The new mobile classrooms at Deben Primary. Picture: Supplied
LEARNING and teaching are back to normal at Deben Primary School. This after parents had earlier decided to keep their children at home for a week due to overcrowding.
Pupils only returned to school after the Northern Cape Department of Education intervened by allocating mobile classrooms and furniture to the school.
The parents travelled from Kuruman to corner the HOD of the department, Moira Marais, at her office in Kimberley and they demanded intervention.
The delegation, which consisted of parents, teachers and SGB members, was not happy to learn that their school was not on the department's priority list for intervention as some officials felt there was no crisis.
A spokesperson for the department, Geoffrey van der Merwe, explained that pupil numbers are rapidly increasing at the school as a result of mining job opportunities that exist in the area.
Deben Primary, which is situated about 80 kilometres from Kuruman, was built for a capacity of 800 learners, but currently accommodates 1,900.
Over and above the registered learners, there are almost 90 more on a waiting list who cannot attend the school due to the lack of space.
The parents felt that it was unfair for some children to attend school while others had to remain at home.
A delegation from the department, led by Marais, visited the school to do an inspection and immediately assigned mobile classrooms.
An SGB member said the department has started to deliver on its promise of supplying the school with fully-furnished mobile classrooms.
The member said thus far seven mobile classrooms were delivered to the school, with 32 desks.
“Three were relocated from other schools while four are brand new. We are still waiting on additional furniture as the department has committed to provide 200 desks for the four new classrooms. But we are confident that that will be sorted out in order not to delay teaching and learning further,” said the SGB member.
The department has also committed to supply new desks for the three relocated classrooms.