Grade R to Grade 3 learners at Kgoroshi Primary School in Kgoroshi village, outside Moletjie, in Limpopo, have missed out on two full terms’ worth of lessons this academic year.
The school has not had a foundation phase educator since the start of the second term of the year – with the department currently sourcing one, as a temporary measure to administer the final examinations.
Kgoroshi Primary has an enrolment of 120 learners and two educators – who have been allocated to the grade four to seven learners.
Parents’ concerns
While most foundation phase learners sit for the final examinations, learners here at Kgoroshi Primary School play outside the schoolyard. Their parents say this has been going on since the start of the second term of this academic year.
“They play and they bring back reports that show that they have passed but we wonder how since they don’t have a teacher,” says a concerned parent Winnie Kwapa.
“Some of the learners told me that they fear that even if they get promoted to the next grade, they won’t know anything when they are there,” says another parent Sophia Selemela.
One village resident says he hopes for the government to take notice of their plight. “We want the government to pay attention to this because it is important for the people of Ga-Kgoroshi to have a good foundation,” says Elias Malebane.
The school governing body says it has had several meetings with circuit officials during the year that have never borne any fruit.
“They are giving us teachers when it is late. We are not prepared to bathe children to go to school and at last, they go and eat and come back. As parents, we are very sad. We don’t know what they are going to write, if you check for term one only it is going to be very difficult,”, says School Governing Body chairperson Connie Manamela.
Education Department
Education officials are, however, adamant that the matter was reported late.
“The department became aware of the situation four weeks ago after the only teacher who was responsible for the foundation phase was redeployed to another school by the then principal who has since resigned. Upon learning that learners are attending without being attended to, swiftly moved to get a teacher on an ad hoc basis,” says Limpopo Department of Education spokesperson, Mike Maringa.
Other parents have opted to take their children to schools in neighbouring villages.
