School placements still a headache for parents

By: Hendrina Kanyolo/Josia Shigwedha

The head of department of pre-primary and grade one at Emma Hoogenhout Primary school in Windhoek has advised the government and the ministry of education to plan ahead for 2030 school placements.

This is in light of many other government schools also facing difficulty in placing learners in pre-primary, grade 1 and grade 8.

Government schools around the country opened today but some parents are disgruntled and frustrated as they are still struggling to find placements for their children in the capital.

“Our schools cannot accommodate the population currently in Windhoek, in the Khomas Region. Expand the schools. Build on the schools that are already in existence. Try to build new schools because it will just get worse , especially the pre-pre-primary, Grade 1 and Grade 8, “ stated Annie Wantenaar, the HOD at Emma Hoogenhout Primary school.

She explained that the influx of applications are coming from parents and guardians who had enrolled their children at private schools.

“Most of the enrollments that we are receiving that are late are coming from parents who had learners at private schools and due to Covid-19 pandemic they cannot afford to make those payments. So they would like to come back to government schools,” stated Wantenaar, adding that they received a lot of applications for pre-school and Grade 1.

Wantenaar stated that the pre-classes currently accomodate 30 learners, despite the fact that there should be between 26 and 28 learners. "We don’t want to go over (that number) because it does not allow for many activities to happen,” she explained while adding that they have 40 learners per teacher in their Grade 1 classes.

News on One spoke to some of the parents at Moses // Garoeb primary school in Katutura who were hoping for last minute placement.

“We have been here since the teachers resumed work. We have been told the same story over and over that the schools are full. So we are here to try our luck. What pushed me to be here is that I actually stay in the street as the school, “stated Saima Ndjara who is looking for space in Grade 4.

Another parent, Kornelia Ndengu, told News on One that she is looking for placement in Grade 2 for her daughter. Ndengu wants her daughter transferred from a school outside Windhoek because she has an allergy and the teachers were not administering the medicine correctly.

“They are telling us we must come back after 15 days, but I move around looking at different schools but it’s not easy,” said Ndengu.