GOBABIS: Governor of the Omaheke Region, Laura McLeod-Katjirua, has called on parents to become more involved in their children’s education in order to avoid issues of ill-discipline and underperformance of learners.
McLeod-Katjirua, who was speaking at the handover of textbooks to the Epako Secondary School as part of the Old Mutual Education Excellence Award on Friday, said many of the schools in the region have been performing poorly, mainly as a direct result of ill-discipline.
She said parents should become active role players in the education of their children by frequently attending parents’ meetings, school parent days, and school board meetings.
“Parental responsibility is one of the great essential elements in the enforcement of discipline to ensure the best possible performances.
As such, stable families will contribute towards stable behaviour, performance and outcomes. Unattended children and fragment relationships at home impact the outcome of results, eg domestic violence, alcohol abuse, and constant arguments in front of children,” she said.
Taking a swipe at learners for not taking their education seriously, the regional governor said although the right to education is guaranteed in the Constitution, such right can however be revoked if abused to the detriment of others through ill-discipline and other forms of evils that hamper education.
“No child or learner, and I say no one, will enjoy the intended benefits of this right to education if he or she exposes him or herself to ill-discipline, unbecoming behaviour, use of alcohol and drugs, absenteeism and laziness, addictive use of cell phones, romantic affairs, and low reading culture,” she noted.
She said the prevalent high degree of disunity among top management at schools – mainly between the principal and staff – contribute to uncontrollable chaos which lead to underperformance in institutions.
“We overload ourselves with additional hidden agendas, personal motives and lose focus in the process, then end up not realising the true targets we had set for ourselves.
We must as such put those personal agendas aside and fulfil our responsibility with diligence and to the best of our abilities,” said the governor.
The Old Mutual Education Excellence award is bestowed annually upon the region’s top-achieving Government school in the Grade 12 national examinations, through a donation of education materials.
The Epako Secondary School was the 2011 winner and received textbooks worth N.dollars 20 000.