Basic Education: Minister's Budget Vote Speech & Responses by ANC, DA and IFP

Minister of Basic Education , Ms Angie Motshekga, gave her Budget Vote Speech on the 07 May 2013
________________________________________________________________

Honourable Speaker
Honourable Members and colleagues
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen.

Honourable speaker, we thank you most sincerely for this Debate on Vote 15, Basic Education.

Fellow compatriots, I’m humbled by your support. As men and women of South Africa, you’ve nurtured and jealously guarded children’s constitutional rights to education like the robin that lays and shields its eggs over time.

It takes honesty, maturity, clarity-of-purpose, and hard-work to build a new, equitable and uniform national system of education that’s envisaged in the progressive SA Schools Act of 1996.

Budget for 2013/14

Today we stand before this House to account and seek a fresh mandate for the 2013/14 programme on the strength of observable advances we have made, with the nation, over time, to build a better education system for a better life for all. The overall budget for 2013/14 for the Department of Basic Education is R17.592 billion. Last year it was R16.344 billion. This is an increase of R1.248 billion. This confirms government’s commitment to education.

The budget allocation to Provincial Education Departments is R173.454 billion. It will reach R199.624 billion in 2015/16. Umalusi is allocated R97.6 million in 2013/14 and will reach R112.7 million in 2015/16 to cover its expanded mandate. Kha Ri Gude receives R549.7 million. This mass literacy campaign has reached over 2.9 million adults. To this we add R59.2 million allocated for EPWP: Kha Ri Gude, as a contribution to job-creation by recruiting and training volunteers.

Kha Ri Gude volunteers, comprise 44 monitors, 203 coordinators, 3703 supervisors and 38 407 volunteer educators, including 250 helpers for blind volunteers. In this way, our department contributes to the national effort to create jobs, end poverty and roll-back the frontiers of inequality.

Improved quality of basic education

The building-blocks for a high performing system are in place. Improving performance across the system is a key objective of the education sector plan – Action Plan to 2014: Towards the Realisation of Schooling 2025. Improving performance is also at the heart the Basic Education Performance Agreement.

The key outputs in the Action Plan are consistent with priorities of the National Development Plan (NDP). Once Cabinet has finalised the Medium Term Strategic Framework that’s aligned to the NDP, we will revise our plans and priorities accordingly. This work has already started.

Honourable Members,

He who has a plan is a million times better than he who pokes holes in the plans of others, without a plan. We’re attending to learner performance while addressing those systemic issues making it difficult for us to crack the system.

An amount of R25 million has been allocated in 2013/14 for the National Initiative to improve learning outcomes which will reach R40 million in 2015/16. I will come back later on what this new initiative is going to be used for. We know the challenges. We are therefore better placed to improve quality and efficiency while consolidating gains in access and equity.

School participation is nearly 100% for the basic compulsory band, the seven to 15 year age-range. Reports also show there are fewer out-of-school children and those who have dropped out. According to household surveys from Stats SA, we have 80 000 fewer children who were out of school in 2011 compared to 2009.

We plan to do more to improve retention and post-compulsory schooling options for young people. Communities should help as well because other reasons for learners ‘dropping-out’ are socio-economic, including teenage pregnancy, youth delinquency and inadequate parental control.

Census 2011 gave us good news also for education. It said the proportion of the population without any formal schooling decreased twofold from 17.9% in 2001 to 8.6% in 2011. With education, comes critical skills, and out of these, come great prospects for absorption in the labour market, entrepreneurship, leadership and other economic opportunities.

Through government’s anti-poverty strategy we’re progressively removing obstacles inhibiting access to equal, quality education for all children, across the race, gender and class divide. Over eight million children, in more than 82% of public schools received free education, in non-fee paying schools.

The conditional grant for the National School Nutrition Programme has increased by R266.6 million in 2013/14, to R5.173 billion. It will reach R5.704 billion in 2015/16.

The HIV and Aids Life Skill Education conditional grant allocation is R213.5 million in 2013/14. We will continue to improve access to quality early childhood development. Our 2011 monitoring results show SA has improved access from 39.3% in 2002 to 84.8% of Grade ones.

All in all, in 2012/13 we had 12.433 949 million learners in over 25 000 schools. In line with the drive to build an equitable system, in 2013/14, we’re prioritising inclusive education.

Our interventions are bearing fruit

There’s progress on the four priority areas agreed upon in 2012/13 – CAPS, Assessments, Workbooks and Infrastructure. You know that a major setback was the time it took to complete delivery of CAPS-orientated textbooks for Grades one to four and 10 to Limpopo schools.

There’s evidence of improved learner performance, even in those districts we had said were underperforming, showing our interventions over time are bearing fruit.
We’ll therefore sustain our focus on these four priority areas. The 3Ts will remain on the agenda of quality teaching and learning.

Huge advances in matric

Honourable Members,

You did witness sustained improvement in matric exam results. This is a result of systemic interventions for strengthening and raising performance in all levels of the system. The matric pass rate climbed to 73.9% in 2012. Our targeted growth, at 75% by 2014, is well within reach.

We’re on target to deliver 175 000 university entrants by 2014. In 2012, the number of Grade 12 learners who qualified for Bachelor’s studies rose to 136 047. It was 120 767 in 2011. This is an increase of 15 280 learners.

Members do you know that under this government, the number of learners who became ready for bachelors-level studies almost doubled over the last 12 years, from around 70 000 in 2000 to around 136 000 in 2012?

The number of passes in Mathematics, at 121 970 for 2012, is 17 937 more than the 104 033 of 2011. And, the number of passes in Physical Science, at 109 918 in 2012, is 13 477 more than the 96 441 of 2011.

We’ve established a maths and science task-team to help further identify challenges in this area. In 2013/14 Dinaledi Schools are allocated R105.1 million. Very encouraging news Honourable Members, the recent Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) bear testimony to our gains.

SA’s improvement in Mathematics, of 67 TIMSS’ points, between 2002 and 2011, or 7 points per year on average, is among the steepest seen by any TIMSS’ participant.

We’re leaving nothing to chance. We’ve completed a detailed diagnostic analysis of National Senior Certificate (NSC) results in terms of key subjects.

This has identified key subject deficiencies which will become the target of our intervention programmes in 2013. The Ministerial Committee on the NSC will, inter alia, investigate standards and promotion requirements of the NSC, including the matter of matric results’ publication, a matter raised passionately with me by COSAS.

Curriculum implementation

Moving to the curriculum, as stated last year, our continued focus is on the phased-in implementation of the revised Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS).

In 2013 we moved to Grades 4-6 and 11. Grades R, 1-3 and 10 we covered in 2012. I’m worried though about low levels of reading and writing in the Foundation Phase. This emerged in an audit of the Provincial Reading Programme we commissioned in February 2013. The audit report proposed the kind of support we must give to teachers and learners. Reading is the heart of learning.

Intermediate and Senior Phase CAPS were distributed in 2012 to prepare for implementation in 2013 and 2014, respectively. The Senior Phase CAPS orientation programme for provinces started on 8 March, and will run until 24 May 2013. The Grade 12 CAPS orientation was conducted in all provinces between February and April 2013.

We will complete the process with a roll-out to Grades 7-9 and 12 next academic year. In 2013/14, we will also increase focus on Technical Secondary Schools.
R220.9 million is allocated for the recapitalisation of these school, to improve facilities and equipment’s. This will assist in addressing skills shortages and joblessness.

The sign language curriculum has been completed and is being piloted in 2 schools (in the Western Cape and Gauteng). We believe good grounding in a learner’s Home Language is essential. In 2014, a new policy will come into effect mandating the learning of an African language in all schools. This builds on work we’re doing to improve competencies in African languages.

We list among successes the progressive development of the National Curriculum Statement Grades R-12, a milestone since the days of the racialised, fragmented education departments.

Annual National Assessments

Using Annual National Assessments (ANA) to monitor levels and quality of learning outcomes has taken root. We now have empirical evidence to use in planning further interventions. In 2012, we administered Language and Mathematics tests to more than seven million learners in Grades 1-6 and 9, in more than 20 000 schools.

