By Joseph Agrace Wiyorbie
Lambussie (UW/R), Feb. 07, GNA-Residents of Kelfiensi in the Lambussie District have appealed to the government, to urgently construct classrooms and provide teachers to enhance effective teaching and learning for the Kelfiensi D/A Basic School.
The school, which has a population of over 100 learners from Basic One to Basic Six, have only two teachers, and currently has no classrooms, with pupils learning under trees.
Mr Seidu Sulemana, the School Management Committee (SMC) Chairperson for the Kelfenisi D/A Basic School, said the lack of teachers and had led to poor academic poor performance and a reduction in the school’s population.
He emphasised that the situation has resulted in some parents withdrawing their children from the school because the school lacked classrooms and adequate staff.
Mr Sulemana who spoke to the GNA in an interview added that children whose parents had the means always sent their wards to the nearest school at Nawie, and some children had stopped going to school.
He lamented that the lack of classrooms had made it difficult to attract and retain teachers, with many opting to be transferred to other schools with better facilities and that had hindered the academic performance of the school.
Mr Sulemana recalled how the Kelfenisi Basic School started as a community initiative in 2011, with grass tents as classrooms, and Senior High School (SHS) graduates as teachers.
He said the community contributed to pay those volunteer teachers monthly in efforts to bring early childhood education closer to the children until government took over in 2015 and posted teachers to the school.
The SMC Chairperson revealed that the community’s efforts to provide quality education for its children were severely hampered when a mud structure constructed to serve as classrooms collapsed due to heavy rains last season.
He added that the community members contributed funds and built the mud structure, which had attracted children from the community who would have otherwise travel the long distance to the nearest school at Nawie.
He noted that the only structure of the community had unfortunately collapsed, leaving the school without classrooms and forcing pupils to learn under trees.
“We are rebuilding another structure, but we are totally exhausted, and we are sincerely in need of help to have a proper structure for our children to enhance teaching and learning,” he said.
Mr Sulemana further lamented that the situation created a critical challenging learning environment for the pupils and underscored the need for urgent intervention to provide adequate educational infrastructure for the school.
Some parents who spoke to the GNA said: “We have been contributing funds until government took over, so we are expecting that at least building a befitting structure for the school now should be the responsibility of the government and not parents.”
“We contributed and started the grass sheds and subsequently contributed funds and build mud structure which served as classrooms but collapsed due to heavy rains and storms last season,” a parent said.
Mrs Esther Porekuu, the Headmistress of Kelfenisi D/A Basic School corroborated Mr Sulemana’s concerns, stressing that the situation had compelled teachers to close school whenever it threatened to rain, and that the issue was disrupting the academic calendar of the school.
Mr Kyibe-imuo Isaac, the Assemblyman for the Kelfenisi Electoral Area also expressed concern over the situation, noting that he had made several appeals to the district assembly to address the issue, but to no avail.
He appealed to stakeholders to come to the aid of the community and construct classroom block for the school.
When the GNA visited the school, pupils were seen sitting on blocks under sheanut trees, with inadequate furniture and only two teachers.
Mr Naawulle Ireneous Basingbie, the Lambussie District Chief Executive, told the GNA that the Assembly was taking the necessary steps to build classrooms for the school.
He plans were advanced to solicit support from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to construct classroom block for the school.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Benjamin Mensah
