Isabel Bento 

SWAKOPMUND – Education minister Sanet Steenkamp has called for the restoration of discipline, moral values and quality teaching in classrooms. 

She said improved learning outcomes depend on collective responsibility. 

As the 2026 academic year gets underway, Steenkamp said teachers, parents, communities and learners must work together to strengthen discipline and restore standards in schools. 

Speaking to the media on the sidelines of her visit to several schools in Erongo yesterday, the first day of the new school year, the minister said the visit served a dual purpose – to assess how schools were opening and to present the 2025 national examination results to President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah. 

Steenkamp’s first stop was Swakopmund Primary School, where she met more than 1 400 learners and 49 teachers and interacted with parents. 

She also visited Westside High School and Coastal High School in Swakopmund. 

“It was encouraging to see parents taking an active interest in the education of their children. Parental involvement remains critical to learner discipline and success,” she said. 

The minister stressed that strengthening moral values in schools should be a priority and does not require additional financial resources. 

“Enhancing moral values does not cost money. It requires empathy from our teachers, proper care, discipline and the authority that must be restored in our classrooms. Above all, we must ensure that quality teaching is restored,” Steenkamp said. She added that starting the academic year on the right footing would significantly influence learner performance. 

“If we start the year with the right focus and discipline, we will go very far. Restoring discipline in classrooms is a shared responsibility, and everyone must take ownership if we want better learning outcomes,” she said. 

Addressing overcrowding , particularly in urban schools, Steenkamp said the challenge remains a reality in the Erongo region. 

“The ministry is currently working on decongesting schools in five regions, including Erongo. Ideally, schools such as Westside High, which accommodates about 1 300 learners from pre-primary to AS level, should be split into separate primary and secondary schools, although this will take time,” she said. 

She noted that overcrowding ha s strained facilities such as laboratories, media centres and libraries, adding that government is hopeful of securing increased capital development funding in 2026 to expand school infrastructure. -Nampa