THOHOYANDOU - Hundreds of teachers from pre-school and day-care centers from around Venda marched to the regional offices of the Department of Education in Thohoyandou last Tuesday (April 2), demanding the reinstating of Grade R children back to the pre-schools.

The teachers, mainly women, accused the department of education of taking away the children under the age of six from the pre-school to schools without consulting them. One of the committee representatives Ms Mercey Dangale, said they were against the department’s decision which has led to job losses for many of the pre-school teachers who were forced to close their institutions after the children were taken away.

The teachers also blamed the education department of taking the children away from the well-trained staff at the pre-schools and exposing them to the normal school teachers who do not know anything about the treatment and care, which are supposed to be given to the children of that age.

"We were never consulted when the department decided to take away the Grade R children from our pre-school centers. Many of us lost our jobs because of this greedy decision. We are also surprised why the department has decided to take the children to teachers who are not skilled for teaching Grade R children."

Mr Moses Ratombo, who accepted the memorandum on behalf of the department, said they would send the memorandum to the relevant channels to the provincial level. Ratombo said it could have been better if the committee decided to negotiate with the department before they engage in a protest march.