Education without character is dangerous and incomplete, Viva College School Principal Dennis Alfred Anguyo has warned ahead of the school’s Visitation Days, calling on parents to stop measuring their children only by marks and start measuring them by manners.
In a detailed philosophy on education and parenting piece submitted to The Exposure Uganda (TEU), a revolutionary digital news platform, Anguyo said many homes in Uganda today have quietly abandoned the moral formation role and outsourced it entirely to schools, yet continue to interrogate children more for poor marks than for poor values.
The result, he argues, is a generation that passes examinations but fails at life.
“What did you check first when your child came home last term, his marks or his manners? Be honest. In most homes today a child who brings 90% in Mathematics gets a soda and a Facebook post. A child who lies, who bullies the maid, who disrespects his mother, still gets that soda as long as the report says Grade A or B,” he said.
For Anguyo, this misplaced celebration is the root of many social problems. When homes celebrate marks and tolerate bad character, schools inherit children who believe results matter more than integrity.
The anchor of his philosophy is not new. It is a scholarly position articulated as early as 1947 by one of the most influential moral leaders of the 20th century, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Writing as an 18-year-old undergraduate student at Morehouse College, King published a short but seminal essay entitled The Purpose of Education in the college newspaper, The Maroon Tiger.
In that essay, King made a distinction that Anguyo says Uganda’s education system has forgotten. He argued that education must develop two inseparable functions — utility and culture — or what he called intelligence and character. Utility enables man to become more efficient. Culture enables man to become more human.
King warned prophetically: “The most dangerous criminal may be the man gifted with reason, but with no morals… We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of true education. The complete education gives one not only powers of concentration, but worthy objectives upon which to concentrate” (King, M. L. Jr., 1947, The Maroon Tiger, Morehouse College).
That 78-year-old sentence, Anguyo argues, explains the Uganda we see today — clever fraudsters who can hack bank systems, educated leaders who steal public funds with sophisticated paperwork, brilliant students who cheat brilliantly in UNEB.
Intelligence without character, as King predicted, does not build a nation. It merely makes wrongdoing more sophisticated.
“We have produced graduates who can solve quadratic equations but cannot solve a conflict with their neighbor without insulting. Who can write a perfect job application but cannot keep a job because of poor attitude. That is not education. That is half-education,” Anguyo said.
Visitation Is More Than Delivery.
It is against this background that Anguyo has issued a special appeal to all parents and guardians of Viva College School ahead of the school’s two Visitation Days.
The school will host parents on Saturday 24th October 2026 for Form One, Form Two and Sunday 1st November 2026 for Form Three, Form Five. Both days will run from 8:00am to 5:00pm at the school campus situated at the foothill of Mwiri Hill, Jinja.
“I call upon all parents to come and support the moral and character formation process of our learners. Do not come only to deliver stuff from Javas Cafe, KFC and pocket money. Those are important, but come to dialogue about the kind of person your child is becoming,” he said.
According to Anguyo, Visitation at Viva is deliberately structured as more than a drop-and-go exercise. It is designed as a three-way formative conference between parent, teacher and learner. On arrival, parents will sit with the mentor teacher, the house parent and subject teachers to review not only the academic report but also what the school calls a Character Progress Report.
That report tracks growth in respect, honesty, time management, responsibility, teamwork, leadership, practical skills and service. Has the child improved in keeping time? How does he relate with peers? Is she taking initiative? Has he learned to apologize and forgive?
Parents are also urged to bring not just gifts, but stories from home about values practiced during holidays. What chore did the child do consistently? How did he handle a phone? Did she show respect to elders and workers at home?
“Do not ask only ‘How many marks did you get? What position are you?’ Ask ‘What did you learn about yourself this term? How have you become more responsible? What did you do for others without being paid? Who did you help?’ When we celebrate manners as much as marks, children learn both matter,” he said.
He adds that Visitation is also a moment for parents to listen to teachers and for teachers to listen to parents. Character formation fails when home says one thing and school says another.
A Fan Who Teaches from Football — Lightly.
Anguyo is a man of interesting contrasts, and he laughs at himself about it when you meet him.
He is referred to as a stubborn Manchester United fan in Jinja, Busoga who still believes the now struggling United will rise again even when the whole of Busoga is laughing at him every Monday morning in the staffroom to the taxi stage and in the market.
He is generally a teetotaler who sips an exotic glass of Chateu Margaux or Moet and Chandon only when United wins a game, which he admits with a smile means his liver is very safe these days — and a devout Catholic by faith who never misses Sunday Mass and serves in his small Christian community.
Anguyo now uses that very identity to teach, light-heartedly but pointedly. “You can laugh at me, but watch Manchester United and you will understand our schools and even our country,” he jokes to his staff and parents.
As of this week, the story is painful for any United fan. Manchester United sit 12th in the English Premier League table with just 6 points from 6 games, their lowest total at this stage of the season since 1986, and 13th in the new Champions League league-phase table with 3 points from 2 games after a 4-0 win over Sabah of Malaysia at Old Trafford and a 2-0 away loss to the Diego Pablo Simeone (El Cholo)-led Atletico Madrid where young defender Leny Yoro was sent off. The team is winless in five matches across all competitions, and yet the loudest debate on radio is still whether to sack the coach.