The results show that while learner performance in Literacy varies from “satisfactory” to “good”, the same cannot be said about performance in Numeracy, particularly in Grade 9.

The particularly low learner performance in Mathematics at the Intermediate and Senior Phases justifies the steps we have already taken to focus on teacher professional development and provision of learning and teaching support materials at the higher school grades.

An allocation of R75 million to strengthen the existing programme has been secured for 2013/14 and will reach R160 million in 2014/15 and R167 million in 2015/16.

Workbooks

We have increased learner access to workbooks and coverage to improve literacy, numeracy and, importantly, reading. The allocation for 2013/14 for workbooks is R859.3 million.

We have provided workbooks to all learners in Grades 1 to 9. Through savings from developing content in-house, we have expanded the scope to cover Braille workbooks. Close to 24 million copies of Workbook 1 were delivered to 23 115 schools by November 2012, for use in 2013.

By 2013 around 114 million full colour national workbooks, which the Australian Council for Educational Research has confirmed are of a high quality, had been distributed to schools. Feedback from the survey we conducted on workbook utilisation is also very positive.

Textbooks

In terms of national policy, it’s a key priority for every learner to have access to a minimum set of textbooks and workbooks. In 2007, according to SAQMEC results, coverage was 45% for literacy and 36% for maths books. Our 2011 survey put us at 78% for literacy and 83% for maths. This is still unacceptable, we want to have every learner with a book in every subject.

Honourable Members,

Prudence in the deployment of resources is key to the national endeavour for equality and inclusive development and growth. To address inequalities in education, we are therefore mindful of economic disparities resulting from apartheid education. This is a part of the rationale for centralising procurement of books.

The development of the National Catalogue of Textbooks for Grades 7-9 and 12 commenced in November 2012 and was completed in March 2013. As we reported, the national catalogue for Grades 1-6 and 10-11 was completed and availed to provinces in 2012. Going-forward, we will continue to improve access and utilisation of Learner Teacher Support Materials in all grades, and all subjects.

School Infrastructure

Honourable Members, this is an area of great concern which we have also paid serious attention to as a sector. Improved expenditure on infrastructure budgets, and the number of completed projects in the last financial year, are indicators of progress.

More schools received water, sanitation and electrification and many more continue to do so. The Accelerated Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI), together with the provincial infrastructure programme, constitute the backbone of both the Strategic Integrated Project 13 (SIP 13) and the National School Built Programme of the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Committee. SIP 13 will also drive skills development and job-creation.

We want you to see synergy in infrastructure planning between national and Provincial Education Departments. The benefit would be schools that are in areas where people live, sans dangerous bridges. Thus, we’re finalising a Comprehensive Infrastructure Investment Plan. We’re also working on partnerships with Departments of Labour and Correctional Services for the supply of school furniture.

We have developed plans to close once and for all the chapter on “potholes” and “hanging ceilings” in the classrooms. The infrastructure allocation for 2013/14, to be transferred to Provincial Education Departments through the Education Infrastructure Grant, is R6.630 billion. Over the MTEF period, it will increase to well over R10 billion. Preliminary expenditure for 2012/13 for the Education Infrastructure Grant is at 96%.

An amount of R1.956 billion in 2013/14 will go to the Schools Backlog Grant, also called ASIDI. A further R3.170 billion for 2014/15 and R2.912 billion for 2015/16 have been allocated.

It’s also important to share ASIDI challenges affecting target achievement. These include the liquidation of some contractors and poor performance by others. The department monitors and manages Implementing agents through a technical unit we have established at national office.

We’re planning to replace 200 inappropriate schools, 132 are in the Eastern Cape, 30 in the Free State, 3 in KwaZulu-Natal, 3 in Limpopo, 5 in Mpumalanga, 1 in the Northern Cape, 1 in North West and 25 in the Western Cape. These school projects are multiyear. We’re striving for 25% completion by end of 2013/14. We will provide also sanitation to 873 schools, water to 448 and electricity to 369.

I thank the many South Africans who supported us in providing and maintaining school infrastructure. Schools in the Eastern Cape will never be the same again!
Those who had seen the new schools we built in the Eastern Cape, will agree they are state of the art institutions with fully-furnished libraries, labs and admin buildings. By end of May, we will hand-over the completed schools to the province so that they can pass them on officially to the people.

Quality teaching is key

Honourable Members, quality teaching is high on our list of priorities. Allow me therefore to repeat President Zuma’s consistent call to teachers, to be in school, in class, in time, teaching, at least 7 hours per school day. As President Zuma had said in the 2013 State of the Nation Address, Education is an essential service. Its health depends on collective effort and bargaining in a climate that’s conducive.

That’s why we’ve engaged earnestly with organised teachers on contentious issues rendering it hard for the falcon to hear the falconer. And that is why it was very important for me that we should find an amicable way to resolve the two months long impasse we had with South African Democratic Teacher's Union (SADTU).

The interest of the child will best be served where and when there is uninterrupted harmony within the system, and between key role-players. When we lose sight of this fact, and mere instability is loosed upon the world, it is the child, the African child in particular, who suffers the most. Accountability is of paramount importance.

We are still to conclude a collective agreement with teacher unions at the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) on a new integrated assessment instrument intended to improve performance of principals, deputy principals and teachers.

Reasons for the delay include unions’ request for more time to consult with members. We hope to implement the new system before end of 2013, as scheduled.

For the current year, the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) is allocated R39.7 million. We’re on track on implementing the Integrated Strategic Planning Framework for Teacher Education and Development.

Through the Teacher Union Collaboration initiative, in 2012/13 teacher unions and their institutes implemented professional development programmes covering areas in which teachers needed support. It was reported that over 58 000 teachers benefited from these programmes.

In 2012/13 we completed an audit of the 114 district-based teacher resource centres, and developed norms and standards for such. We plan to make teacher centres vibrant hubs for teacher development activities at district level.

Working with PEDs, my department has developed a National Education Human Resource Planning Framework, to manage, effectively, the demand, supply and utilisation of educators.

With support from UNESCO, the department has commissioned a project to develop an instrument for evaluating the implementation of the post provisioning norms. As a department, we have a responsibility to monitor compliance regarding teacher attendance, punctuality as well as proper use of resources of the school.

We welcome the Presidential Remuneration Review Commission for the public sector, with teachers as a priority.

On the thorny matter of Teacher Laptops, the department is currently working with SITA and National Treasury to finalise implementation systems and processes including modalities of using a centralised procurement mechanism. This has been an extremely frustrating, matter but we are doing all we can to bring it to finality.

On Funza Lushaka bursaries, that help us to attract new teachers for maths, science and languages, we resolved to increase the number of bursars to 14 400 in 2013/14, at a cost of R 893.9 million. By the end of 2012, we had awarded approximately 11.500 Funza Lushaka bursaries.

NEEDU National Report: 2012

Honourable Members, the National Education Evaluation and Development Unit (NEEDU), an important element of our accountability system, is now fully functional.

Last Thursday we received from its CEO, Dr Nick Taylor, the Unit’s first national report for 2012 on the state of literacy teaching and learning in the Foundation Phase.

This independent evaluation provides evidence to support our proposals on the need urgently to remedy shortcomings in educational practice, eliminate barriers to quality education and develop the knowledge and professional capacity of educators. We will engage NEEDU’s recommendations. For 2013/14, NEEDU is allocated R13.4 million.

The Planning and Delivery Oversight Unit

The Planning and Delivery Oversight Unit we set up in 2011 was instrumental in the implementation of education policies and strategic interventions. Like NEEDU, it has enriched our diagnosis of bottlenecks in the value-chain inhibiting the attainment of high learning outcomes.

In 2012, through visits to over 2000 schools, the Unit monitored and recommended remedial measures for the 2013 school readiness. Thus the current year took off with minor glitches including in schools that we renovated and boasted teacher and learner morale as part of the 94+ Projects for Madiba.

Fellow South Africans,

Let me thank you for your support for heeding our call in 2012 to make the 94+ Projects for Madiba a resounding success. Under the stewardship of the Delivery Unit, we attracted more than R40 million from our partners and society. This benefitted 98 earmarked schools, with a further 415 schools adopted through the Nedlac Accord’s Adopt-A-School programme.

