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The Rwanda Basic Education Board (REB) has announced sweeping reforms in the second cycle of secondary education, set to begin in the 2025–2026 academic year. Among the changes, students across the country will start lessons at 8:00 a.m., with a new subject structure and teaching schedule introduced to improve learning outcomes.
Dr. Flora Mutezigaju, REB’s Deputy Director General, said the reforms are based on recent research and feedback from teachers, highlighting challenges in completing the current competency-based curriculum (CBC).
“Teachers told us the curriculum is too long and complex, especially with the current double-shift system in many schools,” Mutezigaju said in a press briefing. “Some students only receive 25 periods a week, which is insufficient.”
To address the time constraints, schools operating under double shifts will now follow a fixed schedule: the morning session will run from 8:00 a.m. to 11:40 a.m., and the afternoon session from 1:10 p.m. to 4:50 p.m.
Subject Combinations Merged into Broader Streams
REB has also reorganized traditional subject combinations into broader academic streams. Science combinations such as MCB (Math, Chemistry, Biology), PCB (Physics, Chemistry, Biology), and PCM (Physics, Chemistry, Math) will now be grouped under a unified Science track.
Other subject clusters that include Geography, Economics, and Computer Science—like MEG, MCE, and MPG—will form part of a secondary Mathematics stream. Meanwhile, former Arts combinations like HGL (History, Geography, Literature) and HELP (History, Literature, Psychology) will fall under the Arts and Humanities track.
Language-focused combinations have been consolidated into a new Languages stream that includes Kinyarwanda, English, French, and Kiswahili.
The reforms follow a mandatory five-year review of the national curriculum. According to REB, the evaluation revealed that many components of the curriculum were misaligned with students’ age and language abilities, especially at the senior secondary level.
“We found that the English used in textbooks is too advanced for most students,” Mutezigaju said. “We had to reassess whether topics meant for Senior Four were appropriate for 16-year-olds. Some will be moved to earlier or later years.”
REB worked with teachers across the country to identify difficult subjects, revise lesson plans, and simplify language in teaching materials.
School administrators have largely welcomed the reforms, saying they bring much-needed clarity and consistency to the education system.
Father Jean Mfurayase, head of Lycée de Kigali, said the integration of mathematics into more subject combinations would help develop students’ critical thinking skills.
“Excluding math from some streams limited cognitive development,” he said. “The inclusion of multiple languages is also a step forward, as many students struggle with English and French. Now they’ll be taught systematically, and tested in national exams.”
The education reforms are expected to roll out nationwide at the start of the next school year in September 2025.
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