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Education in Botswana

• Country Profile
• Education Fact Sheet
• Management & Administration of Education
• Reading & Math Achievement Levels
• Research papers and theses
• SACMEQ Indicators
• SACMEQ Reports
• Research papers and theses

Country profile

Botswana is a completely land-locked country and straddles the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern African Plateau. It has a total surface area of about 582 000 square kilometres, which is about the size of France or Texas in the USA.  Botswana shares borders with Namibia to the west, Zambia to the north, Zimbabwe to the northeast and South Africa to the south. 

Botswana became a protectorate of the British Empire in 1885 and was then called Bechuanaland Protectorate.  On September 30, 1966 Bechuanaland Protectorate became the independent Republic of Botswana.  When Botswana achieved its independence there were 251 primary schools, nine secondary schools, two primary teacher training colleges, one trade school and no university. At independence, only 20 percent of school age group were enrolled in primary school, and only eight percent of school age group proceeded to secondary school. In the two decades following independence, the Ministry made great strides in providing the necessary school buildings in all parts of the country to allow children of school age to attend school. By 1986 just over 90 percent of school age children were in school and by 1996 this figure had risen to 96 percent. Although most parents see the value of education and send their children to school, there are still one or two pockets in rural areas where the parents have not yet appreciated the value of education. Nevertheless, great progress has been made and it was anticipated that all children would be enrolled in school by the year 2002. Due to the critical shortage of well-trained workers to staff the public service, education was given the highest priority in the allocation of resources.

The official languages in Botswana are Setswana and English, the latter being the main language used in business.  Presently the medium of instruction in school is Setswana from Standards 1 to 4 and English thereafter. The new policy on education requires that English be used as the medium of instruction from Standard 2. The date for implementation of this recommendation was the year 2002, after the necessary revisions of the curriculum have been effected.

Demographics*:

*latest data as of March 2009 from UNESCO Institute for Statistics.

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Education Fact Sheet

Minister of Education: Hon. Jacob NKATE

Education System: 7-3-2

(7 years of primary, 3 years of junior secondary and 2 years of senior secondary education)

Currently, all school-age going children have a right to the first ten years of school.  The Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), taken at the end of the primary level, is no longer used for selection into junior secondary school.  However, the Junior Certificate Examination (JCE) taken at the end of the junior secondary is used to determine progression into senior secondary school. 

The Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Examination (BGCSE), which is taken at the end of senior secondary education, also determines entry into different tertiary institutions.  All three examinations are local. The senior secondary schools available cannot absorb all JCE leavers.  The pupils who do not follow the academic route can enroll for vocational education through apprenticeship or other forms of vocational training. 

Duration of compulsory education: 10 years

Starting age of compulsory education: 6 years

Ending age of compulsory education: 15 years

Enrolment in 2005*

Pupil - Teacher Ratios in 2005*

• Primary: 24.2 pupils per teacher
• Secondary: 13.6 pupils per teacher**

*latest data as of March 2009 from UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
**UNESCO Institute for Statistics estimation.

Management and Administration of Education

Botswana’s Ministry of Education comprises nine departments and three supporting divisions.  The nine departments are the following:

• Department of Ministry Management;
• Teaching Service Management that is responsible for employment of teachers;
• Department of Vocational Education and Training, responsible for technical education and training;
• Department of Non-formal Education;
• Department of Curriculum Development and Evaluation;
• Department of Primary Education;
• Department of Secondary Education;
• Teacher Training and Development; and
• Department of Student Placement and Welfare, that is responsible for placing students in higher institutions and universities, their sponsorship and welfare.

The three supporting divisions are:

• Division of Planning, Statistics and Research that is responsible for planning, monitoring and the evaluation of education policies;
• Division of Special Education that is responsible for education of children with special needs and
• Examination, Research and Testing Division that is responsible for national examinations.

For operation and management of schools, Botswana is divided into six primary education  regions, namely, Central North, North, Central South, South Central, Southern and Western. For the SACMEQ study, Botswana was divided into seven regions, with Gaborone taken as a separate region.

See the SACMEQ reports for more information.

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Botswana - Reading and Math Achievement Levels

SACMEQ II (2000) Reading achievement

• Percentage of Grade 6 pupils at each level:

SACMEQ II (2000) Math achievement

• Percentage of Grade 6 pupils at each level:

For more country statistics, see also:

• StatPlanet - Explore data through Maps and Graphs

SACMEQ Indicators

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SACMEQ Reports

• SACMEQ II Report:

• SACMEQ National Policy Briefs:

Research Papers and Theses

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