The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education delegation completed assessment of schools’ readiness for the 2024 academic year in Limpopo.
The committee concluded that overcrowded schools, problems relating to student admissions and some infrastructure concerns were some of the challenges noted in schools in Vhembe and Sekhukhune education districts.
The delegation visited three schools in the Sekhukhune Education District, where the delegation commended the schools for ensuring that learning and teaching began on time with few problems. After visiting Bosele Special School, Onane Primary School and Tjetje Technical High School, the committee delegation met with stakeholders in the sector to discuss challenges and the way forward.
The delegation led by Ms Nombuyiselo Adoons said she believes these challenges can be overcome. The stakeholders included the Limpopo Department of Education, the national Department of Basic Education, the provincial Portfolio Committee on Education, school governing body associations, organised labour, and the South African Principals’ Association.
“Onane Primary School in the Sekhukhune south district is a good-performing schools, so many parents want their kids to be taught here but overcrowding becomes a challenge. This leads to shortages of classrooms. The school needs eight temporary classrooms, if building permanent classrooms cannot happen in the immediate future,” said Adoons.
Bosele Special School caters for younger learners with blind and deaf impairments from grades R to 7. We noted their biggest concern was the astronomical electricity bill they receive monthly from Eskom of around R100 000,”
“This needs intervention and assistance from officials, as we cannot expect schools to spend huge amounts of their budget on electricity,” Ms Adoons continued.
At Tjetje Technical High School, the delegation expressed concerns regarding the fluctuating Grade 12 pass rates over the years. The class of 2023 achieved a 70.8% pass rate, a 4% decline from the previous year.
Adoons also mentioned that the department had to employ extra security guards for the school due to regular vandalism.
“We want to appeal to the community to assist the school. The facilities are for the benefit of your children, to better their future. Do not allow thugs and criminals to rob them of achieving greater things. Stand together, protect your school, and name and shame those criminals in the community. The officials and law enforcement cannot do this alone,” she said.
Adoons said the delegation recognised the work achieved since the previous oversight visit in 2020.
“The province has moved from position nine to seven in terms of Grade 12 results and is in the top four performing provinces in terms of Bachelor’s passes. A lot of improvement was done in terms of infrastructure to improve their systems and to improve leadership and management of schools. However, we note more could be done in terms of overcrowding and admission of learners to schools,” concluded Adoons