Why are South Sudan Secondary School Graduates Struggling in Universities at Home and Abroad?
Duom Peter Chol
By Duom Peter, Juba, South Sudan
Sunday, 01 February 2026 (PW) — Two months ago, the Minister of General Education and Instruction (MoGEI), Dr. Kuyok Abol Kuyok, raised a serious concern about the decline in academic standards at the university among the top-scoring students who recently completed high school and joined the university. Dr. Kuyok, a well-known academician, researcher, and lecturer at the University of Juba who has published several articles in the renowned Times Higher Education, stated that he has seen top-ten students struggle to advance to their second year. He called the situation “pathetic” and warned that the problem reflects deeper weaknesses in the secondary school system.
Indeed, as a lecturer who teaches mathematics at the university, I have witnessed many students lacking basic mathematical concepts and even failing the course despite scoring 100% in mathematics during their Certificate of Secondary Education (CSE) examinations. For example, in 2021, I taught a Basic Mathematics course to 452 first-year students, of whom only 89 scored a grade of D or above, while nearly 80% failed the course. The students studying physical sciences, computer science and information technology, engineering, and medicine at the university are the most affected.
This raises many questions about whether our secondary school teachers are preparing their students for success or simply teaching rote memorization to pass examinations. Other unverified reports from abroad suggest that many students who completed CSE in South Sudan frequently change courses, drop out of school, or are even discontinued from university for failing to achieve the minimum passing grade. Based on my interactions with university students and secondary school teachers, below are five main reasons why many secondary school graduates who completed CSE struggle at home and in overseas universities.
1. Examinations malpractices: There is a saying that highlights the difference between education passing through you and you passing through education. Meaningful education is supposed to transform your lifestyle and instill discipline in you, encouraging you to do the right things even in the darkness when no one is watching. In previous years, there have been reports of examination malpractices, locally known as ‘machot’, enabling students to score high marks in subjects where they lack fundamental understanding. These students often end up at university with little or no knowledge of the foundational concepts of some courses. This year, the examination malpractices for the 2025 CSE have been contained, and the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, particularly the examinations department, deserves credit for ensuring that examination papers were not leaked. Keep up the great work!
2. Some students spend less than four years in secondary school: It might sound strange to hear that a student completed only two years in high school instead of the usual four. Based on my interactions with students, many observed that those with basic oral English skills, who speak well, often mistake their fluency for comprehensive knowledge. These students enroll in senior one, continue to senior two, and after one or two years, they register for senior four. When such students manage to leak examination papers, they can easily pass the national examinations. The examination department at the MoGEI should play a pivotal role in enforcing stricter measures during the examination registration process. For instance, there should be evidence of a Certificate of Primary Education (CPE) result slip confirming that the student has spent the appropriate number of years in secondary school before sitting for the CSE. For instance, it should be automatic that those who completed their primary education in 2021 were the ones who sat for the 2025 CSE examinations, while those who sat for the CPE between 2022 and 2024 could be automatically flagged out by the system. While there are students who are intelligent and capable of skipping certain classes in secondary school, the ministry could develop specific guidelines for such cases if necessary.
3. Lack of laboratory facilities: According to World Bank/EMIS reports, over 95% of secondary schools in South Sudan do not have functional laboratories where students studying sciences can conduct their practicals. Consequently, when they sit for CSE examinations, they do not take practical exams due to the lack of laboratory facilities in schools. The majority of students who complete CSE see scientific apparatus physically for the first time at university. In my previous article titled “Education Challenges: A Critical Look at Enrollment Rates in Public Universities’ Colleges of Education” published by Radio Tamazuj, I suggested that the ministry could initiate a project to build at least one furnished laboratory (encompassing physics, chemistry, biology, and agriculture) in each county. These laboratories could serve as model facilities where candidate classes from that county could perform practicals in shifts. In urban areas, private secondary schools could be encouraged to build their own mini laboratories for their students to conduct practicals. Once this initiative is successful, it could be replicated in Payams, and eventually, after some years, it could become mandatory for every secondary school to have its own laboratory.
4. Inadequate Number of Qualified Teachers. The MoGEI’s Annual Education Census shows that there were over 6,600 teachers in secondary schools across the country in 2023. However, less than 20% of them are trained teachers with bachelor’s degrees or diplomas in the field of education. The majority of teachers come from fields outside of education. For example, despite having bachelor’s degrees in business or other arts, some teachers rely on the knowledge they obtained in high school or advanced levels to teach in secondary schools. This is because teaching is considered the easiest job in the country, and many individuals from other fields who fail to secure their dream jobs end up in classrooms. While this is not necessarily bad, there is a need to provide specific training in teaching methodology and other educational courses to elevate such teachers to the level of trained educators. There is already a sharp decline in student enrollment at colleges of education in public universities across the country, and many colleges are nearly empty because no one wishes to study education when teachers are struggling in schools. Therefore, there is a need for MoGEI to offer scholarships with stipends to encourage recent high school graduates to pursue bachelor’s or diplomas in education as a career at the universities.
5. The curriculum has not been updated. It has already been 10 years since South Sudan developed a curriculum framework covering primary and secondary levels in 2015. During this period, many things have completely changed, and there is a need to revise the curriculum as well as update the current secondary and primary school textbooks. A significant evolution is happening in the sciences, whether in biology, chemistry, agriculture, or physics, with recent discoveries. Therefore, it is important to update the curriculum to reflect national needs, the labour market, and advancements in technology, which are continually changing.
In conclusion, the aim of this article is to provoke our thinking and conduct a deep analysis of why students perform poorly in university, particularly during their first year, preventing them from advancing to the next class. Secondary school education is a critical phase in any education system as it prepares students for employment, economic productivity, higher education, and becoming disciplined citizens of the country. To achieve the goals of our curriculum, we need to shift more training to secondary school teachers. Many development partners have been focusing more on primary school teachers, neglecting secondary school teachers. Additionally, we should tighten exam malpractice regulations, build laboratories, and update the curriculum.
Duom Peter is the author of children’s books for the pre-primary level, and founder of Junub Kids Ltd. He can be reached at [email protected] or [email protected]
If you want to submit an opinion article, commentary, or news analysis, please email it to the editor: [email protected] or [email protected]. PaanLuel Wël Media (PW) website does reserve the right to edit or reject material before publication. Please include your full name, a short biography, email address, city, and the country you are writing from.
About Post Author
