Max Henrich
ONGWEDIVA – Tasked to lead education in a region facing a lack of facilities, especially classrooms, Ohangwena education Director Isak Hamatwi is now appealing to communities and schools to find temporary solutions to accommodate learners while awaiting government funding.
Grade 12 and Advanced Subsidiary (AS) learners at Oluwaya Combined School in the Oshikunde Circuit, Ohangwena region, attend lessons under trees due to a shortage of classrooms, disrupting teaching and learning.
“For the meantime, I encourage the community and schools to come up with temporary shelters. Other schools have put together coins to construct temporary structures,” he said.
He said this to New Era when approached to confirm yet another school in his region experiencing a shortage of classrooms.
Hamatwi said that his office was aware of the school’s situation and had requested additional funding to construct classrooms at Oluwaya and other schools in the region experiencing similar challenges.
Hamatwi added that, in his personal capacity, he had pledged five bags of cement to Hifikepunye Pohamba Combined School to support classroom construction and help the government address infrastructure shortages.
The rural school, which caters for learners from pre-primary to Grade 12, including AS-level students, also lacks adequate science laboratories, limiting access to practical learning opportunities.
A teacher who spoke to New Era anonymously said the situation was particularly concerning for learners preparing for national examinations, as lessons are frequently interrupted by harsh weather conditions.
“When it rains, lessons cannot continue as planned, resulting in lost teaching time and interruptions to the learning process. The learners are exposed to harsh weather conditions, including strong winds and extreme heat and outdoor distractions also affect learners’ concentration and the teaching process,” said the teacher.
The teacher maintained that the shortage of classrooms reduces teaching time and makes it difficult for teachers to complete syllabuses, conduct assessments and provide sufficient examination revision.
“The lack of science laboratories presents further challenges, particularly for AS-level learners who require practical experiments and demonstrations to complement theoretical lessons and meet the academic requirements for progression to higher education,” said the teacher.
The teacher maintained that without appropriate facilities and scientific equipment, learners have limited opportunities to develop practical skills essential for further studies and science-related careers.
The school is appealing for support from education authorities, development partners, businesses and other stakeholders to construct additional classrooms and establish properly equipped science laboratories.
“Additional classrooms would provide learners and teachers with a more suitable environment, protect lessons from weather disruptions and allow the curriculum to be covered more effectively,” said the teacher.
Hamatwi had also revealed that 90% of schools in Ohangwena are in need of a classroom or two, indicating that the situation is dire and his office and the government is working on rectifying it when funds are available.
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