Educators ready for schools reopening despite vandalism

Educators from some of the schools that were vandalised and broken into, were in high spirits yesterday as they prepared for the new academic year.

Despite these acts of vandalism were stationery was stolen, the principals and teachers of the affected schools said they were looking forward to welcoming their pupils today.

Yesterday, Sowetan visited Job Maseko Primary School and Kenneth Masekela High School in KwaThema, Springs, in Ekurhuleni.

The schools were vandalised last month.

Intermediate phase head of department Vusimuzi Nkosi said he is excited that he will be teaching his pupils today.

Nkosi also teaches technology and natural science for grades 7 and 6, respectively.

“I will be happy if we operate at full capacity tomorrow [today] and the rest of the week in terms of the number of pupils in our classes. But it will all depend on the state of Covid-19 in our country,” said Nkosi.

“All teachers are ready for tomorrow [today]. We received our stationery and textbooks in September. All teachers have been here at school since January 5 to start cleaning their classrooms,” said Nkosi.

The school has 27 teachers.

Nkosi said the school expects a total of 1,050 pupils today. From this number, 54 grade R pupils will be starting school for the first time and 122 grade 7 pupils are expected.

When Sowetan was at the school, teachers were busy packing pupils' stationery, which included exercise books, notebooks and pens, in the classrooms.

Last month there was a break-in at Job Maseko were one classroom and the kitchen was broken into. A stack of printing paper and food such as maize meal, samp and milk were stolen.

Economics and management sciences teacher Mary Nkabinde said she is looking forward to introducing the subject to her pupils. “I will be teaching them about the earliest forms of money,” said Nkabinde.

One parent, Betty Mashiane, 25, came to register her five-year-old child who will be starting grade R.

Nkosi said they allow walk-ins and help parents register their children and place them on the waiting list.

Meanwhile, at Kenneth Maseko, dozens of parents came to the school along with their children to collect stationery and textbooks.

Last month a part of the school's fence was cut and stolen. 

Billy Molawa, 54, a parent of a grade 10 pupil, said he was relieved that the pupils’ learning materials arrived on time.

Principal Jabulani Fakude said the school received its stationery and textbook in September.

“I am happy that the learners [pupils] are getting their material today [yesterday] instead of tomorrow [today]. This will give them time to prepare,” said Molawa.

Jabulani Technical High School in Soweto, which was broken into last month as well and had two of its soldering machines stolen, is expecting more than 1,000 pupils today.

Deputy principal Mapaseka Makhafola said the pupils will be given their stationery and textbooks today when they arrive at school.

Basic education spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said the duty to protect schools lied with the community in which they are based.

“Communities are responsible for protecting schools. Normally the perpetrators of vandalism are members of the very communities where schools are located. The department has neither the financial capacity or human resources to protect 25,000 schools,” he said.

An official at Sehopotso Secondary School, one of the schools vandalised during the hard lockdown, said classes were ready for learners.

There were people cutting grass and painting roof at the school.

"We are still having a block that has broken windows, however that will not affect the learners as they are on rotational timetable. Our other challenge is that the school is not fenced, which makes it easy for people to have access in it," he said.

An official at Mojala-Thuto Primary School said their main issue was cable theft but that would not affect the first day of school. There were few parents who came to register their children.

Ntombi Maseko, 28, was excited that her two children in grades 2 and 5 got space. 

"They used to stay with my stepmother in Klerksdorp but they were not happy there. In December they told me that they did not want to go back and I had to find them a school in my area," she said.