admin
Trust Freddy
Herald Correspondent
STAKEHOLDERS in the education sector, including teachers, parents and learners, have welcomed yesterday’s decision by the Government to lift the ban on extra lessons, which will now be conducted during the August school holidays.
The Government sanctioned the conducting of extra lessons between August 19 and 30.
Fees have been pegged at US$2 per learning area (subject) for Grade Seven learners, US$3 per O-Level subject and US$5 per A-Level subject for the whole duration.
This ends a string of prohibitions on extra lessons during previous school holidays and has been largely welcomed by both teachers and parents.
The decision seeks to address the learning gaps by providing students with a valuable opportunity to get ahead of their studies during the summer break.
Boarding students will, however, be charged an additional US$4 daily, over and above the established fees.
In a statement yesterday, the Permanent Secretary for Primary and Secondary Education, Mr Moses Mhike, said vacation lessons will take place from August 19 to 30, and parents will have the flexibility to pay fees in the currency of their choice.
“Parents and guardians should receive receipts at the point of payment and proper books of accounts must be effectively managed and maintained for audit trail,” he said.
“The vacation school should be fully supervised and monitored by the Inspectorate, together with the district literacy coordinators and the remedial tutors. Pupils should turn out in their school uniforms and teachers should be appropriately dressed.”
According to Mr Mhike, teachers should receive a 50 percent appreciation fee, with 20 percent allocated to administration and 30 percent designated for utilities and stationery.
“The ministry looks forward to improving pupil performance through the running of the Vacation School as it will offer a focused environment for candidates to prepare for their upcoming examinations.
“Candidates should be assisted to cover a significant portion of the syllabus efficiently and effectively, including timely submissions of all their Continuous Assessment Learning Area activity components (CALA),” said Mr Mhike.
In an interview yesterday, Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (Zimta) chief executive, Dr Sifiso Ndlovu, described the move as a welcome development.
“As long as our competency measurement is based on examinations, and even more so now that examinations account for 80 percent of the assessment, the need for extra tuition will always be prevalent.
“We welcome this development, as it is what most educators, who want to see their learners pass and excel, love to see.”
Dr Ndlovu also urged teachers to refrain from viewing extra lessons as a business opportunity, but rather to approach them with noble intentions.
“We must reasonably focus on assisting learners to achieve their utmost best, rather than viewing it as a money-spinning venture. It is simply an assistance to help learners gain as much competency as possible in preparation for an examination that determines their future pathways.”
Zimbabwe National School
Heads Union secretary general Mr Munyaradzi Majoni also commended Government for heeding unions’ calls to allow vacation lessons.
“Fundamentally, the idea of holiday lessons for candidates is an issue that we, as unions, have been pushing for, and the fact that the Government has accepted and given the green light to schools to conduct these holiday lessons, we take that as a positive thing.”
However, Mr Majoni expressed reservations about the criteria used to determine the fees, questioning the methodology behind the pricing structure.
Meanwhile, parents and guardians have breathed a sigh of relief, acknowledging that some children are slow learners and require extra lessons.
“I was really worried that they would ban holiday lessons again,” Ms Caroline Chaka from Kuwadzana suburb in Harare, said. “This is a great move as some students, like my son who is writing his Grade 7 exams, need extra support. He’s a slow learner and benefits from additional lessons.”
Another parent, Mr Everson Gwaze from Warren Park, described the move as long overdue.
“This was long overdue,” he said. “I had hoped they would start during the first term, but I’m grateful that the Government has gazetted vacation lesson fees, schools often take advantage of us, so this brings some welcome relief.”
Online Reporter