28 Nov 2017

Challenges at D’kar Primary School such as poor academic results have resulted in the school organising a positive parenting workshop to engage parents.

D’kar Primary School head of department in learning difficulties, Ms Taelo Makwati said this on Thursday during a positive parenting workshop held at the school.

Ms Makwati said as a school they found it fit to organise the workshop to bring parents close to the school and share ways on how they could help improve children’s academic results and curb school drop-outs problem.

She said they wanted parents to understand the importance of education and encourage their children to take their school work seriously and where possible assist them on doing their assignments to motivate them.

Ms Makwati also said they wanted to see parents working hand in hand with the school in the upbringing of students instead of relinquishing the responsibility to teachers after registering the children at school.

She said through frequent consultations and engagements with all stakeholders, she hoped the school results would improve.

Ms Makwati said the meeting was the second one, noting that the first was a kgotla meeting and was hopeful that they would continue to build good relationship between parents, school and other stakeholders.

She urged parents to enroll their children for reception classes, adding that they experienced low numbers of children but the number increased when parents registered children for standard one.

She said that was not a good starting point because children would not be familiar with the school environment.

D’kar community development officer, Ms Kopo Kate said each child has the right to education from preschool to the higher level of education regardless of where they stay.

She said denying a child education was punishable by law saying in Botswana a child should be enrolled at school at the age 5 years 6 months.

She told parents that it was their responsibility to register their children with the school and not the responsibility of the community development officer alone.

Ms Kate said children have the right to be protected;hence the need for parents to desist from sending them to buy alcohol and cigarettes as this would tempt children to indulge in alcohol.

“D’kar is experiencing cases of child abuse, rape cases but parents tend to hide all this and pretend everything is normal,” she said.

For his part, Village Development Committee secretary, Mr Xhase Maruping urged parents to take children back to school whenever they drop out of school. BOPA