🔴🚨𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐄𝐖𝐒: Zambia Made Education Free, Now Classrooms are Crammed

"Experience the Power of Free Education in Zambia: Overcoming the Challenges of Crowded Classrooms"

It's an exciting time in Zambia! Since 2021, two million additional children are now attending state-run schools for free, thanks to the government's initiative to make education accessible for everyone. This remarkable stride towards universal education, however, comes with its unique set of challenges - notably, overcrowded classrooms.

Imagine the scene at Chanyanya Primary and Secondary School: it's 7 a.m. on a chilly winter morning, and students are already arriving to secure a desk. The classrooms, meant for 30 students, are now accommodating over a hundred eager learners. 

Despite the challenges, the spirit of these students is undeterred. Their dedication to learning reflects the resilience and determination that are at the heart of Zambia's education revolution. 

The issue of overcrowding is now in the spotlight, and the government and education stakeholders are actively seeking solutions. An investment in infrastructure is underway to ensure that the quality of education remains high, even with the influx of new students. 

This is a pivotal moment in Zambia's educational journey, and everyone is invited to be part of the solution. Whether it's advocating for more resources, supporting infrastructural development, or simply spreading the word, your involvement can make a real difference. 

Join us in shaping the future of education in Zambia. Together, we can ensure that every Zambian child has access to quality education and the opportunity to create a brighter future. 

Here are some experience and thoughts shared by some students below 👇

It’s 07:00 on a chilly winter morning, and a group of students has just arrived at Chanyanya Primary and Secondary School, a little over an hour’s drive southwest of Zambia’s capital, Lusaka.

“You need to come early to school because there is a shortage of desks,” says 16-year-old pupil Richard Banda. “Two days ago, I came late and ended up sitting on the floor - it was so cold.”

His discomfort encapsulates the problem of a lack of resources and overcrowding that has resulted from offering free primary and secondary school education here.

The school is in a compound composed of 10 classrooms arranged in a horseshoe shape around a playground where acacia trees and plants spring from the sandy soil.

The rays of the early-morning sun are caught in a cloud of dust stirred up by boys and girls sweeping the classrooms.

Just before the bell rings, one of the students sprints to the middle of the playground and raises the Zambian flag atop a tall pole.

These start-of-the-day rituals have become part of a new routine for two million extra children who, since 2021, have been able to go to state-run schools without having to pay, because the government made schooling free for everyone.

But without enough infrastructure investment, experts say overcrowding is now threatening the quality of education, especially for low-income students.

“I stopped going to school in 2016 when I was in grade four,” says 18-year-old Mariana Chirwa, donning the Chanyanya girls' uniform, a light-blue shirt topped with a tartan bow.

“Without free education, I don’t know how my parents would have managed to take me back to school. They don’t work and just stay at home.”

A poster of the class sizes hanging on the wall of the headteacher’s office spells out the challenges schools like Chanyanya face.

In one of the classrooms, 75 boys and 85 girls are squeezed into a space that would comfortably fit only 30 pupils.

“When I started in 2019, I had about 40 students, but now it’s around 100 plus, and that is just in one class,” says 33-year-old teacher Cleopatra Zulu.

“Each and every day, we receive new learners because of free education. Talking one-on-one is difficult, even marking is a challenge. We have even reduced the number of subjects that we are teaching them.”

The experience of pupil Richard Banda reflects this.

“We don’t learn in the same way as those times when we used to pay, there’s a little bit of a difference,” he tells the BBC.

“When we were few, the teacher would explain a topic again if you didn’t understand, but now because we are many, the teacher doesn’t repeat it. That’s the difference.”

The uptick in the number of learners is reflected across sub-Saharan Africa with more children in school than ever before, says the UN children’s agency, Unicef.

However, with nine out of 10 primary school students in the region still struggling to read and understand simple texts, according to Unicef, the focus for policy-makers is now shifting to the quality of education, the hiring of qualified teachers, and the physical infrastructure and resources.

“When you don’t sit properly in a classroom, it affects the way you pay attention to teaching and the way you write your notes," says Aaron Chansa, director of the National Action for Quality Education in Zambia (NAQEZ), which the government consults.

"We are seeing learners entering secondary school when they can’t read properly," he says, adding that there are problems across the country.

“In the Eastern Province, we have more than 100 learners in one class. This has also worsened the book-to-pupil ratio. In some instances, you find one book being fought over by six or seven learners."