Shocking number of children not going to school

SEVERAL households at Swakopmund’s Mondesa suburb have two or more children who do not attend school.

In some cases, the number of children per household not going to school rises to eight. An informal survey conducted by Grade 10 learners of the Hermann Gmeiner Technical High School at Swakopmund found 29 boys and 40 girls between the ages of six and 16 at approximately 25 households who do not go to school.The results of the study were yesterday handed over to the Governor of the Erongo Region, Samuel Nuuyoma, with a letter to the Office of the President to inform him of the situation.”If we could have done the survey over a period of three months to cover the whole of Swakopmund, the number would have been much higher,” Gerson Awaseb, co-ordinator of the study, said in his letter to the President.The main reasons cited for why so many children were not attending school were a shortage of money as parents are unemployed; children who have either lost one or both parents and have no means of income; teenage girls falling pregnant; and Grade 10 drop-outs who do not have money to continue their education.Some households have as many as eight children who do not attend school.Both parents are unemployed and do not have the means to provide them with an education.The research was carried out under the Unesco Associated Schools Network programme for the commemoration of Education for All Week.In reply to the presentation of the results, Governor Nuuyoma reminded pupils that they had a “golden opportunity of being at school” and needed to make the most of it.”We know many of you hang out on the streets, at shebeens and in bars over weekends.These activities play no role in shaping your future and in the betterment of yourself,” he said.”You must refrain from taking part in these activities as you will never gain a diploma by hanging out at shebeens.The only thing you will gain is HIV-AIDS and a certificate of your own death for mistreating your body and mind.”The Governor said students should take their education seriously, even if resources were limited “and respect your parents, even if they are poor”.Vice Chairperson of the SRC at Hermann Gmeiner, Bernice Nuses, told The Namibian afterwards that the results were shocking but that she did not expect much to be done about it.”A lot of speeches are made and much is being said about the situation, but nothing is ever done about it.We are always told to work hard and get good results, but it is only the A students who get the bursaries.Many of us are doing our best, but not all of us can be A students.”Her suggestion was that tax money should be used on the “right things”.”A population of 1,8 million people is not very big.It should not be a problem to ensure education for all and enough text books for all schools.”She added that it would be good to introduce political science as a subject at school to better prepare the future leaders.”This will help us one day when we are ministers to do a better job.”Similar studies were conducted in the other regions by schools that form part of the Unesco network.The schools were provided with a questionnaire by Unesco.An informal survey conducted by Grade 10 learners of the Hermann Gmeiner Technical High School at Swakopmund found 29 boys and 40 girls between the ages of six and 16 at approximately 25 households who do not go to school.The results of the study were yesterday handed over to the Governor of the Erongo Region, Samuel Nuuyoma, with a letter to the Office of the President to inform him of the situation.”If we could have done the survey over a period of three months to cover the whole of Swakopmund, the number would have been much higher,” Gerson Awaseb, co-ordinator of the study, said in his letter to the President.The main reasons cited for why so many children were not attending school were a shortage of money as parents are unemployed; children who have either lost one or both parents and have no means of income; teenage girls falling pregnant; and Grade 10 drop-outs who do not have money to continue their education.Some households have as many as eight children who do not attend school.Both parents are unemployed and do not have the means to provide them with an education.The research was carried out under the Unesco Associated Schools Network programme for the commemoration of Education for All Week.In reply to the presentation of the results, Governor Nuuyoma reminded pupils that they had a “golden opportunity of being at school” and needed to make the most of it.”We know many of you hang out on the streets, at shebeens and in bars over weekends.These activities play no role in shaping your future and in the betterment of yourself,” he said.”You must refrain from taking part in these activities as you will never gain a diploma by hanging out at shebeens.The only thing you will gain is HIV-AIDS and a certificate of your own death for mistreating your body and mind.”The Governor said students should take their education seriously, even if resources were limited “and respect your parents, even if they are poor”.Vice Chairperson of the SRC at Hermann Gmeiner, Bernice Nuses, told The Namibian afterwards that the results were shocking but that she did not expect much to be done about it.”A lot of speeches are made and much is being said about the situation, but nothing is ever done about it.We are always told to work hard and get good results, but it is only the A students who get the bursaries.Many of us are doing our best, but not all of us can be A students.”Her suggestion was that tax money should be used on the “right things”.”A population of 1,8 million people is not very big.It should not be a problem to ensure education for all and enough text books for all schools.”She added that it would be good to introduce political science as a subject at school to better prepare the future leaders.”This will help us one day when we are ministers to do a better job.”Similar studies were conducted in the other regions by schools that form part of the Unesco network.The schools were provided with a questionnaire by Unesco.