Strengthening Districts for better outcomes

The Delivery Unit worked with a select cluster of Districts to enhance the management and support extended to underperforming schools, in compliance with Section 58B of the South African Schools Act (of 1996). The Unit has identified and promoted sharing of good practice among all 86 education Districts, through our quarterly Ministerial Meetings with District Directors.

Ten underperforming districts are being assisted through District Improvement Plans. QLTC structures in some Districts have taken the vision of education as a societal issue to unprecedented heights, with members of the community taking charge of the supervision of extra classes in underperforming schools.

This is evidenced in the remarkable 19.8% jump in improvement in Libode (EC), where the Delivery Unit spent most of its time, stoking the fires of change and accountability.

In March 2013, we published a Government Gazette calling for nomination of individuals to serve on the National Education and Training Council. This Council will advise the Minister on policy for the development of the basic education system and the advancement of an integrated approach to basic education.

Eastern Cape Intervention

This brings me to the Eastern Cape intervention on which we were unfortunately misquoted in some media reports. We think much has been delivered on those areas that gave rise to the Section 100 (1)(b) intervention. We are considering steps towards a carefully planned handover to the Eastern Cape PED, a decision to be sanctioned by Cabinet, with proper consultation. Also on Section 100(1)(b), we are pleased to indicate that we are on track on the intervention in Limpopo.

Care and support for learners

Coming to care and support for learners. I’m alarmed, like many others, by the recent upsurge of gender-based violence and heinous crimes against women and children.

We will step-up in every school the DBE-LeadSA Stop-Rape campaign that we launched with the President in March 2013. We will use schools to promote access among children to the full range of public health and poverty reduction services.

Key among our successes is the Integrated School Health Programme that will offer, over time, a comprehensive and integrated package of health services to all learners.

The target for the 2012/13 financial year was to provide health screening to 500 000 learners. I am pleased to report that this target, though modest, was exceeded. Over 650 000 learners received health services.

This year we will provide health services to 750 000 learners in Grades one, four, eight and 10 as well as learners repeating grades in Quintile 1 and 2 primary and secondary schools. Services will also be extended to special schools.

Education collaboration Framework

Honourable Members,

To respond to the call made by the National Development Plan for inter-sectoral cooperation to improve educational outcomes, working with various partners, we have put in place an Education Collaboration Framework (ECF).

It follows a multi-stakeholder Education Dialogue convened in December 2012, wherein business played a key role. Annually, companies spend just under R3 billion on education.

The ECF will implement targeted programmes including district and systemic change interventions and innovation projects. This is an important development for the current year, and has the blessings of the President and stakeholders. A special education trust is being set up. I’ll provide details soon.

I know this Collaboration will work. Since we signed the Nedlac Accord on Basic Education, our department has entered into partnerships with over 100 private businesses.

Tributes

I thank Deputy Minister Surty, Chairpersons of the Basic Education Portfolio and Select Committees and their respective members for support, education MECs, HoDs and our DG, Mr Bobby Soobrayan. We’re grateful to teachers, principals, parents, learners, SGBs, individuals, officials and staff members for advancing the nation’s educational goals.

We have enjoyed our productive collaborations with various ministries and will strengthen these in the 2013/14. Allow me to acknowledge and pay tribute to my special guest, Princess Kgosana Sithole, 12-year old, from Tehillah Christian School. Princess has overcome her challenges and uses her feet to do everything, including excellent writing.

Rounding-off

To round-off, there is good progress in respect of delivery in the current electoral mandate. If we continue to improve at the speed we have done in recent years, the lives of ordinary South Africans will be fundamentally transformed and we will face a brighter future. We are resolved, with provinces, to step-up monitoring and evaluation, to improve accountability, and enforce better planning for faster change.

I thank you.

Speech by Hon Hope Malgas during the National Assembly Debate on Basic Education Budget Vote

Topic: Working together to do more in Basic Education

Honourable Speaker
Honourable Minister
Honourable Deputy Minister
Honourable Members of Parliament
Distinguished guests in the Gallery
Ladies and Gentlemen

Under the leadership of President Jacob Zuma, both as President of our Republic and that of the ANC, and building upon the achievements of the ANC since 1994, education has been declared and made an apex priority for our country since 2009. If Verwoerd and his criminal apartheid regime of 1948 had said the black child must not study mathematics and no black worker must become a skilled artisan, President Zuma has emphatically said the black child must indeed study and be competent in Mathematics and that we must increase the production of new artisans, including black artisans. President Zuma has not only said these things, but has led from the front through leading concrete interventions in education as part of inverting and destroying the Verwoedian legacy. In 2009 President Zuma decided to split the former department of education into two. This was indeed a stroke of genius that is beginning to bear fruit.

Chairperson, we are all aware that education is our hope for reducing and eliminating inequality, unemployment and poverty. The African National Congress emphasised the significance of education in the Freedom Charter in Kliptown in 1955. The commitment was decisive and clear: The doors of learning and culture shall be opened to all. As such education remains the apex priority for our government. Since 1994, the ANC government had opened doors of learning, and is still continuing with this commitment to date.

Speaker, the African National Congress has located education as a critical mechanism at the centre of our efforts to release the potential of every citizen, and enable each one of us to play a productive role in nation building. The proceeds of this move are that education is fast becoming an important lever in our efforts to build the country’s human capital. As the ANC, we have elevated education to its rightful place. It is high on the agenda of all of us, and has become an important societal issue that cannot be ignored.

After nineteen years in democracy, ANC government is still holding onto its commitment to improve the quality of education by building upon the achievements and learning from our experiences in government since 1994. However, Speaker, we remain conscious of the challenges still facing all our people in our struggle in attaining quality education for all.

These challenges facing education in South Africa are well-known to all of us. Let me point out that the ANC has taken upon itself the task of making these challenges the substance of its debates, discussions, conversations, resolutions and plans, from Polokwane to Mangaung, in order to ensure that they remain in the mainstream of our discourse of transforming our society. Conference resolutions of the ANC and President Jacob Zuma’s State of Nation Address, urged us to look at some of the essential priorities on which we can agree, including and not limited to issues of education, health, poverty and the safety of our children. ANC present the National Development Plan as an embodiment of our shared set of objectives, a common vision for a different South Africa. In line with this need to develop a program of essentials on which we can agree, the National Development Plan commits us as a nation to “accelerate progress, deepen democracy and build a more inclusive society.”

NDP calls on South Africans to translate political emancipation, into economic wellbeing for all. Most importantly it strongly asserts that “it is up to all South Africans to fix the future, starting today.”

Honourable Chairperson these resolutions of the ANC with regards to our vision of schooling are well-represented in the various policies of our government. In our assessment, as the oversight body, The Portfolio Committee of Basic Education, have noted that the Department of Basic Education has drawn up a clear policy map that serves as a sector compass towards addressing challenges facing our basic education system. We have also noted their efforts to align education priorities to the National Development Plan.

Chairperson we have however learnt that the ultimate result of these moves will depend on our understanding of education as a collective, systemic effort, where ultimate success is not measured by individual dominance, but by the contribution each and every one of us is prepared to make towards the achievement of our common goal. Our engagements in executing the oversight mandate as the Portfolio Committee has taught us a lesson about education as a societal endeavour that is strengthen by collective conviction.

Chairperson we consider this vote as we pride ourselves as a nation that we have achieved and made progress on many issues with regard to basic education. Over the years, government have progressively increased our education budget to support all our policy initiatives. Consistent and persistent efforts were being made to make education structurally accessible to all who were previously disadvantaged, or had limited access to it, and thus to realise the ideal of compulsory schooling.

South Africa is on track towards ensuring universal access to primary education. Equity in school funding has also improved substantially. ANC Government has introduced numerous poverty targeting policies such as the pro-poor funding norms in the form of “no-fee” schools, provided for the Norms and Standards for School Funding. Over ten million children in Quintile 1 to 3 primary and secondary and special schools are benefiting from the National School Nutrition Programme. The 2013/14 budget has allocated funding for equipment and utensils to quintiles 1-3 secondary schools, and this will be progressively provided also to primary schools to address backlogs.

