paramount importance in regards to their development, social, cultural and political concerns. Due to the multilingual situation of the sub-Saharan African countries and the legacy of colonialism, among other factors, these countries are faced with unresolved questions regarding the choice of language(s) that would best support economic and social development. It is a common practice in African countries to adopt former colonial languages (French, English and Portuguese) as languages of teaching and learning at all levels of education. Drawing mainly on studies which have been conducted in Kenya and, to a limited extent, in other African countries, this conceptual article aims to problematize this practice, to illustrate its negative effects on different areas of life and to stimulate reflection and debate on this practice among educational policy makers and practitioners in different countries in Africa.Keywords: Language policy, language in education policy, medium of instruction, economic and social development

ASSOCIATION OF SCHISTOSOMIASIS PREVALENCE WITH SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC STATUS MEASURES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

Schistosomiasis is a water-borne parasitic disease that affects most tropical regions. It is caused by infection with parasitic worms of the genus Schistosoma and poses a big public health threat to affected communities and individuals. More than 200 million people are infected worldwide, and 85 percent of the burden is concentrated in sub -Saharan Africa. It is important to recognize the risk factors which favor development of infection and to focus on countries which are at high risk.In this thesis, sub- Saharan African (SSA) countries with high prevalence of schistosomiasis infection (living in endemic areas) were identified. Risk factors were also identified and their association with schistosomiasis prevalence was assessed. The results indicate that high literacy rates are associated with low schistosomiasis infection rates. Such results are of great public health significance because neglected tropical diseases like schistosomiasis could be prevented by increasing literacy in at- risk populations

Rwandan teachers as educational researchers: why it matters

Teachers have generally been conceptualized as passive adopters of policies articulated in high educational and political offices, which has limited their reflection, creativeness and independent decision making. This situation is a challenge for effective teaching because teachers are supposed to critique the way education outcomes are currently defined, to push for the redefinition of what happens in classroom spaces and to adapt to the ever-changing class-room contexts. One way to achieve this is to engage in educational research, allowing a critical view on educational policies and practices. This article explains the necessity for teachers to play an active role in research and reflects on the very limited and mostly passive role which Rwandan teachers have played in research. It then suggests possible ways of increasing the visibility of teachers in educational research in order to increase the likelihood of class-room practices and 'insider perspectives' informing education policies in Rwanda.Keywords: Research, teachers, teacher research, educational research, classroom practices, educational policie

The acquisition of English as a second language in Rwanda: Challenges and promises

The use of English in daily communication in Rwanda is very limited and the proficiency in English by many of those who claim the ability to use it has been questioned. This situation is in spite of a relatively long history of English as a school subject and a medium of instruction in Rwanda. Building on the factors which are believed to affect second language (L2) acquisition and learning, this article explores constraints, challenges, possibilities and promises regarding the acquisition of English in the Rwandan sociolinguistic context. The article suggests that while the teaching of English has been improved and several factors appear to increase Rwandan people’s motivation to learn English, the context is not yet favourable to the attainment of communicative competence in this language. In fact, given the limited use of English in daily communication, the opportunities for learners to receive and produce enough input andoutput respectively are still very limited.Key words: English, second language acquisition, proficiency, input, output, motivatio

Competence-Based English Language Teaching in Rwanda: Opportunities, Challenges and possible solutions

Starting from the 2016 school year, Rwanda embarked on the implementation of a competence-based curriculum, shifting the focus from what learners know to what they can do in performing tasks. This new curriculum was introduced in order to enable Rwandan school leavers and graduates to use what they learn to solve practical problems of life or, in other words, to apply what they have learnt in real life situations. Such ability is referred to as competence, hence the term competence-based. With specific reference to language teaching, competency-based teaching is based on a functional perspective, focusing not on what students know about the language but on what they can do with it: the ability to communicate competently. This paper reflects on the opportunities, challenges and possible solutions regarding the implementation of a competence-based approach to teaching English in the Rwandan context. On the one hand, the unprecedented need for English, its international and official status, its use as the only medium of instruction from Grade 4 onwards, its association with numerous advantages and the positive attitudes towards this language among Rwandans are some of the opportunities for the adoption of CBLT for English. On the other hand, the limited use of English in daily life, the lack of competent teachers of English and lack of competence-based teaching aids and materials which reflect the Rwandan context are some of the challenges which CBLT is likely to face. This calls for measures to address these, including adequate training for teachers of English, the development of teaching/learning materials and approaches which reflect, and are appropriate to, the Rwandan context and clear language policies in different institutions to regulate how the different languages should be managed and used

