Chilima touts ODL as main weapon against quota system: SKC’s Imbizo talk on Malawi education
Vice-President Saulos Chilima has once again pleaded with the electorate to register and vote en-masse in next year’s elections, warning that failure to remove the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) from power spells doom for the country.
Chilima, who is leading the newly established United Transformative Movement (UTM) was on Tuesday on his Imbizo tour (Mchezo ndi a Chilima) from Mangochi to the Capital City Lilongwe.
Imbizo is a Ngoni term for traditional discussion forums a western equivalent of townhall meetings.
Responding to a question at Mangochi Turn-Off during his Imbizo – Mchezo ndi a Chilima on how he will abolish quota system of selecting students into public universities considering lack of space in universities, Chilima hinted on one of his strategies.
“We are living in times of technology and our friends elsewhere have embraced technology to enroll thousands of students per intake, and that is what we will do,” he said.
Chilima said most Malawian are already getting masters degrees through Open Distance Learning (ODL) using internet connectivity.
“We will support universities to establish ODL facilities that will be accessible to students wherever they may be through simple connectivity,” he elaborated.
He cited uses of connected TV screens for lessons, use of IP cameras to monitor examinations and use of eLibraries for access of learning materials.
Hundreds of people attended the Imbizo – Mchezo ndi A Chilima at Liwonde and Mangochi Turn Off.
At the time of posting this online, Chilima was continuing with his stops which will end in Ntcheu this evening.
Chilima, UTM Bus Company yacheyo ndi za chibwana zachezo akagwere!
This baby has been exposed (judging by the comments) as not well informed, or even misinformed on an important issue in our country. And his solution is poppy cock …
Koma ziliko eh. Proving every day that he would be a disaster. Talk about kakistocracy or rule by the worst!
People don’t understand ODL is done but on a very small scale, we need it on all programmes, look at they way we rank, no where in the world
After reading all your comments, I have come to the conclusion that Chilima is not ready to govern because he does not know what to do with the country. All he knows is that there is massive corruption and he will attempt to deal with it!
I almost laughed at this kind of childishness. we want our children to go to college and be in class before a lecturer not sit at home on a computer play games and learn then go out to smoke ganja and drink beer. ODL is good for post graduates and those matured and working class. on 0.001% of form four pupils will be interested.
Quota system is about selection criteria. Are the people who are going to be selected to do the ODL (which is already in existence by the way) be chosen according to district of origin, You cant just say ODL without having a criteria of how. Is it going to be ODL like private colleges who are just there for the money. Government universities are supposed to be where the cream of the crop in Malawi should go. How do we choose the cream, is the question, not how are we going to teach the cream.
Ena akuti ODL siingatheke kumudzi , aaaah just check with TNM, AIRTEL how many use 4G in rural areas ,villages
nzomwezotu inu. Wake up
Is that your quota system abolishment plan on the desk? I am not convinced.
Spot on Chilima. The world is moving into 4th Industrial Revolution and digital world. Malawi should be positioned to leapfrog from its slumber to embracing this Internet of Things technology to advance education, health and communication etc
This has nothing to do with abolition of quota system. Quota system means placing all candidates in a pool and then rank them according to a systematic criterion where a cut off point is determined in line with available spaces in the universities.
However, remember that there are academic choices to be considered. Say for argument’s sake 200 top candidates chose Medicine as their first choice of study against availability of 100 places, what will happen to the other 100, assuming their second and third choices have been taken up by other students already?
Quota system helps to remove apparent skewness in IQ distribution in the country. The law of nature screams to us that IQ distribution in any locality is normal.
Selecting students into university based on MSCE scores alone across the country defies this law of nature. In some schools, you have almost an entire class qualifying for university placement because of the resource factor (Subject examiners and experienced and dedicated teachers and learning resources). This distorts things already. In my opinion the quota system tries to address this imbalance.
If you can assure me that all schools will be equipped equally in terms of resources I will support removal of quota system 100%. Otherwise proponents of abolition of quota system are missing this point.
The solution of adding more public universities is the viable option. The solution the VP is talking about is nothing new as LUANAR is already doing it.
We need to eject emotionalism and lean more towards reason in the political discourse. Just think of it, creating 1 million jobs in the first year of his presidency is not only impossible in our economy but also a public display of intellectual immaturity. These are only political wishes hoping that he can immediately connect with the masses and win them to his side.
Eliminating corruption is every good meaning Malawian’s dream. But just look at the current composition of UTM. Do you think that task is possible? Unless he wants to arrest his on Members immediately he takes office. Otherwise the task will always remain a dream until a major revolution occurs.
It is not true that quota system removes apparent figures that skew IQ distribution in the country. In fact quota system is an injunction that restrains specific students from specific catchment areas by virtue of their district of origin or tribe. In all its ramifications is the practice of favouring specific candidates at the expense of others who excel in university admissions on the basis of district of origin, region or tribe. Its application denies meritorious candidate admissions into universities. That criteria is portrayed in the manner in which the selection is used.
