• Sadtu teachers are only doing basic classroom hours after saying the KZN education department has failed them badly.

• Mid-year exams have been cancelled across the province, with schools telling parents about the mess through letters.

Thousands of KwaZulu-Natal school children cannot write their mid-year exams because their teachers are on strike.

The South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) says the KZN Department of Education has failed badly.

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Angry union members have started a work-to-rule strike that has shut down schools across the province.

Sadtu KZN Secretary says teachers will now only do their basic seven hours of teaching each day and nothing else.

This means no extra classes, no meetings with education bosses, and no workshops until the department pays money it owes to schools.

The strike has blocked district offices and messed up exam times across the province.

Democratic Alliance education spokesperson Sakhile Mngadi says the union's actions are wrong and dangerous.

"While some of Sadtu's complaints about KZN's Department of Education may be right, their way of protesting is careless and very wrong. It is our learners, especially those in important school years, who are paying the price for this fight," said Mngadi.

He warned that the problems are not only destroying the mid-year exams but also putting the province at risk for the 2025 matric exams.

Mngadi has asked Education MEC Sipho Hlomuka to quickly fix the mess in schools and district offices.

Many schools have already sent letters to parents telling them the exams are cancelled.

The union says its members will not go to any department meetings and will refuse to do extra work until their demands are met.

Teachers are only doing their classroom hours and refusing to do any extra work that normally keeps schools running properly.

Parents across KZN are now trying to find other plans for their children as the school year falls apart.

The strike means children who should be writing important tests are sitting at home instead.

Many parents are worried their children will fall behind in their studies because of the fight between teachers and the education department.