Call for modernisation of Mberengwa schools

Midlands Bureau

There is need to establish fully equipped laboratories in Mberengwa District to encourage the uptake of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) subjects.
The district’s educational infrastructure consists of 111 primary schools, 46 secondary schools, nine satellite primary schools, and nine satellite secondary schools.

To align with Vision 2030, a proposed comprehensive master plan presented by Professor Average Chigwenya from the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) emphasises the need to provide students with a state-of-the-art learning environment.

“Schools in the district are failing to teach STEM subjects mainly because they have no infrastructure in place. Schools do not have fully functional laboratories and Information Communication Technology infrastructure,” reads the plan.

“Only eight schools in the whole district have fully functional laboratories, which makes it difficult to teach STEM subjects. Only 21 schools out of 157 have functioning ICT infrastructure,” he said.

“There is also a serious lack of STEM teachers and most of the schools do not offer STEM subjects because of this. There is need for incentives to attract STEM teachers to the district.

“This can be done through the provision of houses, water and electricity for teachers. The district can also improve its road network to improve the schools’ accessibility,” said Prof Chigwenya.

“Engage development partners in the electrification of schools and acquisition of computers so that the schools can participate in ICTs,” reads the plan.