More classrooms built to help school stop classes in shifts

A SCHOOL principal in East New Britain has phased out the shift-class system at Kokopo Secondary School because it is “a shame.”
Principal Paul Raia said that teachers were paid only K400 per year in allowance.
He said the shift classes were praised by many as good when it was introduced after the 1994 volcanic eruption.
“The volcanic eruption was the catalyst for the shift after Boisen High School and Rabaul High School were closed. Kokopo Secondary had to play the role of three schools.
“But it was a shame because under the shift teaching, our teachers were paid a mere K400, which is like 25 toea per hour.
“At the end of the year as an allowance for looking after the shift classes, and for looking after the masses of children, it is illegal.”
Raia became school principal in 2011 and by 2012, he removed the shift practice because the school had built more classrooms.
“When I first came, I was told the school cannot perform because it’s too big and the shift cannot be removed because there is not enough space.”
He said there were nine classes in grade 10, six in grade 11 and six in grade 12. There was not enough classrooms, so grades 10, 11 and 12 would come in the morning and grade 9 in the afternoon.
“Now I have built 10 extra classrooms in a space of three years, invested in impact projects by building a science laboratory to free all the rooms to phase out the shift system.”