Rampant reports of Satanism have been cited as some of the factors that make it difficult for the Ngamiland region to retain skilled teachers.
Speaking at a recent stakeholders meeting he addressed in Maun, North West Regional Education Director, Acromews Maseko, said over the years the Ngamiland District has been faced with numerous challenges in such a way that teachers, particularly those on first appointments, have always made it clear that they do not want to work in Ngamiland district.
The teachers cite among other reasons, the bad terrain, shortage of staff housing and underdevelopment at most schools, and now the most recent being concerns associated to the acts of Satanism which have become widespread in schools around here.
He said those that had been sent for further studies just come for a short stint, only to request to be transferred to their places of choice.
“Retention issues are still a problem in this region, and so I always feel if people finally decide to go, then it is better we give them the green light because otherwise they become disillusioned, and might feel we keep them as a deliberate move to frustrate them. And so my fear is if we keep them, they might not deliver as expected as a way of revenge to say they are not happy, thus also hitting back on us and having a very bad effect on progression,” he said.
Maseko also said they are concerned about the mushrooming sports activities in the region and countrywide, which although very much appreciated now keep teachers away from their core duty, which is to be in class and teach.
He said this has even led to contact time between teachers and their students being reduced dramatically as they spend lots of time travelling, now giving less time to the academic aspect.
As for non-performing schools, Maseko said in order to alleviate the current state of affairs, they have made a determination that effective January 2014, they will intensify inspection and give all the necessary assistance and support to all schools in the region.
“It is worth noting also that we are competing with more conducive areas which are well resourced. We are also not able to place teachers on time because they prefer to start work at schools with better reputation. We however want to support all schools in our region so that at least by 2014 they should score the 76 percent regional target mark or more, also considering that a lot of our teachers who were on study leave have since completed their studies and will soon be back in class,” he said.
