School has 100 pupils in a class

A YEAR after parents slammed a dire teacher shortage at the Pearston Primary School that saw 123 pupils crammed into a single classroom, the school is again faced with a similar situation.

The school, situated 160km from Port Elizabeth and sandwiched between Somerset East and Graaff- Reinet, is battling a crippling teacher shortage.

It has led to most grades accommodating between 90 and 100 pupils in classrooms, with the exception of grades 1 to 3 which each have more than 100 pupils per class.

Yesterday, fed-up parents sent the pupils home, locked the gates, and vowed not to reopen the school until the provincial Education Department provided more teachers.

The school, which has 762 pupils and only 11 teachers, is eight teachers short.

The eight temporary teachers they have had since January – whose salaries the school had to pay because the department failed to do so – downed chalk and pens last week after the school's coffers ran dry.

The school has already paid R110000 in total to the teachers. The no-fee-paying school used the money raised last year towards the purchase of a school bus to transport pupils who lived long distances away.

They were dealt another blow when their only Afrikaans teacher was redeployed to a school in neighbouring Jansenville.

The department said it was working on getting the temporary teachers formally hired.

Principal Willie Geswindt complained that pupils were suffering as a result of the drawn-out process.

Yesterday, parents called for the department to make funds available to pay the temporary teachers they had lost.

They said the teachers had done wonders to stabilise things at the school after it lost six teachers to retirement and resignations last year.

The governing body had gone begging to the department's headquarters in Bhisho two weeks ago and were told the school should submit the temporary teachers' details to the Graaff-Reinet district offices, which would send them to the Bhisho head office for capturing.

However, when the parents went to the district offices on Monday, the files were still sitting there and the officials promised they would transport them to Bhisho yesterday.

The angry, placard-carrying parents protesting outside the school accused the department of trampling on their children's rights.

One of the placards read, "You are killing our children's future".

An emotional Carina Ruiters said the lack of teachers was a slap in the face of parents desperate to give their children a chance to make something of themselves.

"Pearston is plagued by unemployment and for our children school is the only way out of that vicious cycle.

"We are not here to fight, but to try and fix things because our children come first. The government must do what it said it would do – prioritise education.

"We are on bended knees asking for teachers, please government. We have done all we can and paid your staff for you. Please, do your part," she said.

Lucien Casling, 38, said he was saddened that this was happening at a time when the country was highlighting the plight of children and their rights [during Child Protection Week this week].

"It is a shame that these children are without teachers. Having teachers in front of them in class is not a privilege, it is a right, but it seems the department cannot even meet those," he said.

Teachers said discipline was a major issue in such large classes because pupils became unruly and difficult to manage.

Grade 2 teacher Josephine Wilson said she had to teach her 105 pupils in stages. "When I attend to a certain group, the others get wild. It was a lot better when we had help [from the temporary teachers].

"Already our pupils are struggling with reading and I'm worried about how they will fare in the annual national assessment exams in September. If they can't read, they can't really do anything," Wilson said.

Geswindt said the school had lost six teachers last year – three to retirement and three who resigned.

"After the protests [in January] last year, the department gave us two teachers and we had to foot the bill for two more teachers.

"We then lost some as well last year and started this year off with eight vacancies," he said.

"We have been promised paid teachers, but are still waiting.

"I just don't know anymore now because this is getting harder and harder on the kids and their parents," Geswindt said.

Education Department spokesman Loyiso Pulumani said the temporary teachers' forms and CVs had been received and were being dealt with.

"Our deputy director-general for institutional organisational management has been tasked by the MEC [Mandla Makupula] to urgently attend to this matter, oversee the processing of formal recruitment of the qualifying teachers by our HR and thus restore learning and teaching at that school," he said. - Zandile Mbabela