School relies on volunteer teacher
Government’s delay in posting teachers to some primary schools in the country has hit hard pupils at Chauma Junior Primary School in Nkhotakota who are relying on a volunteer to teach them.
The school, which is situated at Chauma Island on the shores of Lake Malawi, offers education up to Standard Six through one trained teacher who teaches 150 pupils as he is also waiting to be posted by government.
According to Village Head Kayola, last year government sent three student teachers who were teaching at the school but they left the school because government stopped paying them since they were yet to be employed.
“Since the school had no teacher, we approached the same teachers that had left so that they should be teaching as they await to be posted and they accepted but now two of them left and only one is remaining,” he said.
Kayola said parents contributed towards the teachers’ payments but the two left because of lack of proper accommodation.
Member of the school committee, Loyda Banda, said they have tried in vain to ask the District Education Office to send them teachers.
“Even if the teachers are posted here but there is a need to construct teachers’ houses because no teacher will be willing to stay in the shacks,” Banda said.
The teacher, Moses Chimato, said he just offered himself to be teaching the pupils after feeling sorry for them.
“It is not easy for a single teacher to teach 150 learners. Pupils come in shifts and for classes one and two, I combine them,” said Chimato, who has been teaching for the whole of last term.
He admitted that he could not finish syllabuses for most of the subjects due to heavy workload.
Acting District Education Manager for Nkhotakota, Luke Mtekateka, promised to call this reporter but had
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