Show teachers some respect, appreciation

MANY a school is feeling the crunch and pressure of working in these challenging times.

Educators are under tremendous pressure and the day-to-day chores are very different to what they were.

Learners’ absenteeism is a big worry, and the low morale of teachers and children is a major factor.

Late coming of learners to school or classes is a bad habit that you want to wish away, but it is a fact or a crime?

Schoolwork is no longer a priority.

For many educators, it feels like a social club’s meeting place with no agenda.

Every day, you hear about what is said about the education sector and how bad it is. I am sure many teachers start feeling bad about all the battering coming from the media, the wider community and the business sector.

Who is doing something about all these ills and giving some direction?

Educators are trained to teach and not how to be social workers, administrators, police officers or nurses.

Educators work late nights, after school giving extra classes and so on, but where is the appreciation? In Africa, educators are not valued enough.

Who has taught anyone to read? A teacher.

Please give the educators, especially those in the townships and with few resources, some slack.

The belief is that there is apartheid in our schooling system: the well-resourced schools (ex-Model C schools) and those that are underresourced (township schools).

This, 30 years into our democracy.

PETER HENDRICKS | Hanover Park