Africa-Press – Botswana. Government is compelled to engage temporary teachers because of the high and unmatched increase in the school population over the years, Assistant Minister of Education and Skills Development, Mr Aubrey Lesaso has said.
Mr Lesaso who was answering a question in Parliament recently, said the decision to reduce classes in 2019, in keeping with the Revised National Policy on Education 1994 and COVID-19 protocols by the ministry, created more classes for which temporary teachers were recruited.
He said the length of engagement of temporary teachers depended on the reason for engaging them.
“There are cases where there is need to engage a temporary teacher for just three months to replace a teacher on confinement as an example.
In some cases teachers are hired to replace a those on sick and study leaves and therefore some temporary teachers may be hired for a year with the possibility of an extension and often these are for where there is no position yet established,” he explained.
Member of Parliament for Nata-Gweta, Mr Polson Majaga had wanted to know the criteria for hiring temporary teachers.
Mr Majaga also asked why temporary teachers were usually deployed at Rural Development Programme villages.
He further wanted to know if the ministry would consider extending the three-month contract to one year to help improve learners’ academic performance.
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