Grade Ones sorted at coast

The 720 first-graders who had not been placed in schools due to a lack of space in Swakopmund and Walvis Bay started afternoon classes last week. The Director of Education in the Erongo Region, John /Awaseb, confirmed this yesterday. “There is no child left out, all of them started afternoon classes from last week. We also placed the 20 learners who needed space in Grade Eight at Swakopmund,” he said. /Awaseb stated earlier this month that there were 500 children in Walvis Bay and 220 in Swakopmund who needed placements. All Grade One classes at Swakopmund and Walvis Bay are already full beyond the teacher-to-learner ratio of 1:35. The children in Walvis Bay will use 16 classes which are available from 12:00 to 17:00. There are four classes in Swakopmund to be used by the learners in the same time slots. He said a few students still need placement in Grade 11, but arrangements are in place to secure such places. /Awaseb said there is no space for Grade 10 repeaters in Swakopmund and Walvis Bay. He recommended that they find space in towns such as Usakos or Otjiperongo village near Omatjete in the Daures Constituency of the Erongo Region. Another option is to enrol with the Namibian College of Open Learning (Namcol). SWAKOPMUND NAMPA