News / Education
Teacher shortage hits Matabeleland South
10 Apr 2014 at 06:51hrs | Views
ALMOST half of the teachers in Matabeleland South Province did not undergo teacher training, a situation that has been blamed for the low pass rates in the province.
Provincial Education Director, Tumisang Thabela said 40 percent of the teachers in secondary schools are not qualified while the province only has 66 trained Early Childhood Level teachers out of the required 1,400.
She called on the corporate world, community and local authorities to partner with the government in improving teacher's working conditions.
"A number of schools are operating without water and the accommodation for teachers is poor. We need other partners who can assist the Ministry (of Primary and Secondary Education) in improving teachers' working conditions.
"Teachers are not staying long at schools in the province because of this problem. There is no continuity at schools as teachers barely stay for a year at the schools. This is negatively affecting the pass rate, especially at secondary school level," said Thabela.
She added: "Only 60 percent of the teachers that are in secondary schools are qualified. We also have a few teachers that are properly trained to teach at ECD Level in our province.
"We need 1,400 trained teachers who can teach in vernacular languages but we only have 66 since their training started in 2010. We are appealing to A Level graduates from Matabeleland South to take up the relevant training for ECD Level. Our teachers colleges are churning out teachers every year but they are deployed in other provinces."
Speaking during the official opening of Newline Primary School in Mangwe District on Tuesday Thabela said parents and local authorities were critical stakeholders in developing rural schools. "Parents have a huge responsibility to develop the schools.
While the Ministry strives to provide schools with qualified teachers parents should create a conducive teaching environment.
"It is the responsibility of parents and local authorities to ensure schools have adequate buildings. More than 80 percent of our schools are under local authorities so parents should join hands with them to develop infrastructure," she said.
Speaking at the same event, Mangwe Rural District Council chairperson Nketha Mangoye Dlamini urged parents to pay school fees on time.
He said parents should also assist with resources to build classrooms and teachers' houses. "It is only when we have adequate classrooms and teachers' houses that we can attract qualified teachers to our schools," said Dlamini.
Newline Primary School which was built in 2005, has been operating as an annexure of Brunapeg Primary School.
The school was built by World Vision with support of the local community. The school has only three trained teachers.
Provincial Education Director, Tumisang Thabela said 40 percent of the teachers in secondary schools are not qualified while the province only has 66 trained Early Childhood Level teachers out of the required 1,400.
She called on the corporate world, community and local authorities to partner with the government in improving teacher's working conditions.
"A number of schools are operating without water and the accommodation for teachers is poor. We need other partners who can assist the Ministry (of Primary and Secondary Education) in improving teachers' working conditions.
"Teachers are not staying long at schools in the province because of this problem. There is no continuity at schools as teachers barely stay for a year at the schools. This is negatively affecting the pass rate, especially at secondary school level," said Thabela.
She added: "Only 60 percent of the teachers that are in secondary schools are qualified. We also have a few teachers that are properly trained to teach at ECD Level in our province.
"We need 1,400 trained teachers who can teach in vernacular languages but we only have 66 since their training started in 2010. We are appealing to A Level graduates from Matabeleland South to take up the relevant training for ECD Level. Our teachers colleges are churning out teachers every year but they are deployed in other provinces."
While the Ministry strives to provide schools with qualified teachers parents should create a conducive teaching environment.
"It is the responsibility of parents and local authorities to ensure schools have adequate buildings. More than 80 percent of our schools are under local authorities so parents should join hands with them to develop infrastructure," she said.
Speaking at the same event, Mangwe Rural District Council chairperson Nketha Mangoye Dlamini urged parents to pay school fees on time.
He said parents should also assist with resources to build classrooms and teachers' houses. "It is only when we have adequate classrooms and teachers' houses that we can attract qualified teachers to our schools," said Dlamini.
Newline Primary School which was built in 2005, has been operating as an annexure of Brunapeg Primary School.
The school was built by World Vision with support of the local community. The school has only three trained teachers.
Source - chonicle
