Education For All

The direction in which education starts a man will determine his future life - Plato

Nqaba Higher Primary School 29/07/08

Principle: Ms Lukhwe

Pupils: 578

Teachers: 15

Pupil / Teacher Ratio: 39

This is the very first school which we visited in South Africa. The first impression is that it is a very new looking school building, it has several blocks and is built over 3 floors. It is not what I have come to believe an African school should look like from the outside, but just how individual this school is becomes apparent after visiting more sites later on. The plaque in the reception of the school states that it was opened on 2^ndSeptember 1994, almost 14 years old. The premises is very well looked after and it is obvious that both teachers and pupils take pride in their school.

Upon entering the classrooms it is apparent that there is a substantial disparity between the quality of the building and the standard of furniture which is provided by the State. Talking to Ms Lukhwe reveals that the school has had no new furniture from the Government since 1992, and that what they did have had to be moved from their previous site. I couldn't help but think of the comparison in the UK in which the majority of furniture from an old school premises is discarded as waste, despite the fact that much of it is still usable.

Nqaba school has received 150 tables and 300 chairs from Education for All along with small numbers of other items, we are told that before this furniture arrived some of the classes were asked to bring their own seating from home. We arrived at the school unannounced and as we walked in I recognized two chairs which EfA had provided sat outside the front door, as we leave there is a lady cleaning both chairs with a bucket of water. It is genuinely inspiring to both hear how much EfAs work is appreciated and see with how much care the furniture is treated once it is here. The chair which that lady was so diligently cleaning would have if not for the intervention of EfA ended its life in a English landfill site along with household rubbish and endless other items which are considered to have reached the end of their usefulness.

Imvisiswano Primary School 29/07/08

Principle: Ms Tshabalala

Pupils: 379

Teachers: 11

Pupil / Teacher Ratio: 34

The second school visit is rushed as we arrive just as the school is closing around 2pm and many of the teaching staff and pupils have already departed for the day. There is only one teacher still working, with 5 students receiving additional English tuition. The school premises could not be more different from the Nqaba school. Where Nqaba was new looking and modern, Imvisiswano is much older and while obviously looked after is still showing the signs of a long life. The school consists of 8 or 9 wooden single room “sheds” each on bigger than a single car garage back in the UK. The classrooms are bare inside but do have chalk boards and numerous educational posters on the walls, while the original furniture is worn but still serviceable, freely intermixed with some of the 130 student tables and 250 chairs provided by EfA. Though we arrived after school had finished there are still many pupils around the premises all dressed in school uniform, there seems to be no shortage of enthusiasm from the children however there are few teachers still to be found attendant.

Gcato High School 30/07/08

Principle: Mr Dibela

Pupils: 309

Teachers: 10

Pupil / Teacher Ratio: 30

 

The Gcato School which we visit we are told has only been running for approximately two months as the previous building was burned down. As such the school buildings are all new brick structures with security bars and strong looking lockable doors. Even so we are informed that the school currently has a handyman employed from the local village working to secure a class room further so it can house a computer cluster.

Once again it is good to see furniture which EfA has provided being used and so obviously appreciated. This is by no means the only furniture which the school has but simply serves to complement the tables and chairs which the school already has but which is beginning to show its age. It is obvious that some furniture has been saved from the previous school following its fire damage. The school currently has no facility for dealing with waste furniture, one room is full of broken table and chairs and furniture too badly damaged following the fire still lays next to the burned out shell of a building. Outside one of the classrooms there is a pile almost to the roof of metal table frames, this is being used in small quantities to pay for the services of the local handyman. It seems that given the right contacts and resources, such as a van to transport the scrap, the school could not only dispose of its waste but generate a moderate income for itself by recycling its old furniture.

Khwezilesizwe Primary School 30/07/08

Principle: Mr Mali

Pupils: 173

Teachers: 11

Pupil / Teacher Ratio: 15

The Khwezilesizwe school is set out much the same as Gcato school with two single story brick buildings running parallel to one another, and like Gcato school the classrooms are bare and functional looking with little to inspire the pupils. Despite this however every classroom we enter is full of pupils working under tuition. The school has received 90 tables and 180 chairs from EfA and they are obviously been put to good use.

Lindani High School 30/07/08

Principle: Mr Ngodwana

Pupils: 703

Teachers: 24

Pupil / Teacher Ratio: 29

As we speak to one of the Deputy Heads of the Lindani School she tells us that prior to receiving furniture (100 tables, 250 chairs) from EfA the school had to alternate classes with half of the children learning while the other half had a break as there was insufficient furniture to accommodated every child. Lindani High School received furniture from EfA at the end of 2007. Even though Lindani is a High school it has no library and no laboratory equipment and many of the children walk to school despite the wide catchment area. There is a school bus in operation but the majority of parents cannot afford this luxury for their children. The school is currently applying for subsidies from the education authority to provide more free school transportation to all of its pupils.

