Abridged A-Level Curriculum: 2025 highlights

Author: Admin | Post Date: January 30, 2025

In November 2024, the government decided to drop the development of a new A-Level curriculum, which had been in progress for two years. Instead, it opted for a stop-gap measure—reviewing all A-Level subjects and creating an abridged curriculum for S.5 entrants in 2025.

Following the introduction of the New Lower Secondary Curriculum (NLSC) by the Ministry of Education and Sports, alongside the National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC), Uganda’s education system has been transitioning from the old curriculum to a competency-based curriculum (CBC). The first batch of students under this system sat for the UCE UNEB exams in 2024.

With the imminent release of these exam results, S.4 leavers are understandably anxious about their A-Level education. Many are asking questions such as:

• “What mode of education will we have in A-Level?”
• “How will the curriculum be structured, given that we have been studying under the NLSC?”

To address these concerns, we bring you key insights into the abridged A-Level curriculum, as shared by Dr. Dennis Mugimba, the Ministry of Education spokesperson:

• The abridged curriculum for the first cohort of the NLSC is in its final stages as students prepare to join S.5 in 2025.
• Topics are being realigned, and some have been removed to ensure content fits within the new framework.
• A-Level will continue to run for two years, with the abridged curriculum being implemented for four years (2025–2028).
• A fully competency-based A-Level curriculum will be developed and rolled out by 2028.
• Projects, Continuous Assessment (CA), and Activities of Integration (AoI) will be introduced to complement learning.
• The number of papers per subject has been reduced (e.g., History streamlined from six papers to two).
• The selection of subject combinations remains unchanged.
• No new subjects have been added, and students will continue selecting from existing subject options.
• The assessment model will align with the NLSC, incorporating formative assessments alongside traditional end-of-cycle summative assessment.
• Exam setting styles and question formats will be modified to align with competency-based learning.
• Learning materials for the abridged curriculum will be accessible on the NCDC portal, while printing and distribution are in progress.
• There will be no new textbooks or additional content development, unlike the lower secondary curriculum revision.

Dr. Mugimba emphasized that these changes are designed to make A-Level education competency-based and harmonized with the NLSC. The goal is to relieve teachers of outdated content and ensure higher secondary education remains focused and practical.

The full A-Level curriculum overhaul is still in progress and will be ready for implementation by 2028. Meanwhile, the abridged curriculum will serve as a transitional framework to bridge the gap.

At Rise and Shine High School Ntinda, we are fully prepared to implement this new A-Level abridged curriculum and support our students in excelling under this restructured system.

#Welcome to the Advanced Level of Education!
#S5 Class of 2025

Reference: Daily Monitor