A school in Harare took action against 40 students. Mother Patrick Convent Primary School sent out letters to remove these students from grades up to Grade 6.
The school gave out these letters on December 2. The letters said the students broke school rules by missing too many days. The acting head, Eugenia Muketiwa, told parents their children could not stay at the school.
The real story turned out different. Teachers at the school had started refusing to work on November 19. They wanted better jobs and their missing pay. The old head teacher, Tendayi Kagurabadza, did not fix these problems. Many parents took their kids home because no one watched them at school.
The school's move made parents very angry. One parent spoke up and said it was wrong to blame the students for what the teachers did. Other parents told NewsDay they had to take their children away because the kids just played around with no teachers there.
Parents got very upset when their children came back to school. The school gave them letters saying they were kicked out for missing class. Parents asked how their children could miss class when teachers were not even teaching.
The school leaders tried to make things better. Mr. Matigimu, who runs the school board, wrote to parents. He said they would fix the problems. He asked parents to bring their children back to school. The school promised to talk with teachers about their concerns.
The school gave out these letters on December 2. The letters said the students broke school rules by missing too many days. The acting head, Eugenia Muketiwa, told parents their children could not stay at the school.
The real story turned out different. Teachers at the school had started refusing to work on November 19. They wanted better jobs and their missing pay. The old head teacher, Tendayi Kagurabadza, did not fix these problems. Many parents took their kids home because no one watched them at school.
The school's move made parents very angry. One parent spoke up and said it was wrong to blame the students for what the teachers did. Other parents told NewsDay they had to take their children away because the kids just played around with no teachers there.
Parents got very upset when their children came back to school. The school gave them letters saying they were kicked out for missing class. Parents asked how their children could miss class when teachers were not even teaching.
The school leaders tried to make things better. Mr. Matigimu, who runs the school board, wrote to parents. He said they would fix the problems. He asked parents to bring their children back to school. The school promised to talk with teachers about their concerns.