Government has expanded their efforts and joined hands with private sector partners to enhance the impact of the nutrition programme in our schools.

Chairperson together with other initiatives such as the workbook project and the expansion of Grade R, I would like to applaud ANC Government on all these initiatives that are a positive contribution towards ensuring that all our children complete the full course of their schooling. Many of the ANC Government achievements are well documented, and it is therefore very important to remind the House of just a few in the context of the Budget Vote 15 of the Department of Basic Education 2013/14:

The Kha Ri Gude Mass Literacy Campaign with 4.7 million adults above the age of 15 years becoming literate and numerate. It is encouraging that this campaign has already reached more than 2.2 million adults from 2008 to 2011. There is no doubt that ANC Government is on track towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) commitments in this regard by 2015.

Chairperson, ANC Government is satisfied that the Curriculum Assessment and Policy Statement (CAPS) processes have been mainstreamed and implementation thereof is progressing well, and that the glitches which were identified during the execution of oversight sessions were addressed. It has been reported that ANC Government had put in place plans to conduct an in-depth training of senior phase and Grade 12 teachers in the implementation of CAPS. Some other issues which were identified during oversight visits included shortages of textbooks, challenges regarding post-provisioning, and poor or non-existent school infrastructure.

We are of the view that these issues are the lifeblood of quality learning and teaching and therefore, we commend on resuscitating these issues in their 2013/14 budget plans. Furthermore, the recent move by the Minister to set up a task team to review the NSC curriculum, gives confidence that we have taken a direction that will eventually lead to success. ANC is hopeful that the findings will go a long way in assisting government to streamline the NCS curriculum. ANC applaud the Minister for taking such a bold step.

The National Senior Certificate was in its fifth year of implementation in 2012. ANC congratulate its government for achieving a pass-rate of 73.9 per cent for 2012, which depicts an increase of 3.7 per cent from the 2011 NSC results. The overall pass rate in 2012 was 73.9 per cent, which indicates a significant increase from 62.6 per cent in 2008. However more effort is needed in improving the pass rate in Maths and Science as well as increasing the number of Bachelor passes. It is the ANC Government view that more still needs to be done.

Chairperson the Annual National Assessments (ANA) continues to provide a critical component of the focus of the Education Sector Plan called Action Plan to 2014: Towards the Realisation of Schooling 2025. The results of the 2012 round of ANA revealed an overall improvement in learner performance across the grades. Significant improvements were observed in the Foundation Phase, in particular. However, the report also reveals depressing levels of performance in Grade 6 and 9, particularly in mathematics. In addition, Grade 9 also showed deficiencies in languages. We are of the view that this is an indication that there is a need for more focused interventions at these levels. ANC is encouraged by the fact that the Department’s plans for 2013/14 are addressing these areas of concern.

Chairperson the issue of labour peace is at the centre of our efforts to achieve quality education for all and we would like to congratulate the ANC for brokering labour peace between the Department and SADTU. We urge all parties involved to always making sure that labour peace prevails always, and that we are able to work together, hand-in-glove, towards the vision of quality education for all.

Chairperson the Basic Education budget for the financial year 2013/14 is approximately R17.6 billion. This reflects an increase from R16.2 billion in the 2012/13 financial year. This year’s budget has increased by 2.8 per cent in real terms from the 2012/13 financial year.

The increase of the 2013/14 budget presents the Department with an opportunity to confront many more sector challenges that still weigh down on our basic education system. Budget for Vote 15 is a reflection of ANC Government’s commitment to making Basic Education a top priority. The 2013/14 basic education budget vote reflects the Department’s awareness of the challenges within the sector, particularly those with regards to learner performance. Based on the mandate of the ANC and the findings from different assessments, we remain confident that the 2013/14 budget vote 15 is a step in the right direction.

Chairperson we have witnessed over the past four years that the Department of Basic Education has embarked on extensive processes of planning and aligning programmes in the interest of improving the delivery of quality education. The ANC Government has developed a long-term sector plan entitled the Action Plan to 2014: towards the realization of schooling 2025. This plan and the Delivery Agreement for Outcome 1 provide a template against which the Department and its public entities map their activities with regards to addressing the challenges that face education in South Africa. This sector plan stabilizes the policy direction of the ANC Government and focuses its efforts on strengthening and consolidating the initiatives through responsive interventions.

Chairperson we believe that all teachers need diverse opportunities to enhance their capacity to deliver national curriculum. For instance, ANC is aware that a large majority of teachers require opportunities to strengthen their subject knowledge base, pedagogical content knowledge and teaching skills as based on the report of NEEDU, ANC Government is encouraged that the professional teacher development (CPTD) will ensure as espoused in the National Policy Framework for Teacher Education and Development (NPFTED), that current initiatives devoted to the professional development of teachers will contribute more effectively and directly to the improvement of quality teaching and learning.

ANC welcome a host of interventions that the 2013/14 Basic Education budget vote proposes with a view to strengthening the delivery of quality education. Amongst others, I would like to single out a few of them for their strategic significance:

ANC welcome the substantial expansion of government expenditure on Grade R in public schools over recent years, which has resulted in significant progress towards universalising access to Grade R. However, we are acutely aware that the quality of Grade R provisioning in disadvantaged schools remain an issue of concern. Notwithstanding positives efforts by Basic Education and Social Development, interdepartmental coordination with regards to the provision of ECD education still needs to be enhanced. This is even more important given the targets set by the National Development Plan with regards to ECD provision. In this regard, we urge ANC Government to take the lead in ensuring that these issues find a place in the budget plans. For four years running, the President has been calling for our teachers to be in class, on time with textbooks, teaching. ANC believe that, ordinarily, teachers should not need to be instructed as such. This should be the norm. ANC call on all our teachers to ensure that our aspirations for quality education for all are realised. As the ANC is of the view that issues such as unauthorised teacher absence from school; teachers being at school but not in the classroom teaching; insufficient curriculum coverage in a year; and insufficient and inadequate assessment given to learners, have no place in our schools.

Chairperson, ANC Government is committed in improving accountability of individual teachers. For instance, the discussions at the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) on the Quality Management System (QMS) are expected to be finalised before June 2013, and the training of teachers is anticipated to commence immediately thereafter.

Chairperson, the opportunity that is afforded to our learners and teachers every year to benchmark their performance against required curriculum standards through the Annual National Assessments (ANA) continues to serve as a promise for the delivery of quality education for all. These assessments continue to provide us with useful feedback on where we are in terms of the Grade 3, 6 and 9 literacy, numeracy and life skills. We are pleased to witness that the 2013/14 budget allocation continues to focus on strengthening the utilization of ANA to define and shape interventions at school and district levels. ANC Government will continue to exercise oversight mandate to ensure that all these intervention continues to drive our trajectory towards quality education for all.

President Jacob Zuma has reminded us that education remains a societal issue, and that we must take it more seriously, and begins to appreciate the fact that all successful societies have one thing in common – they invested in education. To this end, we are delighted by the fact that ANC Government has located the Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign (QLTC) at the centre of its operations.

We need to have every stakeholder in education actively playing their role in making education a centrepiece of our democracy. However, we acknowledge the reality that a lot of work still needs to be invested into making all of us embrace this national obligation. As such, we are calling on all districts to assist schools and communities to fulfil this obligation. Where QLTC committees have been formed, we need to see a corresponding improvement in the quality of education.

Chairperson, with regards to equalizing allocations to No-Fee schools, the ANC Government has committed that by 2013 all provincial education departments will have equalized their provincial allocations to no-fee schools in Quintiles 2 and 3. For 2013/14 the number of no-fee schools stands at more than 15 000, which is approximately 80 per cent of all schools. We commend ANC Government on this achievement. Expenditure on no-fee schools for the financial year 2013/14 stands at more than R6 billion.

Chairperson, another area of focus for 2013/14 will be the strengthening of the ANC Government information and management systems.

