The capacity of rural schools to provide quality education has once again come into question after revelations that an under-resourced Ha Long Primary School in Thaba Tseka continues to be hounded to lack of facilities and human resources.
When the plight of the 52-year old Roma Catholic Church owned school first came to light three years ago, it was having an acute shortage of learning facilities, forcing learners to study and be taught in overcrowded classrooms.
At the time, it had a total enrolment of 130 pupils from Grade One to Six, and only two teachers.
A rickety structure that served as a classroom accommodated Grade One to Four learners, and had no windows while its door did not close properly. This exposed both teachers and pupils to inclement weather conditions.
The classroom was also used as a storage facility and a staffroom.
Ha Long primary’s principal, Simollang Tjokosela, this week told theReporter that the school has been on a downward spiral since 2021.
“There is only one teacher now and I have to perform teaching duties too, in addition to administrative responsibilities.
“The condition of the building has deteriorated, while the enrollment has plummeted to 99 pupils,” Tjokosela said.
Commenting on the challenges facing the school, tTop of Form
Bottom of Form
he secretary of Lesotho Association of Teachers, Letsatsi Ntsibolane, said Ha Long’s is not an isolated case as it is common at rural schools in Lesotho.
“The teacher-pupil ratio at that school is not acceptable, so is the prevalence of multi-grade teaching, where a single teacher is responsible for multiple grades.
“These conditions are detrimental both to the quality of education and to the teachers themselves,” Ntsibolane noted.
He added that the country’s education system needs to be reformed to address these challenges and improve the learning environment.
According to the World Data on Education, provision and management of education in Lesotho is characterised by a strong partnership between the government and the churches.
“School ownership and control has remained largely in the hands of the churches, with the government giving direction and financial support––mainly for payment of teachers’ salaries. In this context, education is widely regarded as a joint responsibility shared by the government, the churches and the community,” the World Data on Education observed.
According to a recent ministry of education survey, 43 percent of primary school pupils have no furniture, while many others have chairs or benches, but no desks upon which to write.
With regard to learning materials the ministry of education and training, through a national book loan scheme, has made impressive progress in providing basic textbooks –– an average of 4.4 books per primary pupil––, but shortages of supplementary materials such as teachers guides and pupils’ workbooks are apparent.
