Parents at an Afrikaans primary school do not want to change the school's language policy as they fear it may increase the pupil-teacher ratio.
Erhard Wolf, chairperson of the school governing body of Laerskool Mikro in Kuils River, confirmed that education minister Cameron Dugmore had asked the school to introduce English-medium classes. But this, he said, "was not the wish of the parents".
Wolf said the school was very proud of the level of education it had achieved which he attributed to a range of factors. "If we tried to adjust the elements, we couldn't guarantee the success of the school," said Wolf.
At the moment the Afrikaans school has a pupil-teacher ratio of 33:1, which Wolf believes would increase to 45:1 if English was introduced as a medium of instruction.
While he realised a "significant housing explosion" in Kuils River was putting pressure on the Western Cape education department to find space for schoolchildren, Wolf did not believe that taking more pupils into their school would solve the problem.
Dugmore said the department had not yet made a decision about the school governing body's refusal. "The proposal is for them to accept one class at Grade 1 level in 2005 and then to extend it in subsequent years," said Dugmore.
The department has been approached by a number of Kuils River parents whose children cannot be accommodated at De Kuilen Primary which offers English medium instruction. While De Kuilen Primary is prepared to take on extra Grade 2 and 3 pupils, their Grade 1 classes are full.
"The key issue is accommodation. It is clear that Laerskool Mikro has the capacity to increase its numbers and our key challenge as a department is to find places for learners," said Dugmore.
Wolf says finding accommodation for schoolchildren is the responsibility of the education department "but determining the language policy is up to the school governing body".