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MEC 'dumping' unplaced pupils in schools, say Gauteng parents

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The MEC has assured parents that all children will be placed in schools.
The MEC has assured parents that all children will be placed in schools.

More than 7900 Gauteng pupils have still not been placed in schools, while the deadline of 30 November closes in.

Last week Parent24 reported that more than 14 000 pupils in Gauteng have not yet been placed in schools, which was cause for concern for thousands of anxious parents. 

Read the story here: 14 000 Gauteng students still unplaced for 2020 school year

The MEC of Education in Gauteng has confirmed on Twitter that the number has now decreased to 7998.

At what cost? 

MEC Panyaza Lesufi has assured parents that all children will be placed in schools by the end of the week, but parents are asking: At what cost? 

Parents have replied to the tweet urging him to not place children in schools far from their homes.

Some have said that children are being ''dumped'' everywhere to complete the department's quest to eradicate the number of unplaced children, describing the situation as "a nightmare".

One parent said their child has been placed in a school they did not apply to.

Clearly unsuccessful

Parent24 also recently spoke to Phindi, a parent from Naturena, Gauteng, who has been affected by the school placement issue.

Phindi has highlighted similar issues to the parents responses on the MECs tweet.

She angrily asks how children who live in Soweto can be placed in Naturena schools, yet not all the children there have been placed.

Phindi also says she has severe headaches cause of this issue, and has critiqued the online application system. 

"I don't remember my parents stressing like this when they went to place me in a school, so I really think the government must let go of this online application system cause it's clearly unsuccessful," Phindi told us.

The MEC remains determined that no learner will be without a school, despite additional concerns expressed by parents.

Chat back:

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Read more:

“Where do I turn to for help?”: Parents unable to place their children in school share their stories

School admission nightmare continues to trouble Gauteng parents

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