Report of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education concerning the Petition from Residents of the Dryharts Village calling for the Reopening of the Molehabangwe Middle School, referred to the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education by the Speaker of the National Assembly for consideration. dated 25 February 2020.

Basic Education

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education concerning the Petition from Residents of the Dryharts Village calling for the Reopening of the Molehabangwe Middle School, referred to the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education by the Speaker of the National Assembly for consideration. dated 25 February 2020.
 

The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education, having considered the Petition from Residents of the Dryharts Village calling for the Reopening of the Molehabangwe Middle School, referred to the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education by the Speaker of the National Assembly for consideration, reports as follows:

 

On Tuesday, 11 February 2020, the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education convened a meeting to consider the Petition from Residents of the Dryharts Village calling for the Reopening of the Molehabangwe Middle School. The Portfolio Committee initiated the meeting to receive a briefing and engage on the Petition by the following stakeholders:

• Representative of the Dryharts Village Petitioners;
• North West Department of Education; and
• Department of Basic Education (DBE).

 

1. Submission from the Dryharts Village Petitioners

 

The Petitioners gave a short history of the Dryharts Village and schooling in the area generally. The late Chief Motlhamare Jerry Mahura gave building bricks donated to him by Corrobrick to the community to build a school which they named Molehabangwe Middle School. The school was established in 1981 and situated in the middle of the village. The school was closed down due to rationalisation. The Petitioners detailed some of the motivations for the re-opening of the schools as follows:

 

• Rapid growth towards the North with an influx of former farm workers. Most farm workers cannot afford transport to nearby Molemoeng Primary (3,6km away). Due to long distances for learners to walk, there was an increasing truancy at the school. It is also dangerous for the children of such tender age to walk long distance. The Petitioners gave details of incidents that happened in the past with violence against learners walking to school.

 

• The re-opening of the school also meant:

 

• The school would see the building be reused – to circumvent a situation that could render it  a haven for criminality, if  it remains unutilized
• Create a job opportunity for some e.g.  administrative assistant, food –handlers, general cleaner, groundsman and educators.

 

The school building only required some renovations and refurbishment with a functional borehole. The new toilets blocks were available and required down-sizing for primary school learners.

 

 

1. Input by the North West Department of Education (NWDOE) – Mrs S M Semaswe

 

Mrs Semaswe gave a detailed overview of the request received from the local Chief regarding the reopening of Molehabangwe Middle School. The Department had dispatched its own Circuit Manager to do inspection and also profile all schools in the Dryharts Village.

 

According to Mrs Semaswe, with rationalisation, merging and closing of the schools, the process was informed by various policy dictates, but primarily the Ministerial Committee on Rural Education (2005) which proposed that all public ordinary schools should be classified as primary (Grades R-7) or secondary schools (Grades 8-12). The purpose of rationalisation was to close and merge small schools to make them viable, to de-combine schools and to abolish middle schools. This process was finalised in Dryharts by the end of 2015 and affected the following schools:

• Molehabangwe Middle School offering Grade 8 -10;
• Sekate Mahura Middle School outside the village along the N18 road; and
• Boijane High school situated outside the village next to Sekate Mahura along the N18 road.

The three schools merged in January 2016. Molehabangwe Middle school was closed, Boijane and Sekate Mahura buildings were then utilized as Sekate Boijane Mahura Secondary. Due to the new settlement that was growing towards Vryburg road, the North West Department of Education favourably considered the reopening of the Molehabangwe Middle school as a primary school – however, that can only happen from 2021 due to the current inhabitable status of the building and completion of the profiling of learners from Molemoeng Primary. The Department would use 2020 for proper planning and resourcing of the envisaged Molehabangwe Primary School.

 

Mrs Semaswe also gave a detailed overview of the following critical areas to be covered by the Department:

• Consultative meetings held with relevant stakeholders;
• Identification of resources;
• Statistical information;
• Learner transport;
• Infrastructural conditions and Building Assessment;
• Fitness for human occupation;
• Estimated financial implications; and
• Management plan.

The North West Department of Education was of the view that the school will be viable because of a new settlement that was growing rapidly towards Vryburg. According to the statistics obtained from the nearby school Molemoeng Primary, there were 316 learners coming from the area where Molehabangwe was situated. The school would be re-registered to be operational in 2021 academic year and would be furnished with all the necessary resources during 2020.

The Committee also received a detailed breakdown of the costs, and detailed breakdown of the management plan for Molehabangwe Primary. The North West Department of Education supported the re-opening of Molehabangwe Primary School.

 

1. Conclusion
   1.  

• The North West Department of Education supported the re-opening of Molehabangwe Primary School.
• The school would be viable because of a new settlement that was growing rapidly towards Vryburg.
• The school would be re-registered to be operational in 2021 academic year and would be furnished with all the necessary resources during 2020.

 

1. • The Portfolio Committee should receive all relevant management and renovations plans in respect of the new school;
   • The Portfolio Committee should receive regular updates on progress in construction and renovations to the new school; and
   • The North West Department of Education should ensure that communication with the affected communities is strengthened.

Report to be considered.