The Determinants of Financial Performance of SACCOs in RWANDA: The Case of Gakenke District

This study examined different determinants of financial performance of SACCOs in Gakenke District in Rwanda. The study had an objective of to make an evaluation on whether determinants affect financial performance of SACCOs in Gakenke District. The hypothesis to be tested was that how different determinants affect financial performance of SACCOs. A sample of  63 employees  out of 76 managers, accountants, loan officers and chairmen of BoD  in SACCOs located in Gakenke District was considered .Simple random selection was considered based on purposive sampling technique. The study was both qualitative and quantitative in nature. Interviews, questionnaires and observations have been used to collect the required data. The collected data was presented using tables and pie charts. The   findings were based on objectives of the study .The findings indicated that the majority of respondents agreed that different determinants affect financial performance of SACCOs.It is further revealed that many of SACCOs in Gakenke district do not use advertisement for product differentiation .Also the scope  and coverage of SACCOs was limited to the employees in administration level only.The main conclusion was that there was   overreliance on debts (deposits) financing when extra funds is needed   by majority of SACCOs and SACCOs do not use their reserves to settle debts at maturity.The main recommendations of the study  includes that  the National Bank of Rwanda must avail enough fund for loan restructuring in order to reduce NPLs  and increase the liquidity for SACCOs in order to increase the level of performance of SACCOs. Gakenke district should help the SACCOs in recovering debts and assist SACCOs to persuade borrowers  to pay their debts and also depositors to increase their savings for better performance of SACCOs. The management of SACCOS must ensure that there is an adequate and strong credit committee and strong system of recovering of loans in order to increase their performance. Keywords: Financial Performance, Saving and credit co-operative, Return on Equity, Return on Investment. Return on Asset. DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/12-18-10 Publication date:September 30th 2021

Students’ conceptual understanding of organic chemistry and classroom implications in the Rwandan perspectives: A literature review

Chemistry subject continues to be considered as difficult to teach and learn. This leads to students’ low academic achievement, retention, and negative attitude towards the subject. Organic chemistry as one of the concepts on which technological advancement is constructed sometimes appears to be enormously complex to students. There are some persisting misconceptions about it although different innovative instructional strategies have been applied and this area is of main concern as the learning of students can be extremely hindered in case their misconceptions are not minimized and/or corrected. The review then is to equip educators with knowledge about organic chemistry concept and source of students ‘misconceptions; the misconceptions of students about organic chemistry; the ways of diagnosing students’ misconceptions and remedies of those misconceptions; some learning theories for the effective organic chemistry instruction and classroom implications. The paper is also useful to know more about the minimization of students’ misconceptions and leading them to the great academic achievement and interest towards the subject by employing cooperative learning models; thus, many other different innovative teaching strategies are recommended to apply in organic chemistry instructio

Pollution and Foraging Behavior of Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis in Bujumbura Bay of Lake Tanganyika, Burundi: Conservation Implications

Lake Tanganyika is threatened by overfishing, deforestation, climate change and water pollution. Very few studies have investigated the effects of pollution on semi-aquatic communities such as aquatic birds. This study investigates the effects of pollution on the foraging behavior of pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis in the Bujumbura bay of Lake Tanganyika. We use data on foraging behavior of this bird species collected in 2002 as background and data collected over two periods during which we assessed change in water environmental parameters. The sampling site is located in the littoral zone next to the channel mouths that collect rainfall and wastewater from Bujumbura city. The results show a change in the number of observations of foraging pied kingfishers during the course of the day with a significantly lower number of observations in the morning than in the study carried out in 2002. The most frequent foraging behavior also changed from direct dives in 2002 to repeated hovering before diving in 2016. These changes could be accounted for by pollution as the water parameters data collected during the same time periods reveal an increase in turbidity while dissolved oxygen levels dropped. Increased turbidity may have caused reduction of visibility of these visual predatory birds. Attention should be given to measures toward alleviation of pollution of Lake Tanganyika for the conservation of semi-aquatic communities which are members of this deep and ancient lake ecosystem