The Eastern Cape is home to some of the most beautiful and peaceful landscapes, and scattered alongside almost impassable dirt roads are a handful of rural schools.
The Eastern Cape is home to some of the most beautiful and peaceful landscapes, and scattered alongside almost impassable dirt roads are a handful of rural schools.
Although a few of these schools flourish, with libraries, flower gardens and separate classrooms for different grades, the majority lack staff and trained teachers as well as transport and electricity.
Although Mosslands Farm School is one of the struggling schools, the news is not all bad. It looks abandoned from the outside and comprises only one room, shared by about 20 pupils of all ages.
Inside, children sit within their grades around tables and discuss their work. The preschool children play with toys and draw pictures.
Kholiwe Ncanywa, the only teacher and principal of the school, said her learners get the individual attention that those in larger, urban schools might not.
“People don’t understand that we have schools that are multi-graded and can work just fine,” she said.
Ncanywa’s passion and love for teaching keeps the little school going.
“It is not too bad. The children don’t pay fees and the government supplies books, transport and food, but I need help.”
However, some schools are far worse off, and have more pupils. Masakhane Combined School, in the Seven Fountains area, has 67 students.
“It’s not easy; in fact, it is very difficult, but we are here,” says the principal, Nomathemba Lungile. She has been at the school for 15 years and explained how fewer and fewer children come to school as they don’t get the attention they need.
“We have five teachers, but we have Grade R to Grade 9,” she sighs. The school becomes ice cold in winter and boiling hot in summer. “Since February we haven’t had transport and we don’t have any electricity.”
Pumba and Kwantu Game Reserves help with a feeding scheme and carpets. Like other teachers in the rural schools, Lungile voiced her concern about the vulnerable children that attend her school.
“There are children with special needs and we don’t have teachers that are trained for this. These children will blame the teachers – it’s always our fault,” she said, shaking her head.
She wishes her school could help these children who are in desperate need of attention and care.
