Matrics forced to write exams in terrible conditions

Broken and dilapidated ceilings, an insufficient number of chairs and tables, a lack of electricity and leaking asbestos roof sheets. These are just some of the conditions Nelson Mandela Bay pupils will have to put up with as they write their matric exams, starting on Monday. The Herald reported this week how some schools in some of the Bay’s most impoverished areas were in dire straits — and the rush was on to find more desks, fix electricity problems and squeeze in extra study time. The scramble for basic resources comes as scores of pupils prepare to write the most important exams of their lives in the dark, under dangling electrical wires and in classrooms with broken ceilings. For many, there are also not even enough tables and chairs. Teachers have also bemoaned the dismal state of ablution facilities at some schools. In Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, we speak to National Professional Teachers Organisation of SA (Naptosa) executive director Basil Manuel and Federation of Governing Bodies of SA Schools (Fedsas) deputy CEO Riaan van der Bergh. The Herald