Its classroom blocks are not adequate for the student population in the school. Therefore, students are packed like sardines with hardly enough space for teachers to teach or move around.
Emene Community High School is one of the scores of secondary schools in the Enugu metropolis. The school which is located in the Enugu East local government area is arguably one of the most populated schools in the state.
Its classroom blocks are not adequate for the student population in the school. Therefore, students are packed like sardines with hardly enough space for teachers to teach or move around.
A recent visit to the school by SaharaReporters showed that despite the acute shortage of classrooms, the state government had posted over 700 new junior school one students to the school for their secondary education.
The school has only five classrooms of 45 to 50 students capacity per classroom. Unfortunately, the school had admitted hundreds of new students at the time one of our reporters visited the school a week ago.
A close look at the situation in the school showed that 90 to 100 students were packed in one classroom meant for about 45 students. Some who could not find space hung on windows, a situation that had reportedly led to the breaking of window blades.
Also, it was observed that some class teachers chose to sit in the corridors instead of classrooms to monitor students as directed by the authorities due to a lack of adequate space.
Speaking to SaharaReporters, one of the students who identified his name as Chidiebere Mbah, lamented the regular struggle to breathe in class.
Mbah, a class two student told SaharaReporters that students who sit at the back of the class sometimes have to “climb or walk on” their colleagues to get to the front of the class.
SaharaReporters learnt that the school has about 2,000 students and about 80 staff members.
"Two classes - A and B – were merged together to use the classroom where I am. Classes A and B have about 50 students each. So, in our classroom, we are about 100 students. As you can see, we are overcrowded," Mbah said.
A teacher who spoke to one of our correspondents on condition of anonymity revealed that the principal of the school had written several times to the relevant government ministries and agencies, and even to the traditional ruler of the community where the school is located but regrettably, nothing has been done to address the situation.
Lamenting the challenge confronting the school, the teacher said, "I don't know, the school is short of structures. We have only a few classrooms but we have so many students. In each class, we have about 100 students - A and B classes will be in one classroom.
“For a teacher to teach in such an environment, you know it is not conducive for teaching and learning. Some of the students cannot even hear what the teacher is saying, especially in the afternoon.
"If you have an afternoon class, there is no way they will hear what you are saying because everywhere will be very hot and students themselves will not feel comfortable being in class because of overcrowding and high temperature.
“They will feel relaxed to hear what you are saying let alone learn or hear what you are trying to teach them. We need the government to help us.
"We have about 2,002 students in the school. For the last session, we were about 2,002 students but if you exclude the Senior School 3 students who left the last team, I don't know the actual population now but be reminded also that we are admitting new students now.
“This is the first team and we are admitting the Junior School 1 students. So the population is still high."
She added, "We don't even have a staff room, you need to be in that school to see what we are going through. The current rule - we have 13 commandments that say that each form teacher has to stay with their class but because of lack of space, the teacher cannot stay in the class with that population of students because most of the students don't even have space to sit.
“Some of the teachers stay in the corridor and when you are in the corridor you will not know what is happening in the classroom. So we need more structures to make teaching and learning conducive."
When asked whether the school had complained officially to the school, the teacher said, "Yes, we have been writing as regards the problems we are facing, even to the community and they promised to help us but for years now they have not done anything."
The teacher added, "You can imagine when students hang on the windows and some stay in the corridors during the classes; what type of learning can go on in such an environment? You will not hear what the teacher is saying, you just copy the note."
On other challenges faced by teachers in the school, the teacher said, "We don't have enough tables and chairs for teachers. We also don't have electricity in the school. We had a generator; some robbers came and stole it. Currently, there is nothing like computer studies in school because there is no way you can practise it without electricity.
"We have computers though not many to go around the students but we used to manage. Now, there is no generator to power them.
"We also don't have enough teachers and with the current transfer issues going on now, we don't have enough teachers in Community High School, Emene."
A student in junior secondary school class three, who simply gave his name as Okechukwu said, "We don't have enough classrooms and because of that, classes are always overcrowded.
“In my class, we are about 98 in number – two classes were combined. Both JSS 3A and 3B are forced to stay in one class. So in that class, we have about 98 students in a class that is supposed to accommodate not more than 50 students.
"Many students don't use desks because they don't have sitting space. What they do is attach themselves to those students who have space. Often, some students stand while class is going on. There is always so much noise in the classrooms because students hardly see what teachers write on the board. They hardly hear the teachers because of overcrowded classrooms.
"Students climb on desks to get to the front or back to their seats because there is no space to pass. Some students have their desks outside while some hang on the windows during classes."
Okechukwu, therefore, appealed to the state government to come to their aid and build more classrooms to accommodate students.
"That school is the only government or public school around Emene. So, children of the poor are the ones going to Emene High School because other schools around are owned by churches and private individuals and are too expensive for our parents.
“So the government should please assist us by providing us with a conducive classroom for learning," he said.
Another teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity noted that there was nothing much the staff could do other than to continue to write to the authorities and appeal to well-meaning citizens to assist the students.
She said, "The school needs more teachers. The ratio of students to teachers is not balanced. I think we (teachers) are 81 in number while the student population is a little bit above 2,000.
"Every day, children yearn to come here; parents also yearn to bring their wards here because of affordability and the school can't deny them their right to education."
The teacher said there were five classrooms for about 700 fresh students newly posted to the school.
Meanwhile, efforts made by SaharaReporters to get the reaction of the government through the Ministry of Education failed as the education commissioner, Prof Ndubueze Mbah did not answer his calls or reply to a text message sent to him.