In Malawi, its use has specifically targeted students from northern Malawi. It is alleged that students from there have dominated university selection for ages. Its use is intended to put a stop to that continual dominance.
However, to accommodate students that have been at a disadvantage for too long because of the continual surge of students from that area, it is necessary that Ministry of Education through the Malawi Government should construct more universities or increase infrastructural developments in all public universities with a view to accommodate such students. Use of quota system has merely brought mediocrity since the system throws excellence out of the window since it dwells much on where one comes from and not on one’s performance. Besides, it favours urban upper-and-middle-income groups at the expense of the rural and urban poor.
Since quota system is a fraud system designed to stagnate the educational movement of those who excel, I would harp on the words of Obielumani in the Journal of Research in National Development (June 2008) by stating that “a truly applied quota system across the board is indispensable for inter-ethnic unity, harmonious and equal social development of all districts. At the same time, a misapplied one on the basis of social-cultural and political differences and in an attempt to balance the educational imbalance among districts is more of an instrument of discrimination, deprivation and retrogression of progressive districts.”
All in all, it is agreeable, as alluded to, that the solution of adding more universities is indeed the best viable option. Thus in event there are more public universities, intake should shoot up to 19 580 students. Zimbabwe admitted 17 000 students in 2017. The figure in Malawi is very low because backers of quota system are curtailing educational infrastructure developments. How? They are not interested to construct more universities. Yet the vision of university education is, among others, to develop and inculcate proper values for the individual and society.
Quota system is EVIL as it punishes the hard working. And yes, distance learning is the way forward. We’ve got the open university in the UK. One of the best/biggest and yes online. Come on Chilima, ndiwe wanzeru.
ODL inayamba kaletu kaya, inu simukudziwa, MZUNI, LUANAR are offering ODL
Chilima doesn’t know what he is talking about. ODL strategy is already being implemented in Malawi, but has it addressed the problem? Besides, ODL students are not selected using quota system. How is it going to address the quota problem? Kungothamangira kulonjeza aMalawi zinthu zoti simukudziwa mmene zikuchitikira. Useless UTM. You have lost my vote.
It is such resistance-to-change mindset that is holding us backward. If UNIMA, MUST, LUANAR and MZUNI can open up to distance learning, online programmes and even weekend programmes across cities and strategic towns, with one lecturer teaching a course remotely to all these campuses, can universities face accommodation challenges, can universities run short of staff, can one fail to access higher education? I see the challenge not being the proposed mode of delivery but creativity in putting into practice what we learn. Let’s wake up Malawi and embrace technology. How many of us fail to go back to school because Universities demand fulltime on campus learning? Why being forced to quick our jobs just to upgrade academically because the programmes are only fulltime? Image someone in Karonga or Nsanje being forced to relocate to Cities to get education and yet our employers or business ventures require us not to relocate?
it seems you are not in Malawi, there is Hest project and many universities already embraced ODL, i did my degree through ODL as well, at Mzuni, Luanar and chanco its already there and its expanding.
MZUNI, UNIMA AND LUANAR are already offering ODL. So this is not a new idea
The world is embracing digital technology in advancing access and quality in education yet many comments here seems obscured by the lack of knowledge on ICT in education. Instead of us seeing a hope in improving technology in our education systems, we are seeing only the impossibility. Even on campus teaching now in many progressing universities are using much of online with periodical on campus face to face contacts. A Malawi, if students now are relying more on internet for learning materials than hard copies, what is impossible in increasing access and quality of education through online learning? Do u think we can’t invest in electricity, internet and technology if all the money being stolen can be put to good use?
This guy must tell us how he will create quality and sustainable jobs. A job that will allow me to send my kids to better schools or hospitals. Or how he intends to bring quality healthcare and education so that public services should become our first choices. He also needs to tell us now (with figure estimates) how corruption is affecting development because it appears all the problems Malawi is facing today are as a result of corruption, which in my view is not the case. In addition, how is he going to raise better salaries for teachers, medical personel and other critical civil servants so that they can also easily afford Japanese cars. And what plan does he have to end ongoing blackouts within a year knowing that all past regimes have failed. Nobody is commenting on this angoti ndithetsa blackout but how exactly? Za ulimi Green Belt Trust ikupangapo kale taona ma reports dzana za Sugar etc. Iwowo azatani kweni kweni zosiyana ndi zomwe akupanga amzawo. By the way, should we believe that Masangwi and Kaliati’s cases will be followed to their logical conclusions akazlowa mboma?
Zikakhala za ODLzo ine surely, I dont think thats a great solution for undergraduate studies. We are talking of high computer illiteracy levels, lack of connectivity etc. Saulosi are you going to fix all these things within a year after abolishing Qouta system? I know of several countries such as UK which offer their scholarships based on Quota system. Check Nigeria recipeients against MAlawi, South Africa, Zambia etc. Its all proportional to population whilst awarding all those qualified for the same. You can check facts for yourselves with UK government agencies. Nde mukuti quota is so evil komaso ODL izakhala solution within a year.
