Monday 1 October 2007

'Private schools are substandard'

Many Dar private schools are substandard - official

01 Oct 2007
By Pastor Nguvu

Dar es Salaam`s Kinondoni Municipal Council has warned parents and guardians in Dar es Salaam to be especially careful when seeking enrolment for their children in private schools in the city, saying many do not meet required standards.

According to the municipality`s educational officer, Dionece Boay, many of the schools in question are yet to comply with the guidelines and criteria set by the Education and Vocational Training ministry.

`The schools need to operate from premises that could be described as a reasonably bog chunk of land. In urban areas it should be at least four acres, while in rural areas it should exceed twice the size,` he explained, without saying why the requirements have been kept secret until now.

He said the municipality would any day from today publish a list of all unregistered schools, including those owned by religious institutions, individuals and trusts and managed by boards of trustees.

`Given the recent proliferation of substandard schools in the city, parents and guardians would be well advised to contact ward education officers before enrolling their children in any of the schools,` noted Boay.

`We have already made in-depth investigations into the issue and have identified all schools that haven been operating or are planning to be up and running before being registered. We strongly advise parents and guardians to first check whether the schools are legally registered before enrolling their children there.`

He added: `Those failing to heed our advice risk ending up losing their money and time because their children will not sit for any nationally recognised examinations.`

The officer was surprised that some naughty schools were still in operation without complying with stipulated conditions despite a notice issued by the municipality last year ordering all unregistered schools to close down.

The municipality`s alert comes only days after Standard Seven pupils completed their final examinations, where those doing well enough will be eligible for secondary school education.

It also coincides with frantic efforts by parents and guardians to register their children for entrance examinations at an array of private secondary schools in different parts of the country.

This is just in case the children are not enrolled in government schools or their parents or guardians prefer private schools, where fees are generally a lot higher.

A random survey by this paper shows that some of the schools are busy advertising themselves in a bid to attract students to enrol beginning January next year.

The survey further shows that some of the schools are in pathetic environmental state as well as in terms of infrastructure, basic facilities and tutorial and support staff.

Many are simple residential houses that have been partitioned and modified into small units to serve as classrooms.

* SOURCE: Guardian

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