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This study intended to measure the effect of Task-Based Learning (TBL) on lower secondary school students’ understanding of chemical reactions. The study employed a quasi-experimental pre and post-test research design with eight intact classes of 369 students purposively selected from eight schools in two districts in Rwanda. The experimental group of four schools was exposed to the TBL method, while a control group of the other four schools was exposed to the conventional teaching method (teacher-centered). A chemistry test of a Pearson product-moment reliability coefficient of .643 was developed and used in both groups. The results of repeated-measures ANOVA revealed a significant effect of treatment on students’ understanding of chemical reactions (p < .001) with a medium effect size (d = 0.357) in favor of the experimental group. Gender and school location variables were also analyzed. It was found that the interaction effect of experimental and gender was not significant (p > .05, d = 0.010). However, the effect was significant with the school location (p < .05, d = 0.026) in favor of students studying in rural schools. The results imply that TBL method improves students’ understanding of chemical reactions. Recommendations were given to educational stakeholders to train teachers in this method and teachers to use it in chemistry teaching. Keywords: chemistry education, chemical reactions, Rwandan lower secondary schools, students’ understanding, task-based learning

Rwanda has made tremendous achievements in improving access of both males and females all levels of education. To this end, reforms and equity measures have been undertaken to promote gender equality within the Rwandan education system. However, while the proportion of female students is quite good at lower levels of education, it shrinks at higher educational ladder. In this perspective, enrollment, participation, completion and achievement rates of girls are still lower at secondary and tertiary levels compared to boys. Another discrepancy is observed in the fields of studies and university of choice. In fact, girls are more likely to enroll in courses related to social studies mostly available in private institutions rather than enrolling in science related courses available in public universities. Furthermore, females are under-represented in both academic and administration positions at secondary and tertiary levels of education. Therefore, the key objectives of this paper were to highlight the progress made towards achievement of gender equality, to identify the factors that contributed to that achievement, and finally to explore what remains a stumbling to full realization of gender parity in Rwandan education system. This paper was mainly a desktop research that used different official documents including statistics yearbooks, reports, and strategic plans among others. The study revealed that the number of girls outnumbered that of boys at lower levels of education, elimination of school fees, reforming curricula and establishing gender sensitive infrastructure contributed to this progress. Poverty and some traditional socio-cultural beliefs are key challenges to gender parity. Government and other stakeholders were recommended to sensitize and encourage girls to enroll in TVT and universities, and provide more gender sensitive infrastructure and amenities.

Improved teaching methods facilitate the ease of acquisition of knowledge and lead to better achievement. The present study investigates the instructional methods most commonly used in teaching chemistry in lower secondary schools in Rwanda. SPSS 23.0 was used to analyze data from a survey conducted on 51 lower secondary chemistry teachers. The survey has satisfactory and acceptable reliability (Cronbach alpha=0.913 for 57 items on average). The results revealed that teachers prefer active learning methods though they still use traditional teaching methods. Comparison of teachers’ responses in terms of experience showed no statistically significant difference with p= 0.064. The study also found that some teachers have misconceptions in differentiating instructional approaches, methods, and techniques or strategies. Therefore, it is recommended that educational stakeholders should plan pieces of training to teachers about different instructional methods and techniques to use in chemistry teaching for effective learning outcomes.

In school system, the teacher is the key input as he/she is the one to create a conducive atmosphere for learning by preparing the learning content, preparing classroom environment, ordering materials, using a variety of methods to deliver learning, and he/she also assesses the level of learners, manages time and students, and should be a good role model. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether and to the extent to which relationship exists between teacher characteristics and school performance in public secondary schools in Nyamasheke and Nyarugenge districts. Specifically, the study sought to describe teacher characteristics, determine the extent to which teacher characteristics correlate with school performance, and find out the strategies adopted to enhance school performance in public secondary schools located in the two districts. This study was guided by Education Production Function theory and it adopted a correlation research design. The target population involved 70 head teachers and 2 district education officers. 21 head teachers and 2 district education officers were surveyed. Stratified sampling, simple random sampling and purposive sampling techniques were used to select this sample and questionnaires, document review schedule, and interview schedule were used to collect data. It was found that only 61.15% of teachers have a bachelor’s degree, among them only 63.81% have undergone a pedagogical course, and only 56.05% have an experience of more than three years. It was further found that among the teacher characteristics, teacher qualification, professional training and experience highly correlate with school mean performance and as the coefficient of determination for each varies between 0.41 and 0.63. It was therefore recommended that the government and all other stakeholders should allocate more resources to train more teachers and retain experienced ones and provide more in-service training to enhance teachers’ professionalism.