Learners of the Adaklu Avelebe District Assembly Basic School in the Adaklu District of the Volta Region continue to bear the brunt of harsh weather conditions as they study under trees. 

Two out of three thatch structures constructed by the community folks to accommodate learners of the Junior High School department were destroyed by a storm. 

This compelled the school’s management to house Forms 2 and 3 under trees, exposing them to unfavourable weather conditions. 

A mathematics teacher at the school, Nelson Dandu, indicated the situation affects academic activities, mostly during the rainy season. 

“Sometimes we have to end lessons abruptly and close the school when it is about to rain”, he said.

The learners are equally not happy with the development as it is affecting their training and academic performance.

“In case we are unable to leave the compound before it starts raining, our books get drenched, and we are equally not spared by the rain. This is affecting our studies as we don't feel comfortable learning under such a structure”, said Worde Wisdom, a Form One pupil. 

Another challenge is the lack of accommodation for teachers in the area, forcing teachers to live more than 20 kilometres away and commute to school on weekdays. 

A teacher at the Avelebe DA Basic School, Abigail Xekpor, lamented that they spend so much on transport since they rely on commercial motorbikes. 

She said they stay back at home in some instances for about a week when the road gets flooded, after heavy downpours.

“Sometimes we don't go to school for about a week because the road was affected by flood and the motorbikes can't travel through the water.

"When the children come to school and don't see, the period becomes a holiday for them, either they return home or stay on the campus and play around", she explained.

The Headmaster, Augustus Sodzi, therefore, appealed for the construction of a pavilion to accommodate the JHS department in the interim. 

He said, “If we can't get a three-unit classroom block, a pavilion will do. The community people are ready to put blocks under it so we can house the students in there”.

He also suggested a public-private partnership under which bungalows will be constructed and rented out to teachers in the school, to curb the accommodation challenge. 

“When this is done, I believe it will help improve the performance of the pupils because the teacher will always be available to help them, even with their homework”, he concluded.