News / Education
Teachers flee auditors
08 Sep 2015 at 16:42hrs | Views
Some Government schools with unqualified teachers closed early in March 2015 to avoid being exposed by auditors who were conducting a physical head-count of all civil servants.
Both heads and teachers at the schools took vacation prematurely upon learning that auditors were in their districts.
The concerned learning institutions include Kaerezi Primary (Mt Darwin), Rota Secondary (Murehwa) and Sable Range Primary (Mhondoro).
This is disclosed in the 2015 Civil Service Audit Report, which also states that thousands of unqualified teachers at Government schools are largely behind dismal performance in public examinations.
Official figures show that 38 percent of candidates who sat November 2014 O-level examinations failed to pass a single subject.
It is estimated 21 938 unqualified teachers were deployed to Government schools following large-scale migration of qualified staff at the height of the 2007/8 era economic challenges.
The Primary and Secondary Education Ministry says all such staff will no longer be engaged, starting in 2016.
The Audit Report states that the qualifications of most of these teachers are unsuited to the profession. Public Service, Labour and Social Services Minister Prisca Mupfumira told The Sunday Mail: "We have cases like Ruvheneko Primary School here in Harare where a Grade One class is being taught by a teacher with a Bachelor of Science degree in Technology. "The same school has another Grade One class that is being taught by a teacher with a Diploma in Telecommunications, while a Grade Four class is being taught by a holder of a Marketing degree."
She added: "At (some) schools you would find those trained to teach technical subjects being handed academic classes such as Mathematics or History.
"This has had the net effect of compromising the quality of our education."
Zimbabwe Teachers' Association secretary-general Mr John Mlilo encouraged Government to incentivise experienced educators. "From an academic perspective, these teachers are compromising the education sector, but if we look closely, they are gap-sealing areas that need attention from the Government. "Thus, there is need for Government to improve working conditions so as to attract qualified and experienced teachers to the sector."
Both heads and teachers at the schools took vacation prematurely upon learning that auditors were in their districts.
The concerned learning institutions include Kaerezi Primary (Mt Darwin), Rota Secondary (Murehwa) and Sable Range Primary (Mhondoro).
This is disclosed in the 2015 Civil Service Audit Report, which also states that thousands of unqualified teachers at Government schools are largely behind dismal performance in public examinations.
Official figures show that 38 percent of candidates who sat November 2014 O-level examinations failed to pass a single subject.
It is estimated 21 938 unqualified teachers were deployed to Government schools following large-scale migration of qualified staff at the height of the 2007/8 era economic challenges.
The Primary and Secondary Education Ministry says all such staff will no longer be engaged, starting in 2016.
The Audit Report states that the qualifications of most of these teachers are unsuited to the profession. Public Service, Labour and Social Services Minister Prisca Mupfumira told The Sunday Mail: "We have cases like Ruvheneko Primary School here in Harare where a Grade One class is being taught by a teacher with a Bachelor of Science degree in Technology. "The same school has another Grade One class that is being taught by a teacher with a Diploma in Telecommunications, while a Grade Four class is being taught by a holder of a Marketing degree."
She added: "At (some) schools you would find those trained to teach technical subjects being handed academic classes such as Mathematics or History.
"This has had the net effect of compromising the quality of our education."
Zimbabwe Teachers' Association secretary-general Mr John Mlilo encouraged Government to incentivise experienced educators. "From an academic perspective, these teachers are compromising the education sector, but if we look closely, they are gap-sealing areas that need attention from the Government. "Thus, there is need for Government to improve working conditions so as to attract qualified and experienced teachers to the sector."
Source - Sunday Mail
