Over 70 learners drop out of Minna Sachs

More than 70 learners dropped out of Minna Sachs Primary School in the Tseiblaagte residential area of Keetmanshoop in 2017.

This statistic was provided to parents at a recent school meeting.

School authorities urged parents to encourage their children to take education seriously and to remain in school for as long as possible. A parent who spoke to Nampa said it was shocking that learners “in this day and age” drop out during the primary school phase.

“We heard how teachers would go to the houses of the learners who failed to ask them to attend school, only to be told that they would not return,” the parent said. Principal Richard Namaseb said most of those who dropped out were in the upper-primary phase.

“Learners dropping out is a common thing at Minna Sachs; it has been happening for years,” Namaseb said. He said the main reason was that parents had no control over their children.

“Many of these learners come from single-parent homes and there is a problem with control at home,” said the principal.

Alcohol abuse in the home and community was another factor highlighted by Namaseb, in addition to some learners living with their grandparents.

“The elders are old and weak and cannot walk the learners to and from school,” he said.

In some instances, families relocate to other towns or villages and move learners without informing the school.

The principal said the parents of some learners who had dropped out last year were now demanding that their children be taken back.

“The government wants young learners back in school too,” Namaseb said.

Constance Wantenaar, the education inspector of the Kalahari circuit under which Minna Sachs falls, said she was unaware of the situation at the school when approached for comment.

NAMPA