Education in Gambia

Education in The Gambia

The education system in The Gambia is similar to the one in the UK.
Potential sponsors are often confused by the different information
they are given

There are several types of school in Gambia.
Nursery/ Lower Basic - usual age from 4/5 to 12/13
Junior Secondary/ Upper Basic - usual age 12 to 15
Senior Secondary - usual age 15 to 18
Islamic school - all ages

The ages given here are the planned age for schools, but in practice students may be older for several reasons. This article gives an insight into some of the reasons.

Nursery Schools are all private schools so the fees and facilities vary greatly.

Lower Basic School

Gambian children start at the Lower Basic School around the age of 7. There are 6 years of primary education, the first 5 can be FREE, depending on the school, but each child has to buy a school uniform, school shoes, a bag, books, pencils. Some stay at school at lunch time, but most go home for lunch. In the last year of primary school (grade 6) most schools charge a small fee to cover examinations.

There are many variations, but during primary schooling the main costs are clothing, and school equipment. Nothing is provided FREE (some schools are sponsored by Gambian businesses or by tourist organisations or charities and at these, there may be FREE uniform or books.) These differences make it hard for sponsors who will be told different things by different people.

GETSuk will provide a detailed estimate for any child attending any school and will keep a detailed costing for each sponsor accounting for any money spent.

All schooling except Islamic school is carried out in English. In primary classes the children learn their numbers, how to count, learn the days of the week and the months of the year. Much is done through rhymes and rhythms with the better children in each grade leading the class. The quality depends on the resources of the individual school, some have desks and chairs most have benches. Most have a board of some sort on the wall some have nothing. Some have toilets for the children some just have holes in the ground, it depends on the luck that the school has had with sponsorship and that often depends on the enterprise of the head and their staff.

Improvised seating and desks!

Towards the last years of primary education most of the children can read and write. Most parents do their best to send their children to all 6 years of Lower Basic School, but because of costs some never go on to junior secondary/upper basic school.

Junior Secondary/Upper Basic School

At the age of about 12 Junior Secondary/Upper Basic education starts. Again the quality is not uniform but most children will have a desk and chair, all are expected to improve their English so they can read and write.

The costs increase per year because now term fees are charged. The first term is expensive because there is new uniform & new books etc to buy and most junior children will need a watch so they can learn to tell the time.

Senior Secondary School

From the age of 15/16, families that can afford it send their children for the 3 final years ending with the pupils taking the school leaving examination.

Again the fees increase and again the first and last years are the most expensive because of change of uniform and final examination fees, including food at lunch time, most important as many children travel by bus from their villages so have no way of getting home at lunch.

When the average family maybe has a total income of around £50 a month to pay for everything, it is not surprising that children's education suffers, not only does it save the considerable costs but as the child can then work it provides the family with more income.

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Islamic Schools

It is difficult to get any costs for this sort of education, and it seems that if finances are critical then girls will go to the Islamic school so they can get married and bring up their children to understand the principles of the Koran.

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