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ABOUT 15 percent of learners in examination classes at Mpatamatosecondary school in Lunashya District on the Copperbelt have not returned to school due to farming activities.
School head teacher Godfrey Mwaba, disclosed that only 85 percent of pupils in grades 9 and 12 had returned to school since the partial re-opening of schools on June 1st, 2020.
ZANIS reports that this came to light when Luanshya District Commissioner Patrick Maipambe visited the school to distribute washable face masks donated by the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) at the school.
Mr Mwaba observed that parents to the pupils had engaged their children in crop harvesting and vegetable gardening activities at the expense of returning to school.
“I have personally contacted the parents to the pupils who have not returned to school, and their response was that their children were still helping with the crop harvest,” he said
And Mr Maipambe expressed concern at the development which he said would negatively affect learner performance during examinations.
Schools opened to examination classes on June 1st, 2020 following the premature closure of schools due the outbreak of Covid- 19.
– ZANIS
