The problem of the quality of education in Mozambique has been the focus of attention from various government bodies, academics, international partners and perhaps even teachers. Much has been said about the poor quality of education. Many have said that it is getting worse and worse, but when has it ever been better?

In reflections on the subject, much has been made of the search for the "culprits", because who, after all, is responsible for the "loss" in the quality of education in the country?

The answers have been varied, after all, everyone tries to defend their side, then the responsibility is thrown onto others and so it goes on. But where does the problem really lie, is it the system, the curriculum, the teacher, political interference in education (corruption), or the student? The answer can be very simple: the person responsible for the poor quality of education in the country is the teacher. As has often been said, "today's teachers aren't like those who used to teach. But is the teacher really to blame or is he just a victim of circumstances?

Let's see, when the country achieved independence, few people were prepared to teach and cope with the need. As a solution, they turned to people who had completed elementary school, without any preparation to teach, let alone to teach specific subjects. So the intensive teacher training courses began, without any specialty to meet the country's need for teachers. The problems of the lack of teachers in schools were solved, but what about quality?

In the last decade, a large number of teachers with basic and secondary levels of training have sought specialized higher education, either through scholarships offered by the government or on their own. This has increased the number of specialized teachers, but many, after higher education, are assigned to subjects that were not even part of their training curriculum. This is how graduates in History Teaching have become Maths teachers, for example, to solve the problem of the lack of Maths teachers, but what about quality?

It was also possible to see that the government started to hire teachers with degrees in various areas, but few of them were qualified according to their area of training. The number of specialized teachers has increased, but has this increased the quality of teaching?

Likewise, there has been a movement of party affiliation on the part of teachers to make them eligible for positions of trust and leadership in order to see their meager salaries improved. As a result, many teachers have emigrated to the state administration and the rest continue to serve the interests of their party affiliates, prioritizing them to the detriment of the students, many of whom are absent to attend meetings, among other party agendas, and in the end have to perform well professionally, reflected in the number of students who pass their subject or class. The number of students who pass is now increasing, but are they of good quality? It should be remembered that many failed in past years and only those students who met the minimum requirements for the next class were approved, so you didn't get to 5th grade without knowing how to read, write and/or count, but the same cannot be said today.

Just as many students complete classes without requirements, students can also complete courses without the fundamental requirements and then become teachers with competencies, skills and attitudes that leave something to be desired. Can we blame them for the low quality of education in the country?

So isn't the teacher just a victim of circumstances? If we want to blame someone for the quality of education in the country, let's look at the system, not the curricula, but the National Education System, the policies adopted in the short term in an effort to solve imminent problems without giving much thought to their impact on the future.

Written by:  Vitorino Mutimucuio