UNITE Calls for Practical Reforms to Transform Teacher Education

What the report says

The Uganda National Institute for Teacher Education (UNITE) is urging education stakeholders to move beyond broad policy talk and focus on practical changes in teacher training, classroom practice and how institutions are run. The message was delivered during a pre-conference workshop for the inaugural International Teacher Education Conference (ITEC) 2026, held at Hotel Africana in Kampala.

According to Nile Post, UNITE’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Prof. Proscovia Namubiru Ssentamu, said the workshop was designed as a hands-on space for teacher educators, researchers and institutional leaders to examine current practices, identify gaps and develop solutions that can be applied in their own settings. She stressed that reforms matter most when they change what happens in classrooms and teacher education programmes, rather than remaining at the level of speeches or documents.

The pre-conference programme includes five applied clinics on topics such as digital responsibility and artificial intelligence in teaching and research, research methods and publication, competency-based curriculum design, leadership and governance, and gender equity and safe learning environments. Facilitators include experts from UNITE and other institutions such as Kyambogo University, Nkumba University, UNEB and NCDC.

The broader context is Uganda’s ongoing education reform agenda, including efforts to strengthen competency-based learning and improve the relevance of teacher preparation. UNITE says the conference is meant to help build professional networks and produce practical outputs that can support longer-term change in teacher education.