Mpopoma teachers open an 'annex school', fleecing students

MPOPOMA High School teachers have opened an "annex school" at a nearby rented church building where pupils are being forced to pay for extra lessons, as the teachers are no longer conducting normal lessons at the school.

The teachers are allegedly charging $50 per month for lessons with Form Four and Six pupils, who are writing their final examinations at the end of the year.

The teachers are also reportedly no longer spending time in class but are instead forcing their pupils to pay for the extra lessons.

Mpopoma High School headmaster Mr Christopher Dube said he was not aware of the "annex school" but admitted that teachers could be taking extra lessons during lesson time.

"I am not aware of that. We have a timetable which we use to monitor teachers' activities during the day. But, they might be doing that (taking extra lessons during working hours) when they are off session or during their free periods," said Mr Dube.

Parents and pupils who spoke to Sunday News said the studies of those who cannot afford to pay for extra lessons were no longer being taken seriously by the teachers, and this has led to parents being forced to look for money for the extra lessons.

"Teachers are taking advantage of the school's pass rate which is good. They are now using that record to tell pupils that they are good teachers since they are producing good results. The situation is bad and this has forced many parents to pay the required amount because we want our pupils to pass," said Mr Jacob Moyo whose child is doing Form Four at the school.

"This has to be stopped because that is not good for our children. I am a former teacher and there are some pupils who need a teacher's assistance but in this case, some pupils will fail just because they failed to get enough time with their teachers. This is clearly the reason why the school is not performing well at Ordinary Level like what they are doing at Advanced Level."

Mpopoma High School is the best performing school at A Level in the southern part of the country after the school recorded a 96,15 percent pass rate in the November examination. The pass rate put the school on position 63 nationally.

Mrs Concillia Mathema, who resides near the "annex", said it is an open secret that Mpopoma teachers take turns to teach there during normal lesson time. She said pupils from nearby schools which include Msiteli High were also coming for lessons.

The extra lessons were, however, last conducted on Wednesday after the teachers failed to pay rent. The building also houses two hair salons.

"On Tuesday I saw pupils from Msiteli High School who came for the lessons. Some people who are supplementing are also coming for the lessons. This is a busy place and people are confident that they will pass," said Mrs Mathema.

A Form Four pupil who has not been able to pay for the extra lessons said his counterparts going for extra lessons were already ahead with the school syllabus. The pupil said when teachers attend normal lessons, they hardly teach until the end of a period.

"Teachers started telling us to pay for extra lessons at the beginning of the term. Some of the information that those who are going for extra lessons acquired is massive and they are well prepared for June exams. I will also go for extra lessons in September when I will be preparing for my final exams because people are learning a lot," the pupil said.

Contacted for comment, provincial education director for Bulawayo Mr Dan Moyo said he was yet to receive a report on the issue.

"I have not heard anything of that sort. The school head has not communicated with us on anything to do with the teachers' misconduct," said Mr Moyo.