Hill Preparatory School

Hill Preparatory School is a private primary school located in Naguru, Kampala City. The school was founded in 1988 as a pioneer integrated special school where children with learning/intellectual disability study together with their regular counterparts for the mutual benefit of both categories of children. The rationale was that in such an environment and with the correct ratios, the special children benefit from their counterparts who in turn also benefit from the close supervision inherent in small classes, expert techniques, and modifications in teaching and curriculum. The dream was for the regular and special needs children to excel through integration.

Hill Preparatory School was founded at a time when there was no policy on curriculum, and teaching methods for children with impairments like autism, speech/language and communication disorders, behavioral challenges, and Down syndrome among others.

As a pioneer school, Hill Preparatory School has been instrumental in championing favorable policies concerning inclusive education such as oral examinations.  However, with time, empirical evidence showed that given the wide spectrum and severity of some of the children, HPS’s model needed to evolve, to accommodate the growing needs of some of the children. A Special Needs Centre was therefore set up to cater for those children who were not benefitting from the academic goals of the national Primary Leaving Examinations. At the Special Needs Centre, appropriate support and care are given to children with special needs who do not do the national primary leaving examinations. The support given include; re/assessment, parents’ counseling, psychological services, pre-vocational training, life skills, speech therapy, music therapy, sports and swimming, financial literacy and savings, and functional literacy among many other skills. The children are further reclassified into smaller groups to receive one-to-one therapy. All the children are integrated at mealtimes and outside the classrooms.

Hill Preparatory School has a vision to create: “A world in which every child is given equal learning rights and opportunities.”

With a Mission: “To use holistic and individual learning approaches to prepare children for a productive and fulfilling life.”

Hill Preparatory School is a Changemaker school recognized by the East African Network under the ASHOKA world group of social entrepreneurs where everyone is a potential changemaker.

The school also offers other services such as: opportunities for student teachers, therapists and other specialists to put their theory training into practice, research, public awareness, and parents’ counselling.

Hill Preparatory School also has a half-Olympic size swimming pool used for therapy and training, and the students have won several medals at several Special Olympics games including gold, silver and bronze. The pool is open to the public, and several swimming clubs and other nearby schools use it.

Out of total enrolment, 9% of the children with special needs are fully integrated in the inclusive mainstream, while 13% are in the Special Needs Centre. The school therefore has a combined ratio of the 1:5 between regular and special needs children.

Outlook: Looking at this milestone with gratitude, Hill Preparatory School hopes to increase its partnership with public and private stakeholders.

More information about the school can be accessed via website at www.hillprepschool.ac.ug.

If you are interested in a partnership with Hill Preparatory School, please feel free to contact us.

Contact: 

Joseline Amutuhaire

joseline.amutuhaire[at]einewelt-sachsen.de

+49 178 874 1050