The academic year 2021 for all classes will start on August 9, Africa Tembelea has learnt.

In a clarification dated May 19, the Education ministry’s permanent secretary, Alex Kakooza, said the revised school calendar follows the re-opening of education institutions after President Yoweri Museveni eased the COVID-19 lockdown.

However, Kakooza noted that semi-candidates will (P6, S3 and S5), who reported on March 1, were supposed to break off on (May 21) and report back to school on June 7 for a special term that runs up to June 24, when they will complete their academic year 2020 and be promoted to the next respective class for academic year 2021, which he confirmed starts on August 9.

He revealed that the semi-candidate classes were accorded a special term because they had less time to recover the lost learning time compared to other classes in the respective education cycles.

“It has come to the ministry’s attention, however, that some schools may not have fully understood the application for the special term and are wrongly communicating to parents that the special term is for all classes,” Kakooza observed. The clarification was addressed to headteachers of primary and secondary schools, learners and their parents countrywide.

Kakooza said said Primary One, two and three learners will report on June 7 and complete the 2020 academic year on July 24. They will then be promoted to the next respective class for the academic year 2021, which starts on August 9.

For Primary Four and five learners, who reported to school on April 6, Kakooza said they will complete the 2020 academic year on June 4, when will then be promoted to the next respective class. He said they will also start the next academic year (2021) on August 9.

“Senior One learners reported on April 12 and will complete the academic year 2020 on July 2, when they will be promoted to S2 for the academic year 2021, which starts on August 9,” the permanent secretary further observed.

For Senior Two learners, Kakooza said they reported on May 13 and that they will complete the 2020 academic year on July 24, when they will be promoted to Senior Three. They will also report for the new academic year on August 9.

Mr Kakooza advised schools with Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) marking centres to follow the guidelines sent to them by the ministry in an earlier circular.