Hopes to overcome hurdles

Iréne-Mari van der Walt



The ministry of education, arts and culture has encountered hurdles in its aim to introduce a hybrid learning system in Namibia. The ministry’s executive director, Sanet Steenkamp, said she hopes these issues will not be fatal to their plans.

Currently, poor network coverage throughout the country stands in the way of the ministry’s plans to integrate technology and various smart-learning tools into the education system.

“I think a lot more work and investment in technology, equipment as well as teacher capacity is required for us to make the hybrid system a success,” she said.

Steenkamp highlighted that their first priority is equipping the 82 schools nationwide that offer AS-level education. “We are focusing for now on equipping the AS-level schools first with the smartboard screens with the aim of seeing the impact and whether we should continue with that,” she said.

The ministry aims for a national approach to resolving the issues pertaining to information and communication technology (ICT). “We are in discussion with telecommunication companies, but it is quite an arduous process. Nothing is always as straightforward as it may seem from outside,” Steenkamp said.

Whichever challenges the ministry may face, she said they are adamant in being prepared for the integration of ICT into learning and education.

“Our policy on ICT is in the final stages. There is also a steering committee with various broad national stakeholders involved.”

Those left behind

Despite the great strides the ministry has made in infrastructure development, with more than 6 000 permanent classrooms constructed in past years, physical infrastructure remains a challenge as ICT is integrated into the learning environment.

“The growth of the learners is another dynamic that we need to get our heads around. First and foremost, we have an annual growth ranging between 3.5% and 4% of learners and it means you would need classrooms, and for specialised subjects you need fully qualified teachers who have mastered the content,” she said.

These figures to not account for the staggering 19% growth rate in grade one in the Khomas Region. A major contributor to this is the perception of rural schools, rather than their actual capabilities.

“We have certain rural areas that are well equipped but are perceived to not be up to standard so people want to move to urban areas,” she said.

To destigmatise rural education, Steenkamp said more equipment needs to be provided to rural schools. The decentralisation of the operations of the education ministry as well as its capital budget will aid in this, according to Steenkamp.

“Parents have a perception that certain schools are the best for their children. I want to break that down to ensure that the school that is closest to the parent is equipped with a strong organisational culture and support for teachers and that the school management and staff will be held accountable while at the same time having engaging and uplifting sessions,” she said.

Steenkamp added that Namibian education bends under the weight of its concerning 19% to 21% grade one repetition statistic.

She allotted this to a lack of resources at pre-primary level. “There are children who were supposed to be in pre-primary but do not have sufficient space in pre-primary and there is a great need to assign more domestic resources towards expanding the pre-primary phase in terms of classroom construction and teacher allocation,” she said.

An estimated 50% of children in grade one under the ministry’s care have been able to receive a pre-primary education. “It is regrettable; there is need to expand on that,” the executive director admitted.

Currently, the challenges in population growth are primarily experienced in the Erongo, Khomas, Otjozondjupa as well as Kavango West and East regions. Steenkamp also noted that the southern parts of the country are also starting to become a concern in this regard.

However, it is not only the lower primary phase the ministry is struggling to account for. Learners with sensory or intellectual impairments are also left behind in the current set-up.

Nationwide, there are 11 established resource schools for learners with hearing or visual impairments and a mere three schools for intellectually impaired learners – two of which are established in the Windhoek, with just one in northern areas of Namibia.

“We are aware that there are many more learners who should be in school but are not due to long waiting lists,” Steenkamp said, noting the required ratio of one teacher to eight learners in non-traditional schools as a limitation.

Young girls are the main feature in dropout statistics due to pregnancy, she added.

“For that, I fully hold accountable the men and boys who are impregnating them. They are of sound mind; they know full well what they are doing and often we find that our children are sexually exploited and there are coercive circumstances involved in the pregnancy of our learners,” she said.

Another reason for dropout rates is frustration with the education system from both parents and learners.

“There are learners who are frustrated with the system who then drop out and parents who feel that learners no longer need to be in school, who then take their children out of school for whatever reasons,” she said.

The Covid-19 pandemic has also made itself a culprit in dropout rates, with roughly 4 000 learners being taken out of schools by their parents.

“That is a great concern to us. We wish to reiterate that every child matters and that it is important to us that every child should learn. They must learn, they must play and they must be happy. We want them to be happy,” she said.

Money matters

The executive director said despite the education ministry’s seemingly comfortable place on the annual budget, the lion’s share of their financial expenditure goes toward mundane causes.

“Although we do get the highest share of the cake, our money predominantly goes to the salaries of 27 000 teachers and 13 000 unified staff members. What is left is a minimal amount for operational costs.”

Even with these challenges, the ministry of education dreams of bringing early childhood development under their leadership.

“There would be a huge long-term project. We have already started working on these frameworks and plans; however, as a long-term project, it would require quite a bit of resources. It would also require close collaboration with the United Nations and others partners,” she noted.

Steenkamp further said the ministry hopes to expend its assets into the strengthening of the bedrock of young lives.

“The foundation is imperative. We know that the first 1 000 days of a child’s life are crucial, so we need to work closely with the ministry of gender,” she said.