This will include the implementation of the Learner Unit Record Information and Tracking System (LURITS) and the School Administration System (SA-SAMS). Approximately R12.2 million has been set aside for the implementation of LURITS and SA-SAMS. We would like to urge ANC Government to speed up this process as it has potential to boost efficiency and effectives in addressing the various challenges of data.

Evident from the oversight work in provinces reveals a huge infrastructure backlog. However, we should all congratulate ANC Government for devoting the bulk of spending increases over the medium to accelerate the delivery and improvement of school infrastructure.

Through our interactions with the national and provincial departments, we have become aware that capacity, market and provider constrains are the main challenges in the provision and improvement of school infrastructure. We have also observed that under-spent infrastructure budgets continue in spite of the huge need. We urge government and all affected parties to dedicate special attention to these challenges. Given the scale of the existing infrastructure backlog, it is our view that government alone cannot overcome these challenges.

Chairperson since the promulgation of Education White Paper 6 in 2001, there has been sporadic implementation of the policy of inclusive education. In our interactions, we have been made aware that some of the challenges facing the implementation of inclusive education reside in the following:

Incoherent understanding of the Inclusive Education policy and its vision;
Lack of specialist professionals such as psychologists, therapists, professional nurses, etc
Disparities as well as the lack of funding for inclusive education across provinces
Uncoordinated access to specialist services including procurement of assistive devices and technology;
The lack of capacity in South Africa to provide Braille materials;
The redeployment of teachers that results in the movement of teachers who have been trained in the implementation of inclusive education.
However, Chairperson, we are encouraged by the fact that the Minister has taken the lead and declared 2013 as the year of inclusive education. Flowing from this, government is planning to train district officials on guidelines for full service schools and special schools. In addition, teachers will receive training in specialised areas of visual and hearing impairment, as well as on curriculum differentiation across the system through to 2014.

Chairperson, the main challenge that the DBE continues to face is that since 2009 the Auditor-General (AG) report has shown that some provinces continue to show signs of poor fiscal discipline. In 2011/12, the DBE received an unqualified audit report, but with some provinces receiving adverse audit opinions.

The AG cited the following as the root causes that contributed to the poor audit opinions in some cases, a lack of accountability; action plans that were not specific in terms of indicators and targets; a lack of fixed timeframes; delays in the filling of vacancies; shortage of relevant skill-sets; limitations not addressed in financial reporting systems; inadequate internal audit controls; ineffective audit committee reviews. The AG further indicated that some provinces were persistently incurring over, unauthorized, irregular, and fruitless and wasteful expenditures.

Chairperson, ANC is encouraged by the fact that government is addressing these discrepancies. However, we are of the view that although some progress has been registered in this area, we can still do more to enhance our compliance with the prescripts of Public Finance Management Act.

In conclusion the 2013/14 budget vote is an unequivocal response to our commitment to provide quality education for all. From where we are standing, we are confident that this budget will yield positive spin-offs for our efforts of broadening access to quality education for all.

I would like to convey my gratitude to the Honourable Members of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education and the officials for their cooperation, professionalism and integrity projected by committee staff. That is what brought us this far, and provided a fertile space for the Committee to work together and achieve more.

ANC support this budget vote

I thank you.

Speech by Hon Nomalungelo Gina During the National Assembly Debate on Basic Education Budget Vote

Debate on budget vote 15: Basic Education by Ms Nomalungelo Gina (ANC Whip on Basic Education P/C) in the National Assembly.

Topic : Creating a caring and supporting environment

Honourable Chairperson
Honourable Minister
Honourable Deputy Minister
Honourable Members of Parliament
Distinguished guests in the Gallery
Ladies and Gentlemen

Chairperson education is indispensable to social and economic development and to the future of our youth. Education in our country was used as an instrument of subjugation. We want it to be an instrument of liberation and empowerment. With education we can advance the ideals of our Constitution. We can promote democracy, non-racialism, non-sexism, a decent standard of living and security for all and fight inequality. The National Development Plan is a long-term strategic plan of what the ANC Government wants to achieve by 2030 to ensure that all South Africans attain a decent standard of living through elimination of poverty and reduction of inequality. Among the core elements of a decent standard of living identified in the NDP is education.

Chairperson, the question of creating a caring and supporting learning and teaching environment for learners and educators is at the core of our efforts towards ensuring access to quality education for all. This speaks directly to our task of addressing health, social, psychological and emotional barriers that prevent learners from participating fully in the teaching and learning activities.

The African National Congress, believe that every school should inspire learners and educators to want to come to school and learn, and teachers to teach to the best of their potential.

Chairperson, we debate this budget on the backdrop of three disturbing events where Satanist activities claimed lives of children in school, increased incidents of bullying and where we have seen learners leaving their classes to join protest marches or service delivery protests. We condemn such behaviours and would wish that learning should take place unhindered and under a caring and supportive environment.

Chairperson, sexual violence has imposed itself as an evil force against women and children that keep disrupting the peaceful fabric of our society. Recently, we have been shocked by an incident where learners videotaped themselves having sex in a classroom. We believe that this is an indication of a much deeper societal issue, which even young people, who were not directly affected by a system that taught us not to value ourselves, seem to ascribe very little value to who they are as persons. We believe that part of the problems is that sexual harassment and violence is currently far too common on our streets, in our homes, and in our schools. Chairperson, the African National Congress condemns these evil acts in categorical terms and is fully committed to eradicating this scourge. Our goal is to eliminate all forms unacceptable behaviour. We believe that men and women, boys and girls, should be treated as equals and with respect and the caring they each deserve in terms of our Constitution.

Chairperson, our teachers are placed in a strategic position to identify and manage cases of sexual abuse. As such, for the 2013/14 financial the Department has planned training for teachers on how to go about this undertaking. The handbook called Speak Out has been written especially to help our precious youth, to handle any sexual abuse they may encounter while at school or at home. This handbook will help them understand what sexual harassment and violence is so that they are quickly able to recognise and act on it. The handbook will also guide them to the steps they must take so that the person guilty of sexual abuse is forced to stop and to face the consequences of their unacceptable behaviour.

In addition, the handbook also provides an extensive list of useful contacts which will also help connect learners to people specially trained to assist them handle sexual harassment or violence. Chairperson, for 2013/14, the Department is going to link an additional 4000 schools with their local police stations, establish a database of all linked schools, and train school safety committees. Chairperson, the Department will be making a transfer payment of R50 000 to Childline South Africa to assist the Department with cases. In addition, the Department has set aside R241 000 for psychosocial support cases, and approximately R1.5 million for social cohesion and equity in education.

Chairperson, we are faced with a reality of communities that thrive on illegal drugs. Research reveals that the number of young people using tobacco and alcohol is increasing. We believe that drug dealers target learners in order to further the criminal acts that corrode the fabric of our society. In our view, the use of alcohol and drugs by learners compromises teaching, learning and safety in schools. For instance, we know that the use of drugs by learners have serious scholastic consequences such poor academic performance, absenteeism and even places learners at the high risk of dropping out of school. Chairperson, in order to create a safe learning environment that contributes to quality education, the Department has developed a Draft National Strategy for the Prevention and Management of Alcohol and Drug Use amongst Learners in Schools. We believe that the implementation of the strategy will ensure that:`

Schools are alcohol and drug free zones.
Learners have increased knowledge, life skills and confidence to decide against the use of these substances.
We are able to manage alcohol and drug use problems to enhance learning outcomes and learner retention.
Chairperson, the government of the African National Congress has made massive strides in dealing with the HIV/AIDS in South Africa. We have expanded access to counselling and medication for those affected and infected by HIV. As a result, many families have been somewhat relieved of complexities associated with HIV and AIDS. The enhancement of the life skills curriculum in schools is aimed at addressing issues of sexuality including HIV/AIDS.

We commend the Department for providing life skills education materials, training teachers, and ensuring that we have functional school-based support teams. For the 2013/14 financial year, the Department has set aside an allocation to be used in terms of the DBE Draft Integrated Strategy on HIV, STIs and TB. The Department also plans to review the 1999 Policy on HIV and AIDS in the current financial year, in order to boost the notion of schools as centres of care and support. We believe that the notion of care and support is an appropriate vehicle for taking forward our efforts towards quality education for all.