This school is typical of what we have seen so far of schools which have received EfA furniture. The structures themselves are sound enough but once inside the classrooms are very bare and while the furniture the schools do have is functional, there simply is not enough of it to go around, nor is there the budget available to purchase new or repair old. This is the first school we have seen to actually have a number of computers, however they are in such short demand that they are solely used in the offices for admin purposes. Like Gcato is trying to construct the school does have secure facilities for a computer room but once again no money with which to purchases them. This is in contrast to schools in the UK where some Building Schools for the Future concepts allocate nearly one computer per pupil with only a three year life span before they are renewed and disposed of.

Sakhululeka High School 30/07/08

Principle: M Z Nontshinga

Pupils: 710

Teachers: 20

Pupil / Teacher Ratio: 35

 

This school is situated in the town of Fort Beaufort its self rather than in its surrounding villages like the other schools we have seen so far. For a building of the size of this one there seems to be a lot of pupils on the premises and we are told that because other schools in the area are full children are moved to Sakhululeka wether it is their closest school or not. The building itself used to be a hospital and it is clear that it is very old, in any developed country the building would have been condemned and is almost certainly unsuitable for use as a school. Windows are broken with shattered glass still sitting in the frames, classrooms that we see have holes in both the floors and the ceilings, some of which lead to other classrooms. Numerous doors are hanging off frames or do not appear to close properly and there is large quantities of rubbish laying in the corners of courtyards.

Despite these terrible learning conditions, classes are still being taught and all of the pupils are dressed in correct uniform and appear to be trying to learn. The classes are large, but as we enter all of the pupils are focused on the teacher at the front of the class. There is an obvious willingness to learn in these schools regardless of the conditions and it does appear that EfA is helping, if nothing else at least now all of the children have their own chairs.

 

 

Eyabantu High School 30/07/08

No pupil or teacher information available.

 

This school has previously received no furniture from EfA. The schools follows the same floor plan and building structure that I can now recognise as common e.g. Two single floor classroom blocks set in lines running parallel to each other. This school is by far the most run down we have visited yet, broken windows and holes in ceilings and walls seems to be the rule rather than the exception. One whole classroom has no ceiling at all, as it appears to have just caved in and been left rather than cleaned up and repaired. At least two classrooms are useless for the purposes of teaching and are simply full of rubbish, broken table and chair frames piled in the doorways make it next to impossible to even enter these rooms. Behind one of the school buildings is a pile of discarded table frames which dwarfs that which we saw at Gcato school in the morning, but similarly seems to have no purpose or suitable disposal method. The school is wired for electricity but none is flowing, probably a good thing as most of the light switches and electricity sockets in the classrooms have exposed wires.

In amongst all of this however there are pupils trying to learn, as we arrive we see two older pupils carrying their own chairs from classroom to classroom. In one room there are six pupils sat around one table working when there is very little natural light and the floor around them is scattered with books that have fallen there when shelving collapsed. It seems that there is very little will on the part of the teachers to try and change the learning environment of the school and in any case there is no incentive for them to do this.

Hebron Public School 31/07/08

No pupil or teacher information available.

 

Hebron school is yet to receive any furniture from EfA. The first classroom we enter is being cleaned but around 15 pupils, this is because prior to our arrival rats were found in the room so now all or the rubbish which previously inhabited the corners of the room is now being swept out the door by the very enthusiastic children. We visit the building where the youngest children of the school are taught, it is a very worn looking building constructed from corrugated metal sheeting and a timber frame, all of the children the the two classes this building accommodates are sat on the floor. The rest of the buildings are more permanent brick structures, however it is apparent that money is in short supply for building work as a new structure is being made, only out of the same materials as the other classroom, not brick.

We arrive not long after school has started and breakfast is being handed out to the children. Instead of being served in what we might consider a traditional dining hall however, this meal consists of a slice of bread and jam handed out to those who want it from an open doorway. Additionally one lady is dispensing orange drink for the children from a large bucket, it appears that the children have to bring their own bottles (a variety of empty old coke and water bottles) to be able to accept this. At break time many of the children take up footballs, rugby balls and net balls and begin playing with considerable skill for their age especially in handling a rugby ball. Sport is obviously a big part of their lives and all of the children seem to enjoy it immensely.