We needed time on Shakawe � MoESD

Gothataone Moeng | Friday July 4, 2014 06:59

The Ministry says it just needed time before implementing the idea.

This week, principal public rela- tions officer, Silas Sehularo, said the Ministry was never opposed to the idea of allowing the students to repeat their schooling.

“The Ministry was all along en- gaged in the adequate planning and assessment of availability of class- room space, laboratory space, feed- ing, accommodation and other logistics involved in all schools,” Sehularo told Mmegi, following acting Minister, Mokgweetsi Masisi’s surprise Monday an- nouncement that the students would go back to school in Sep- tember.

Arone earlier this year tabled a motion before Parliament request- ing the ministry to create a special dispensation for the students to repeat their senior secondary school, following a na- tionally rock- bottom pass rate.

 

Of the more than 600 students who sat for the Botswa- na General Certificate in Secondary Education (BGCSE) from the school, only 29 had done well enough to be absorbed into tertiary institu- tions.

However, before Arone’s mo- tion was debated in the House, then Education Minister Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi made a surprise an- nouncement on Botswana Televi- sion stating that the students would only be allowed to re-sit their exams at the end of the year through the Botswana College of Distance and Open Learning (BOCODOL).

Arone and other MPs’ concerns about the ability of BOCODOL to provide adequate tutoring for the students went unheeded.

While the legislators argued that BOCODOL did not have facilities such as science and home econom- ics laboratories and would also not have the capacity to examine agricultural plots, the ministry insisted t h a t the  institution had the capacity to han- dle the students. Further, the then Edu- cation Min- ister rejected the motion on the basis that schools in the area did not have the capacity to handle all the students, even when Arone pointed out that prior to Shakawe’s establishment, students were admitted in different schools.

This week, the Ministry spokes- person said MoESD was not op- posed to the students repeating, but needed time to assess the situation. “The readmission of all students in one school proved to be logis- tically impossible. Therefore time was needed to assess the situation in other schools, so as to spread the repeating students across.

“In the meantime BOCODOL was readily available to engage the students at the time while planning was still underway,” Sehularo said.

He added: “The ministry’s posi- tion was first to assess the capacity of schools so that an informed de- cision could be taken on whether to readmit the students. “The re- admission of students is not only about classroom space, but other logistics like boarding facilities, books, feeding and teaching per- sonnel.

“All these needed additional budget.”

The ministry announced this week that 571 students are expect- ed to be admitted to the boarding

schools of Good Hope, Gantsi, Madiba, Maun and Shakawe in Sep- tember to repeat their Form Four, and will re-sit their Form Five exams in October

2015.