We also want to commend the screening programme as initiated by the Department in partnership with the Department of Health. While in its first year 50 000 Grade 1 learners in Quintile 1 primary schools in 18 districts were screened the programme has grown in numbers and allocation. We encourage this kind of interdepartmental relations that continues to enhance the quality of our education.

Chairperson, South Africa has made significant progress since 1994 towards achieving gender parity in basic education. In fact, we have gone beyond achieving gender parity, to the extent that girls now make up the majority of enrolments in secondary schools. However, teenage pregnancy is amongst the major concerns that pose a serious threat to gains achieved in public schools thus far. Teenage pregnancy undermines the Department`s efforts to ensure that girl children remain in school, complete their course of schooling, and contribute towards a quality life for all, free of poverty. Chairperson, we commend the Department of Basic Education for having taken an active role in seeking to understand and effectively address this challenge, as it impacts significantly on learners. For instance, the Department commissioned a research study to document review and critically analyze literature on teenage pregnancy with a focus on school-going adolescents. The study has provided some insights into both the prevalence and determinants of teenage pregnancy. For instance, findings revealed that learner pregnancies were more concentrated in the provinces of Eastern Cape, Limpopo and KwaZulu Natal; thereby necessitating targeted interventions in these areas. In addition, the study revealed that learner pregnancies were higher in schools located in poorer neighbourhoods. More disturbing is when teachers are found to be perpetrators of such violence. SACE reports increased number of sexual misconduct and of this learners are involved.

Chairperson, we commend the initiative by the Department to commission that report because it revealed that education is central to addressing the teenage pregnancy challenge particularly at secondary schooling. The study recommended interventions such as "school-based sex education; peer education programmes; adolescent-friendly clinic initiatives; mass media interventions; as well as community-level programmes".

Chairperson, we are perturbed by recent reports that the right to basic education for learners who fall pregnant are being violated in some schools. We understand that the incident of teenage pregnancy unsettles our dominant socialised understandings of what it means to be a child.

It is for this reason that we are of the view that we should be addressing the problem from a point of view that considers that a preventative approach is preferable, given the cost of pregnancy to the lives of learners. However, we urge the Department to work on ways of handling the issue of teenage pregnancy in schools with due regard for the right of learners to basic education.

However, Chairperson, we are mindful of the fact that addressing teenage pregnancy is not a challenge facing only one department, and will not be resolved by one department. Addressing teenage pregnancy is a battle that requires the active involvement of all stakeholders, if it is to be well fought. These stakeholders include other government departments, key organisations in the non-governmental sector; the research community, the religious sector, community leaders and more importantly, parents and the learners themselves. It is for this reason that we invite all stakeholders to actively contribute to the efforts of the Department to respond better to the challenge in their respective sectors.

Chairperson, we believe that a healthy mind resides in a healthy body.

So, school sport is an important component of basic education given its strong health and economic currency. We commend the Department for forging ahead with development of school sport through physical education and mass participation. We commend the Department for its courage to forge ahead despite the budget constraints experienced by the branch responsible for the development of school sports. We reiterate our support to the partnership that you are building with the Department of Sports and Recreation and Municipalities to take sports to higher level.

The total budget set aside for the 2013/14 financial year is R5 187 380 000, of which R5 173 081 000 has been earmarked for the National School Nutrition Programme Conditional Grant. NSNP has already reached over 8 125 695 million learners in 20 520 schools nationally in quintile 1-3 primary schools and quintile 1-2 secondary schools. The Programme has been extended to include quintile 3 secondary schools in 2011/12 financial year. We need to stand tall in acknowledging the huge impact the programme is making. The spin-offs in this programme are huge. The project has become the trademark of healthy eating in our schools through the quality meals offered. This programme has created jobs for thousands of food handlers and continues to empower the small, medium and micro enterprises that are service providers to our schools. While our children are getting healthier, more jobs are being created and the local economies are growing. We now have few if not non cases of non-feeding across the country. Honourable Minister, we commend you for the launch of the Department`s partnership with one of the big businesses, Tiger Brand on the initiative to provide breakfast to our leaners. This has never happened before and it is history in the making. Chairperson, this should be applauded.

Chairperson, the ANC, support this budget vote.

I thank you.

Speech by Hon Silence Makhubele during the National Assembly Debate on Basic Education Budget Vote

Debate on Budget Vote 15: Basic Education by Mr Silence Makhubele, ANC MP.

Topic: Teaching and Teacher Education

Honourable Speaker
Honourable Minister
Honourable Deputy Minister
Honourable Members of Parliament
Distinguished guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

Chairperson, as the African National Congress, we believe that the quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers. As such, we are of the view that the successful implementation of our national curriculum depends on the strength of our teacher development programmes. Chairperson, teachers are the essential drivers of quality education for all. We therefore commend the Department for taking an initiative to make teacher development a focal point of their 2013/14 plans, and realising that this complex task could only be executed as a joint responsibility shared amongst all those involved in education.

We are confident that this view will go a long way towards reinforcing the gains that we have made in this area.

ANC emphasise therefore that an investment in education is a prerequisite for building a country that works, and most importantly, that advances the ideals of our Constitution. For us to make education an apex in the country, our teachers must play their part. They must turn the image of the profession around. Through professional conduct like coming to school on time and doing their work diligently, the teaching profession will regain the respect of the community. We will revert to the situation years ago where teachers were revered members of the community that people looked up to. We want children to look up to the teachers and learn from them more than the formal curriculum. Through watching the conduct of teachers, learners must want to be successful, respectful and to be good citizens who will take the country forward to prosperity. Our teachers therefore carry an enormous responsibility on their shoulders. They carry the dreams and hopes of the nation.

The manner in which they raise and nurture our precious children, will help us build the model South African citizen. We will build the country that national heroes such as Pixley ka Isaka Seme, Chief Albert Luthuli, Ruth First, Dorothy Nyembe, Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu and many heroes and heroines sacrificed life`s comfort to establish. Those who do not believe in the noble vision of our forebears do not belong in the profession. They will continue giving the profession a bad name and besmirch the name of all teachers, including those who are dedicated to their work.

Chairperson, the challenges facing teacher education and development in South Africa are substantial. These include the lack of access to quality teacher education and development opportunities for prospective and practising teachers; a mismatch between the provision of and demand for teachers of particular types; the failure of the system to achieve dramatic improvement in the quality of teaching and learning in schools; a fragmented and uncoordinated approach to teacher education and development; and the tenuous involvement of teachers, their organisations and other role-players in teacher education and development planning. We want to congratulate all those who participated in the crafting of the Declaration of the Teacher Development Summit in 2009, as it has culminated in the collaborative work that gave birth to production of the Integrated Strategic Planning Framework for Teacher Education and Development in South Africa, 2011-2025.

We urge the Department and all involved to begin with the implementation of the plan so that we may begin to reap the fruits of an improved quality teacher education and development system, as a critical lever for the improvement of the quality of teachers and teaching. We commend President Jacob Zuma for identifying the need to investigate conditions of service for public servants, more specifically teachers.

We are confident that this move will serve as a boost to the Department`s efforts aimed to develop teachers and attend to their needs. The cherry on top was the announcement that teachers will receive a first priority. We therefore urge all teachers to ensure that the service they provide in our schools is worth the amount of investment the state will make on teachers. Our expectation in this regard, Chairperson is that the review must also consider enforcing teacher incentives for those working in rural and in difficult conditions of service that do not befit the stature and professionalism of the teaching profession. This will go a long way in enticing more teachers in the rural areas.

Chairperson, we acknowledge the fact that the percentage of state-employed educators with at least a three-year post-matric qualification is now over 96 per cent. However, the challenge that we are facing is that of the competency of some of our teachers to be able to meet the expectations of our streamlined national curriculum. This was also confirmed by the recently released NEEDU report which exposed critical weaknesses in this regard. Further, the shortage for Maths, Science and Technology teachers in the system is becoming a cause for concern. However, we are confident that the plans that were presented to us, by the Branch that deals with teachers in the Department, will go a long way towards enhancing the capacity of our teachers to deliver our national curriculum. We need to have a better understanding of the supply and demand nexus.