Anguyo says that is the mistake we also make in education. “Just like no headteacher is better than its school, no coach is better than its club,” he argues. “Manchester United has appointed and disappointed many top managers — David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Erik ten Hag, Ruben Amorin and now Michael Carrick.
Yet the problem has persisted because the structure, the recruitment policy, the hierarchy, the culture and the accountability system remain broken. You can change the manager every year, but if the structure is broken, you will get the same results.”
He draws a direct parallel. In Uganda, when a school’s results fall, the first call is often to sack the headteacher. Fortunately,he says at Vival College there is a very strong supportive Board of Directors chaired by Hajji Juma Kisame, a board that invests,that visits,that listens,that opened a state of art Complex.”When a Board is strong, the headteacher or Principal like me is enabled to lead”,he said adding his Old Trafford lesson is therefore a lesson for the whole country and for parents when the entire ecosystem is aligned,Board,Management,teachers,parents and students,then transformation happens easily and swiftly.
It comes from fixing the whole system and culture. That is what Dr. King meant — you cannot train intelligence only and hope character will appear.”
He adds with a laugh: “While parents cannot be changed like headteachers, you cannot sack your father and appoint another one from Ishaka or Mubende, it is important that parents understand their roles stretch beyond paying tuition. You cannot outsource character formation to the school gate.”
What Are We Celebrating?
Anguyo challenges both parents and teachers to audit what they celebrate. In many schools, he says, report cards reveal only part of a learner. They show scores, not whether the child is becoming more honest, respectful or responsible. They show position in class, not position in character.
His axiom to staff at Viva is simple and repeated every Monday during briefing: “What you tolerate, you teach.” Tolerate bullying and you teach that power is more important than respect. Tolerate cheating and you teach that results matter more than integrity. Tolerate late coming and you teach that time does not matter.
He also teaches that rules without relationship lead to rebellion. A child who is misbehaving is communicating something. A school that rules only by fear may get silence, but silence is not discipline.
“Fear is not discipline. A silent class because they are scared of a cane is not a disciplined class. That is just fear wearing a uniform. Real discipline is when a child does the right thing even when no teacher is watching,” he said.
This is why Viva has invested in mentoring, house parenting, counseling, clubs and service, so that every child has an adult who knows him by name and story.
Parenting Beyond Fees.
Anguyo says more is caught than taught. Children need models, not critics. They copy what adults do, not what adults say.
He warns parents against cursing children with destructive labels. Saying “you are useless, you are stupid, you will never amount to anything” may feel like correction, but it is cursing. Correct the behavior, not the worth of the child. Tell the child “What you did was wrong” instead of “you are wrong.”
He also cautions parents who undermine teachers in front of children. When a parent tells a child “Don’t mind that teacher, I will handle him,” the child learns disrespect. When a parent tells a maid “You are stupid” in front of the child, the child learns that workers can be abused.
“Character is taught at the dining table, in how we speak to the boda-boda rider, waitress, a cleaner or a maidservant and in how we handle disappointment, or frustration and in whether we return excess change. The school can teach for eight hours, but the home teaches for sixteen.”
How Unique Is Viva College?
Viva College School on the slopes of Mwiri Hill, Jinja, was founded by renowned banker and educationist Dr. Juma Kisaame. It runs on the motto “Great Minds Shape the World” and was born out of the need to create a comprehensive learning environment that trains the mind whilst nurturing talents and practical life skills.
The school is unique in several ways that align directly with King’s philosophy of intelligence plus character.
Unlike congested schools where a teacher handles 100 learners, Viva maintains classes of not more than 40 learners so that every child is known by name, behaviour and talent, because as Anguyo says, you cannot mentor a crowd. Every student has a mentor teacher who follows both academic and character growth.
Second, the school combines theory with hands-on training. Through its Skilling Programme, learners are trained in tailoring, electrical installation, soap and detergent making, and modern agriculture. The school runs a demonstration farm and recently launched the Texol Garden Project in partnership with Texol Energies and Musubi Farm where students plant and manage Hass avocado trees, learning agronomy from planting to harvest to marketing.
Third, the school is fully equipped with modern science laboratories, computer laboratories and a well-stocked library, ensuring intelligence is not compromised. In March this year, the Katikkiro of Buganda, Charles Peter Mayiga, opened its new state-of-the-art science and technology block during the school’s 10-year anniversary celebrations.
Fourth, under its ASPIRE Programme, Viva bridges education and the workplace. The school hosts career days where companies like Kiira Motors showcase innovations like the Kayoola electric bus, and professionals from banking, architecture, medicine, law and entrepreneurship mentor learners.
The school also runs a strong programme of discipline, sports, music, debate, research and community service that has seen it contribute over Shs 20 million to HIV/AIDS initiatives through the Kabaka Birthday Run and other activities.
At Viva, we do not just prepare children to pass UNEB. We prepare them to pass life after UNEB, after university, in marriage, at work and in society,” he says.
He closes with another scholar, C.S. Lewis, who echoed King: “Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make man a cleverer devil.” For Anguyo, that is the final warning. An intelligent devil is still a devil, only more efficient.
“I warmly invite all parents of Viva College School to turn up in big numbers on Saturday 24th October for senior one and two and Sunday 1st November for senior three and five. Let us together build both the mind and the character of our children. Let us make Visitation Day a day of formation, not just a day of delivery,” Anguyo concludes.
