Infrastructure woes keeping students away

By BRADLEY MARIORI
INFRASTRUCTURE is still a huge problem for Salamaua Primary School in Huon Gulf, forcing almost half of the enrolled students to stay home.
Head teacher Lucas Jack said because there were not enough classrooms, many students remain at home.
“Since the school was relocated to Kela village, there was no good infrastructure development,” he said.
“All current infrastructure (teachers’ houses and classrooms) are built using bush materials but they are not enough which has forced many teachers out of the school and kept some children at
home.
“I don’t have enough classrooms and teachers’ houses and something needs to be done urgently.
“We really need help.
“With the school’s current status, it was supposed to be suspended but we have some committed teachers who held on and kept the school going.”
Jack said the school had three feeder elementary schools and needed good infrastructures to help bring in staff to cater for the children who were scheduled to pass out of the elementary schools.
Huon Gulf MP Ross Seymour said the school was not progressing because the board of management was not doing its job.
“There are processes – if the school is struggling and needs help, the board should discuss and bring it to the attention of the district education manager who will bring it up to the administrator and then to me to address,” he said.
“The board has a responsibility to play with us and must bring such issues to our attention.”