Chairperson, we need to improve the public image of the teaching profession, and attract more young and talented people into the education system. It is an open secret that our teachers in the system are aging. We commend the Department for establishing the Funza Lushaka bursary scheme, which offers bursaries for undergraduate studies in mathematics, sciences and languages. By the end of 2012, the Department awarded around 11 500 Funza Lushaka bursaries. The estimated allocation for Funza Lushaka for 2013/14 is approximately R900 million. This will make it possible for more than 14 000 bursaries to be awarded in the current financial year. Chairperson, this is an increase of 3000 bursaries from the 2012/13 financial year.

In order to enhance new teacher recruitment initiatives, the Department is targeting learners from rural and poor communities (Quintile 1-3 schools) to assist them to access Funza Lushaka bursaries. More than 100 bursaries have been awarded to students through this approach. However, the Department should note that few students are enrolling to teach foundation and intermediate phases. In the Northern Cape there are allegations that the bursary does not have an intake of Afrikaans speakers. We urge the Department to develop a tracking system to monitor bursary recipients both during their study period and once they are employed in order for them to meet their contractual obligations. We also urge the Department to evaluate the programme in order to measure its impact in increasing the number of quality teachers in priority areas.

Chairperson, in terms of the use of information communication technology (ICT) in teacher professional development (TPD), the Department is working in collaboration with the University of South Africa (UNISA) in the resourcing of 45 teacher centres. A budget of R87 million has been earmarked for the initiative.

Chairperson, we believe that challenges with teacher supply and demand have led to some of the unintended consequences such as delivering of undergraduate studies to students who are not physically on-site to receive their education. That is, rather than attending fulltime in a conventional classroom, lecturers and students communicate through the exchange of electronic media and other sources. We are of the view that a face to face interaction allows the student to acquire essential social skills (necessary for working as a teacher) and gives the student a chance to be socialised into the culture of what it really means to be a teacher in the first place. This system of attaining qualifications has been criticised for providing us with teachers who have a qualification, but who are not adequately competent to face the challenges in our schools. We urge the Department of Basic Education to work with the Department of Higher Education and Training to look into this matter.

Chairperson, we are of the view that all teachers need to enhance their skills for the effective delivery of our national curriculum. Research reveals that continuing teacher professional development succeeds best when teachers themselves are integrally involved in their own development and are given space to reflect on their practice. As such, we commend the Department for forging ahead with the continuing professional teacher development programme. The programme will ensure that current professional teacher development initiatives contribute more effectively and directly to the improvement of the quality of teaching and learning. Furthermore, it will assist in enhancing and reinforcing the professional status of teaching, and protect teachers against fraudulent providers. We welcome the fact that the Department has included an allocation of approximately R10 million for this programme in their plans for 2013/14. We urge the Department to forge ahead with the implementation of the plan in order to advance our movement towards quality education for all.

Chairperson, teacher accountability is at the centre of our work towards quality education for all. Recently, the Department commissioned a study on Integrated Quality Management System, which revealed some inherent deficiencies in the system. The Department indicated that discussions at the Education labour Relations Council (ELRC) on the Quality Management System (QMS) would be finalised by the end of April 2013. Thereafter, the Minister would be requested to declare the policy on the matter, should an agreement be reached. It is envisaged that the training of teachers would be undertaken in the second quarter with existing Integrated Quality Management System. In addition, the Department there are plans to enhance accountability of office-based educators. This will include reviewing of the current Performance Management Development System through re-opening discussions on the Education Management Services (EMS) for office-based educators. The focus would be on circuit managers and subject advisors since they are responsible for supporting schools. We urge the Department to finalise discussions on these matters, and to commence with their implementation.

Chairperson, the Department has established teachers centres across the nine provinces with a view to bring closer to teachers teacher development opportunities. We welcome the fact that the Department has included in its 2013/14 plan the strengthening of the capacity of existing teachers centres so that they are in a position to support teachers on content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge and the effective implementation of the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS). Chairperson, effective and efficient leadership and management are increasingly considered as crucial in any organisation whose mission is to strive towards excellence. As the ANC, we are of the view that effective school management creates an environment for high performance and service delivery. Research shows that newly appointed school principals experience great difficulty in adapting to the role of principalship. The internal monitoring and evaluation processes of the Department have revealed challenges with the implementation of policy at school level. To this end, we would like to congratulate the Department of Education for introducing targeted initiatives to address this product of the legacy of the past. We are delighted by the fact that the Department introduced a new threshold qualification for aspiring school principals as part of its wider strategic view to address the challenge of poor standards of performance in the public schooling system. The course is in the form of an Advanced Certificate in Education: School Leadership and Management. We welcome the fact that the recent evaluation of the qualification has revealed that the it is assisting us in making inroads in improving leadership and management practice in schools.

Chairperson, as the ANC, we keenly own up to the report as presented by NEEDU on 02 May 2013. As the ANC we are not shy to confront the weaknesses the report revealed. Much of the findings exposed teacher weaknesses and what they can`t do on the command of the subject matter and the teaching skills. The findings also confirmed what the Department has been aware of when we enter the fourth democratic government when we pronounced through the ANC manifesto that we need to support and develop the teaching profession in order to provide quality education and increase performance. Chairperson, we now know what our teachers can`t do we therefore have to own up on teacher development programmes to enhance the identified deficits. Our advice is that it is high time that we look at the teacher development programmes if they really helping us to improve the situation. Further, Chairperson we advise that there is a need to forge strong partnerships in teacher development programmes. We therefore, t keenly wait the presentation of the NEEDU Bill to the Committee. We are of the view that the NEEDU Bill is long overdue. We want the Unit to get its legal standing so that it is able to continue with the work that it has started.

Curriculum implementation is a critical matter that requires concerted planning and oversight. As a result, we welcome the work that was reported to us by the Planning and Delivery Oversight Unit (PDOU) of the Department. We believe that this work will go a long way towards ensuring delivery of quality education in all provinces. While on one the work of the PDOU unblock the bottlenecks in the delivery of quality education, on the other, it has a potential of exposing weakness and capacity challenges of some districts. At delivery scrutiny, the intervention simply indicates that the national Department is doing work that someone was supposed to have done at district level. Our view is that the PDOU intervention should also include capacity building. Chairperson, the transition of education from apartheid education to education for all is long and rocky. We have come a long way, yet we still have a long way to go. We believe that within the two decades, we have made great inroads and have covered a lot of ground with regards to our vision of quality education for all.

While we believe that more still needs to be done, we should not shy away from the good stories emanating from our programmes. But the challenges we present to the Department are that:

* How long will we speak on the troubling temporary teachers phenomenon with finding the necessary solution? The ANC encourages a strong resolution on this phenomenon at equal footing across provinces. Under the guidance iof the national Department, provinces need to come up with strong policy position on dealing with teacher vacancies and seemingly elusive teacher movement to where they are needed.

* For how long will we hear about continued misconduct and absenteeism of teachers while we watch?

Chairperson, as the African National Congress, we support this basic education budget vote for 2013/14.

I thank you.

Speech by Hon Crosby Moni during the National Assembly Debate on Basic Education Budget Vote

Debate on Budget Vote 15: Basic Education by Mr Crosby Moni, ANC MP.

Topic: Broadening Access to Quality Education for All

Honourable Speaker
Honourable Minister
Honourable Deputy Minister
Honourable Members of Parliament
Distinguished guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

Education is a means of promoting good citizenship as well as preparing our people for the needs of a modern economy and a democratic society. ANC government aim to ensure progressive realisation of universal schooling, improving quality education and eliminating disparities. Chairperson I would like to remind this house of what uTata uMadiba said about education, I quote "Education is the great engine of personal development, it is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mine worker can become the head of the mine, that a child of a farm worker can become the president of a great Nation. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another" unquote.

Chairperson, the African National Congress adopts a view that the task of broadening access to quality education for all should remain at the centre of all our efforts to build our nation. This stance is founded on the understanding that education plays a crucial role in broadening social and economic emancipation of all our people. The ANC continue to hold education as a key mechanism for enabling people to define their identities, take control of their lives, and participate confidently and effectively in the social, political and economic life of our society.