At Njamba, you talked of Supporting zolanda malo from azungu just like Vincent Wandale has consistently proposed. OK…you could have gone further to tell the nation how exactly you would go about appropriating this land back into the owners osangoti tikambilana kufuna mavoti basi.
I respect Saulosi chilima but I guess he needs to go back and cook again his messages not just for illiterates but for all.
When others said he is a baby i nearly cursed them for uttering such words, but it has proved to me through his plans that there is really childness in his plans and thinking. ODL already started long time ago at Mzuni, Luanar, Domasi etc. so many teachers employed the past three years were through ODL as well. What challenges are there with the current ODL setup that he will improve? there are issues of access to computers, electricity and internet connectivity for ODL to work, how is he going to solve those things? wasting money on high speed trains when many can not afford to drink decent water, where electricity is a challenge what a rhetoric chilima. kungofuna mavoti a anthu basi. i see danger if Malawians vote for him, the guy lacks maturity, he does not really have a solid plan for mother Malawi
Zambiri is talking koma zinazo are wishes chabe not kuti in a year all can be achieved never at all to fix this power issue i not a joke . Coz power nde source ya zonse zi. Za bullet train ndi mahope chabe koma big issue we shud end corruption yi n nepotism
ODL is not ideal for students in remote areas. QUOTA System is the wayforward as at now. Osamanamiza anthu.
ODL is not ideal for those in remote areas? So who is it ideal for?
Don’t pretend that you don’t know what category of students it is ideal for. This was my contribution and you can make yours.
ODL started at MZUNI around 2012 such that today there is a state-of the art structure funded by HEST just behind the main campus. In addition, there are 4 satellites under construction in Karonga, Lilongwe, Balaka & Mulanje to increase the intake for MZUNI students. LUANAR & Poly have also centres in all the 3 regions of Malawi. Challenges? I reserve that for the future discussions.
Awa sakuziwa chimene akunena. Will you do undergraduate training in sciences and engineering through distance learning? Where is the internet infrastructure for this? clueless Chilima with his chilimanomics!
mmmmh I didnt know we have such people who are on a trajectory to intellectual bankrupcy !!!
Chilima says ODL is just one amongst many options not the only options. Your thinking needs transformation.
By mentioning ODL, it means it is Chilima’s main strategy of addressing quota system. Yet, APM is already doing that. This guy is indeed a baby.
the way he simplifies complex issues by just doing abcd worries me so much because when reality will strike him, he will become arrogant like his father APM and his uncle Bingu. Distant learning for under graduates cannot be compared to post graduate learning – it can happen but only few people can access it, and not ideal for engineering related programmes, and natural sciences.
Komaso creating 1,00,000 jobs still stands vague up to now – because what he cites as job creating ventures are very temporal — ie constructions works…job ceases the moment the project is completed. Komaso how many people does each construction site employ? if it is 200 then in one month anthu more than 1million can be employed, I think that happens all the times – but we call this employment ? ndiye sibwenzi anthu akudandaula kuti there are no job opportunities.
The Bullet train in the air is another dream…..Ku mangochi sanayinene wazindikira kuti ndizovuta to implement that one in malawi and it is not necessary at the moment.
So his simplification of issues is very worrisome.
Malawi development path needs to start from simple approaches, maximizing the natural resources we arleady have. Well articulation of boosting of what malawi already have is missing in his gospel. Fruit processing companies to process juice kuti anthu adzimwa sounds very basic and childish.
Izi ife timanena kuti all this hype but this guy seems not ready to tell us exactly what he intends to do for Malawi. I am sorry to say that he seems to be confused and not the solution we all need. Unfortunately zinayamba ndi phuma nde kaya
i see childishness in his responses. The ODL is already available in many institutions like Mzuzu, Luannar etc. and are expanding, what new will he bring then? The workforce yomwe amalawi akufuna aint yopelekera mchenga pomanga nyumba or misewu as he puts it. If malawians elect this man, it will really be a doomed country. You can not priotise high speed trains when many malawians can not afford to drink decent water. Chinyamatachi chitipwetekesa, zongoona mmafilimu shame
IT PAYS SOMETIMES TO UNDERSTAND WHAT ONE IS SAYING. EVEN AT A FUNERAL, THE BEREAVED ARE WELL KEPT INSIDE THE HOUSE AWAY FROM SCORCHING SUN OR RAIN. THE BEREAVED EXAMPLIFIES YOUR CONCERNS ABOVE, THE OTHERS WOULD BE ACCOMODATED THROUGH ODL BECASUE THERE IS A SPACE ISSUE HERE.
WE SHOULD RATHER BE WORRIED WITH THE MLAKHO STYLE ‘IMBIDZO’ THING, KUZAKHALA KUNAMIZIRA KUTI NDIWE MNGONI KUTI ZIKUYENDERE!!!!!