Browsing by Author "Ampeire, Kariisa Henry"

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    An Undergraduate Biosciences Internship Program in a Low-Resource Setting: Opportunities and Challenges
    (East African Journal of Education Studies, 2022) Rutaro, Karlmax; Mulindwa, Julius; Ampeire, Kariisa Henry; Ssegawa, Faizo Mugerwa; Isanga, Joel; Gumisiriza, Robert; Kyambadde, Joseph; Vuzi, Peter C.; Baingana, Rhona K.
    Makerere University institutionalised internship in 2011 with the goal of producing practically-oriented graduates meeting the job-related competences of their future employers. Using students’ internship reports from 2011 to 2018, this paper examines whether undergraduate Biochemistry (Major) internship contributes to work-place readiness. Four categories of internship host organisations were identified: Industry, Clinical, Analytical and Research. Students were exposed to laboratory techniques in 6 major specialties: Molecular Biology, Immunology, Microbiology, Diagnostics, Chemistry and Physicalanalytics. 48% of students reported additional experiences, the most common being data analysis, presentations and report writing. The benefits of internship reported include gaining new skills and/or knowledge, networking, and experience of a professional environment. Challenges included inadequate laboratory space, supplies, and limited safety gear. Notwithstanding the challenges of implementing an undergraduate biosciences internship program in a less-industrialised country context, students have relevant hands-on laboratory exposure and the opportunity to gain “employability skills” that enhance their work-place readiness.
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    Headteachers' Leadership Practices and Students’ Discipline in Government Aided Secondary Schools in Bushenyi-Ishaka Municipality, Uganda
    (Interdisciplinary Journal of Education Research, 2022) Mugizi, Wilson; Ampeire, Kariisa Henry; Birimbasa Kemeri, Jovlet
    This study examined the relationship between headteachers' leadership practices and students' discipline in secondary schools in Bushenyi-Ishaka Municipality, Uganda. Particularly, the study tested the relationship between headteachers' collaborative culture practice and students' discipline, the relationship between headteachers' distributed leadership practice and students' discipline, and the relationship between the headteachers' interpersonal relationships leadership practice and students' discipline. The cross-sectional design was adopted using the quantitative and qualitative approaches. Data were collected on a sample of 310 teachers using a questionnaire survey. The findings revealed that while the collaborative culture and interpersonal relationship had a positive and significant relationship with students' discipline, distributed leadership had a negative and insignificant one. Therefore, it was concluded that the collaborative culture leadership practice is imperative for promoting students' discipline in secondary schools, distributed leadership practice is not an essential practice for promoting students' discipline in secondary schools, and interpersonal relationship leadership practice is vital for the promotion of students' discipline in secondary schools. Therefore, it was recommended that headteachers should promote collaborative culture practice in schools to promote students' discipline, headteachers should not overemphasise distributed leadership in implementing measures of promoting student discipline, and headteachers should prioritise enhancing interpersonal relationships in secondary schools to promote students' discipline.
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    Perceived Support and Teacher Engagement in Secondary Schools in a Rural District in South-Western Uganda
    (East African Journal of Education Studies, 2022) Mugizi, Wilson; Natumanya, Edidah; Ampeire, Kariisa Henry
    Hard to reach schools in rural districts experience many challenges including harsh environmental conditions, financial difficulties, lack of school buildings and shortage of teachers due to their locality. Teachers who accept to join such schools tend to get disengaged because of poor working environments. This study sought to identify factors related to teacher engagement in secondary schools in rural hard-to-reach areas in Uganda. Generally, the study assessed the relationship between head teachers perceived support and teacher engagement in secondary schools in Buhweju district a hard-to-reach rural district in south-western Uganda. Specifically, the study tested whether perceived support in terms of training, pay and promotion related teacher engagement. This correlational study used a sample of 220 teachers. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and were analysed using the quantitative approach. Data were analysed using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 4 testing the link between the study variables. The findings revealed that while pay and training had a positive and significant relationship with teacher engagement, promotion support had a positive but insignificant relationship with teacher engagement. The conclusions of the study were to the effect that while pay is essential for teacher engagement and training is imperative for teacher engagement in hard-to-reach secondary schools in rural districts, promotion is not a probable requirement for teacher engagement in the hard-to-reach secondary schools in rural districts. Therefore, it was recommended that head teachers of secondary schools should provide pay support to teachers, and priorities providing training to teachers but promotion should not be overemphasized.
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    Perceived Support and Teacher Engagement in Secondary Schools in a Rural District in South-Western Uganda
    (East African Journal of Education Studies, 2022) Mugizi, Wilson; Natumanya, Edidah; Ampeire, Kariisa Henry
    Hard to reach schools in rural districts experience many challenges including harsh environmental conditions, financial difficulties, lack of school buildings and shortage of teachers due to their locality. Teachers who accept to join such schools tend to be disengaged because of poor working environments. This study sought to identify factors related to teacher engagement in secondary schools in rural hard-to-reach areas in Uganda. Generally, the study assessed the relationship between head teachers perceived support and teacher engagement in secondary schools in Buhweju district a hard-to-reach rural district in south-western Uganda. Specifically, the study tested whether perceived support in terms of training, pay and promotion related teacher engagement. This correlational study used a sample of 220 teachers. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and were analysed using the quantitative approach. Data were analysed using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 4 testing the link between the study variables. The findings revealed that while pay and training had a positive and significant relationship with teacher engagement, promotion support had a positive but insignificant relationship with teacher engagement. The conclusions of the study were to the effect that while pay is essential for teacher engagement and training is imperative for teacher engagement in hard-to-reach secondary schools in rural districts, promotion is not a probable requirement for teacher engagement in the hard-to-reach secondary schools in rural districts. Therefore, it was recommended that head teachers of secondary schools should provide pay support to teachers, and prioritise providing training to teachers but promotion should not be overemphasised
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    Teacher characteristics and the Use of ICT in Rural Secondary Schools in Bwera Sub County, Kasese District, Uganda
    (Interdisciplinary Journal of Rural and Community Studies, 2021) Masudi Kule, Ashirafu; Mugizi, Wilson; Ampeire, Kariisa Henry; Turiabe, Victor
    This study investigated the relationship between teachers’ characteristics and their use of ICT in teaching in rural secondary schools located in Bwera Sub County, Kasese District of Uganda. Bwera Sub County is a hard-to-reach rural area in western Uganda. Specifically, the study examined whether teacher characteristics, namely, teachers perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and teacher ICT competence, influenced teachers’ use of ICT in teaching with the secondary schools. Using the correlational research design, data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire on a sample of 127 school teachers. Descriptive results revealed that teachers rated their use of ICT and perceived competence as poor, rated ICT's usefulness as good, and their use of ICT as fair. Regression analysis revealed that perceived usefulness, ease of use, and ICT competence had a positive and significant influence on ICT use in teaching and learning. It was concluded that perceived usefulness is a prerequisite for teachers’ use of ICT, perceived ease of use is imperative for the use of ICT, and competence are essential for the use of ICT. Therefore, it was recommended that in rural secondary schools, the Ministry of Education and headteachers should provide awareness training to teachers about the usefulness of IC, train teachers to use ICT, and develop their ICT competences.