-
Limpopo Education MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya sitting next to MEC of Education in the Eastern Cape Fundile Gade during the 2024 matric results announcement.
Parents and teachers of Langkloof Secondary School in Misgund in the Eastern Cape have given the provincial Department of Education until the end of March to rectify the myriad of challenges the school is facing.
This after the provincial department met with the school and parents because of its disappointing pass rate.
Only seven of the 109 matric learners passed the 2024 National Senior Certificate exams.
Lack of teachers, resources, and transport were cited for this very poor pass rate at the school. The 6.4% pass rate was the second worst in the country.
On top of this, the school faces major water and sanitation issues.
For the past three years, the school has been at loggerheads with the Department of Education. A shortage of teachers has forced learners to attend classes in shifts.
Some matriculants say they have had a total of 44 days at school for the 2024 academic year.
“The subjects that I had teachers for I passed, but I failed all the others where I wasn’t taught. So, its disappointing because I feel I could’ve done better if I had teachers for those subjects,” says one of the learners.
“I feel beyond disappointed because last year was the first year I voted and when I did they made me aware of my rights. But I feel like my rights have been violated because on of the subjects I failed was agriculture. The last time I was taught that subject was in Grade 10. I never had a agriculture teacher since then,” says another matriculant.
Parents say they are disappointed in the department for failing their kids. Many of them are still dealing with suicidal matriculants.
“I was so disappointed because when she came home and we all saw the results I felt so bad, like I could have a car run over me. I felt so bitter because her dreams were taken away from her,” laments one of the parents.
“How can we accept this? How, as parents, are we supposed to be satisfied with this? We do the best for our kids. We don’t make a lot of money but we want to give them the best we can when it comes to their education,” says another disappointed parent.
The Eastern Cape Department of Education Spokesperson, Malibongwe Mtima, says they are looking into the challenges faced by the school.
“The issue (is) rotational system. The principal has been instructed to put a stop to that and start the normal CAPS timetable as of 1 February. The issue of lack of teacher. The major contributing factor in the area is (it’s a) rural are. Therefore, the issues of transportation and the people who do come there don’t stay for long. But the department does commit themselves to embark on putting well trained teachers in the school,” says Mtima.
Parents say that the three teachers the department sent last year were English-speaking, and taught the Afrikaans-medium learners in English. When the exams came, their scripts were in Afrikaans, leaving many lost and unable to comprehend the questions.
