16 Sep 2018

The Ministry of Basic Education is planning to review the school curriculum.

Education minister, Mr Bagalatia Arone said at the official opening and prize giving ceremony of Maitlamo Junior Secondary School in Maun recently, that there was a realisation that part of the problem in the education system arose from the fact that pupils were expected to take too many subjects at a go. 

He said the current curriculum had eight to nine subjects, which could be reduced to five subjects.

“Part of challenge in the education system is the high number of subjects offered, the maximum number of subjects should be five to allow students to learn properly,” he said. 

He said reducing the number of subjects was necessary as the ministry would be commencing the new strategy, Education and Training Sector Strategic Plan (ETSSP: 2015-2020) which would ensure students were offered subjects relevant to their ability.

The ministry, he said had a mammoth task of carrying out the mandate of delivering quality and relevant education.

Mr Arone said the ministry needed to introspect and identify challenges affecting the education system.

Some of the identified challenges include poor equipment in schools, which hindered both teachers and students performance. 

Another challenge, Mr Arone said was that some parents left the bulk of responsibility of their children’s education to teachers. 

Also, he said there was leadership challenge since some schools performed poorly compared to their counterparts although they had the same quality of teachers. 

The minister said rowdy students should be left to their choices while focus should be on students willing to learn, adding that students should be enthusiastic to learn. 

“All should be committed to bringing good results,” he said adding the ministry would give special attention to the challenges to ensure good results.

Mr Arone said there was need to look into why schools in urban areas performed better than those in rural areas.

Further, the minister appreciated government for providing best infrastructure at Maitlamo JSS.

Member of Parliament for Maun East, Mr Kostantinos Markus, who pledged P10 000 towards Maitlamo JSS, encouraged students to take care of the infrastructure.

Mr Markus said there was a challenge of drug abuse in schools and thus urged parents to keep their children in check. 

President Mokgweetsi Masisi graced the occasion as he had promised when he visited the school that he would ensure that it got renovated andofficially launched. ENDS