February 4, 20261 sources

Uganda's Exam Obsession Failing Children, Says Opinion

The Story

Last week, the release of the Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) results has been treated as breaking news. An opinion piece in The Observer questions whether this should be the case. The article argues that in a functioning system, a child sitting an exam should be as normal as a new day dawning. Instead, the piece states the country is whipping up national excitement and anxiety over the results. The article is titled "Our obsession with national exams is failing our children."

Perspective

According to The Observer's opinion piece, the national treatment of exam results as breaking news is problematic. The source argues that this obsession with national exams is failing children. The article presents the viewpoint that a functioning education system should normalize exams, rather than treating them as events that generate widespread excitement and anxiety.

Why This Matters

This matters because the article directly links the national obsession with exam results to a failure in the education system. The intense focus on results as major news events creates an environment of excitement and anxiety, which the source suggests is detrimental to a healthy learning process and the children within it.

What's Next

The opinion piece does not mention specific future events or actions. It serves as a critique of the current national response to examination results.

Uganda PLE resultsnational exam obsessioneducation system critique UgandaPrimary Leaving Examinationsexam anxiety UgandaThe Observer opinionfailing children education

Sources

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The ObserverOppositionFebruary 4, 2026
Our obsession with national exams is failing our children