The College of Education and External Studies through School of Distance and Lifelong Learning, Department of Adult and Community Education continues to strengthen collaborations/partnerships between Universities Agder and Makerere University. The Associate Professor of eLearning, Paul Birevu Muyinda (PhD) revealed that there has been a long time collaborative relationship for more than 10 years between two universities. He thanked Dr. Okot Alex, the Dean School of Distance and Lifelong Learning for mentoring the young Lecturers in the Department of Adult and Community Education. Assoc. Prof. Muyinda B. Paul the Deputy Principal CEES who also represented college Principal, Prof. Fred Masagazi-Masaazi stressed that this co-operation have helped to learn different cultures in Uganda and Norway
The Dean School of Distance and Lifelong Learning, Dr. Alex Okot revealed to the Associate Professor Paul B. Muyinda the college principal that the Department of Adult and community Education is proud of young, bright, good and dedicated staff that is making the department excel in its activities. He reported that the students from University of Agder are very bright and eager to learn and were able to mingle with the local communities in Lira and Mbale. He also reported that the 2019 Uganda field study for University of Agder Students was very successful. The Dean, thanked Mr. Joseph Watuleke, Ms Diana Nampijja, the Buddys for the job well-done during the field study
On 31st January 2019, the Department of Adult and Community Education held a Debriefing session in the DELP Multimedia Conference room at School of Distance and Lifelong Learning. The students from University of Agder who has been and Makerere University for Uganda field course for four weeks. The students were divided into groups; one group went to Mbale District and the other to Lira District. The students shared their insights of the field study that they carried out in Mbale, Kampala and Lira Districts.
The group that went to Mbale reached on 16th January 2019 and was there up to 22nd January 2019. While in Mbale the group worked with Moving Mountains (M:MM) an organization that was founded in 1982, by an American dentist and missionary. Students were introduced to their work with communities, in and around Mbale. Students reported that they learnt a lot about holistic development, which is their main focus. Holistic development is development not only focusing on one particular area of development, but rather all areas. At the end, students got two topics to research throughout the week – 1) the role of youth in holistic development and 2) female parents’ contribution towards their children’s’ formal education. Details about Mbale group
On 16th January 2019 the Lira group also reached Lira District and on 17th January 2019 students continued with their field journey to Apala. On the way Dr. Okot Alex, the Dean school of Distance and Lifelong Learning told them a little about the history and current situation of the region. Students arrived in Apala and were received with a warm welcome by the widows of the Apala Widows and Orphanage Centre. Here students were informed on what the organisation does and met people that worked and had been helped by AWOC. Students learnt how they had influenced the community by hosting informative gatherings where they would talk about themes like structure of time and sanitation, love and family. Students also learnt how they have a program for supporting children that have a desire to go to school but can’t pay for their school fees or scholastic materials. Details about Lira group
During the debriefing session, a number of groups of students made presentation of about their field findings. One group researched about women menstruation period and their found out that Menstrual period are not freely talked about in public and girls have limited information about menstruation period and found out that during menstruation periods girls stay away from school. Students found out that menstruation period are a big problem in rural areas in Uganda. It was found out during the field Study that Uganda girls in rural areas learn about menstruation period in schools, Mother do not talk about Menstrual periods with their daughters and girls don’t know why they get painful periods
Another group presented about gender inequalities in rural development in Uganda and discovered that due government support for women emancipation, recent development shows that most families now educate girls more than boys and parents revealed to students that they prefer to take girls to school faster than boys because girls grow faster than boys, secondly nowadays girls get jobs after graduating faster than boys.