To this end, we regard education as a matter of public interest, relevantly serving as a critical foundation for the advancement of human dignity, equality, human rights and freedom, non-racialism and non-sexism. Research shows that ANC government together with South African people are joining hands in efforts to improve the quality of education, and to make it accessible to the majority of South Africans. They show that we are all beginning to recognise in the most practical way, that education is central to the success of a whole range of other human endeavours. Our own reconstruction and development effort, the renaissance of the entire continent and our successful interaction in the global village, depend largely on the progress we make in educating our populations. There has been a significance increase in the percentage of individuals aged 5-24 years attending an education institution between 1996 and 2011.

Over the years there has been a steady decline in the percentage of adults who have not received an education. The percentage of persons 20 years and older who have no schooling decreased from 19.1% in 1996 to 8.7% in 2011, whilst those with education higher than Grade 12 increased from 7.1% to 12.3% during the same time period. Honourable Chairperson most of the individuals without schooling were Black people in general and Africans in particular, but even so their numbers decreased from 24.0% to 10.5% in 2011. Chairperson, our people continue to bear the socio-economic burdens that were imposed by the apartheid legacy. This legacy makes it difficult for our people, particularly children from poor communities, to get the required opportunities to define their lives and participate meaningfully in the socio-economic life of our society. It is within this view that government has elevated the task of broadening access to quality education as a priority that we should be working together to realise. As the ANC, we believe that such a trajectory lies at the centre of the call for working together made by the President in his 2013 State of the Nation Address.

Chairperson, education is a concern for all of us, and we can only make it work better for our people if we are prepared to converge and synergise our efforts of working together. Chairperson, I believe that it is therefore imperative that our government works to address the socio-economic burdens to ensure that all our children can have access to quality education, in order to enable them to participate fully and meaningfully in the socio-economic life of society. Chairperson, dealing with socio-economic burdens should continue to be a priority for our government and specifically the Department of Basic Education. Such an understanding, Chairperson, is against the backdrop that these challenges are potentially eroding the gains we have made with regards to ensuring that every one of our children receives the education to which they are entitled in terms of our constitutional obligations.

Chairperson, the African National Congress decided at its national conference in Polokwane to assign top priority to education. In order to give practical expression to this decision, we felt that the then Department of Education was too big and overburdened, with a vast and comprehensive series of tasks and functions that were often beyond the management and leadership capacity of a single government department.

Arising from this concern, it made more meaningful and practical sense to group together issues relating to the special focus area of basic education, while separating these from issues relating to higher education. This gave birth to a split of the Department of Education into two new ministries in the new government structure, namely the Ministry of Basic Education and the Ministry of Higher Education. Chairperson, our observation as the Portfolio Committee has been that this decision was an appropriate step to the right direction, as it has streamlined activities and focused the Department of Basic Education to issues that matter at that level of our education system. However, we want to encourage continued co-ordination between the two ministries, as the two departments are interdependent. In essence, we consider this as vital for a flawless transition of students from one level to the other.

Chairperson, the structural changes instituted by the government in 2009 served as an important signal for a strong sense of accountability for service delivery. The Cabinet Lekgotla held in 2010 adopted the 12 outcomes for government. These outcomes served as the basis of our service delivery activities. One of these outcomes was an improved quality of basic education. This speaks to our oversight mandate as the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education. Flowing from this outcome, the Minister of the Department of Basic Education, Mrs Angie Motshekga, as well as the Members of the Executive Councils (MECs) for Education committed to the agenda of working towards improving the quality of education in the Service Delivery Agreements signed with the President. The Service Delivery Agreement of the Minister covers output areas such as improving the quality of teaching and learning; undertaking regular assessments to track progress; improving early childhood development; and ensuring a credible outcomes-focused planning and accountability system. We are confident that this is the right step towards broadening access to quality education for all. We can already see the benefits of this move.

Chairperson, the question of access to quality education remains on the agenda of the government led by the African National Congress. As such, The Department has identified the Annual National Assessments as a strategic tool for monitoring and improving the level and quality of basic education, with a special focus on the foundational skills of literacy, numeracy and life skills. Chairperson, the Department initially introduced the Annual National Assessments for learners in grades 3 and 6 as a diagnostic tool to inform us of the health of our schooling system and how we could go about shaping our interventions going forward. In 2012, we expanded ANA to include learners in Grade 9. The findings of the Annual National Assessments have provided the Department with important lessons on what it should do to improve the health of our schooling system. Chairperson, the findings of 2012 round of ANA revealed an overall improvement in learner performance across grades. Significant improvements were observed in the Foundation Phase, in particular. However, the report also revealed depressing levels of performance in Grade 6 and 9, particularly in mathematics and languages, which is an indication that there is a need for focused interventions at this level.

Chairperson, our engagements with the Department during our budget review meetings for 2013/14 gave us confidence that the Department is treating this initiative with the seriousness that it deserves. For instance, tests for ANA 2013 have been set, reviewed and versioned. Two forms of tests have been piloted, and results from the pilot are being incorporated into the tests. The timetable for ANA 2013 has been approved by Heads of Education Departments Committee (HEDCOM), and procurement of service providers for printing, packing and distribution is in progress. Chairperson, more than R260 million has been set aside for the implementation of National Assessment and Public Examinations. Chairperson, as part of the Department`s response to the findings of ANA, the Department took an unprecedented step of developing and distributing workbooks to all grade 1 to 9 learners in all our more than 24 000 public schools across the country, benefiting over 11 million learners. However, the Department also provided 900 000 workbooks to all our Grade R learners. It is not only workbooks that were made available to schools, but also textbooks through partnerships with private sector partners such as the Mark Shuttleworth Foundation. However, we realise that it would be unsustainable for government to renew textbooks for the entire learner population every year. Therefore, we call on parents, teachers, learners and communities at large, to work with government to ensure 100 per cent retrieval of textbooks.

Chairperson, we have prioritised Early Childhood Development based on its potential to contribute positively to learner performance in the subsequent years of schooling. As such, the Grade R programme remains one of the Department`s critical interventions. Chairperson, we commend the fact that the Department has done very well in broadening access to Grade R. For instance, in 2012 the government of the African National Congress committed over R3 billion on expanding access to Grade R education. Currently, over 90 per cent of public schools offer Grade R education. Chairperson, in 1999, South Africa had just over 150 000 learners in Grade R. However, by the close of 2012, the number had increased to about 800 000. Currently, there are more 22 000 Grade R classes in our schools.

The high increase of learners aged five who are attending educational institutions particularly is to be attributable to such factors as the provision of nutrition in public ordinary schools to Grade R learners; increased subsidies to ECD practitioners; cheaper fees paid by parents at public ordinary schools offering Grade R; the automatic acceptance of registered Grade R learners to Grade 1 in public schools; and the increase in the registration of ECD centres by the Department of Social Development. A major task at hand is the universalising access to Grade R education by 2014. This is particularly important as research indicates that access to early childhood development programmes improves learner retention and performance in subsequent years of schooling. This 2013/14 budget for basic education is a reflection of our response to our commitment to improving the quality of our ECD programmes by allocating more resources.

Chairperson, we have noted with content that we are on our way to meeting our commitment to the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Goal 2 of the Millennium Declaration commits us to ensuring that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, should be able to complete a full course of primary schooling. In terms of this goal, we have done well in expanding access to universal primary education (UPE). Pursuing universal primary education for all is imperative; indeed, it is a central part of our commitment to the United Nation`s Millennium Development Goals. However, focusing on girls poses particular and considerable challenges, but offers considerable benefits that far outweigh these challenges. Girls` education, in particular, is an integral part to virtually every aspect of the development of our nation. Since 1994, South Africa`s net enrolment rate in both primary and secondary schooling has increased dramatically, with the participation rate among girls among the highest compared to global standards.

Chairperson, the participation rate among 7 to 15 year old children has increased to almost 100 per cent, making it quite unequivocal that we are on our way to meeting our commitment of the attainment of Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Chairperson, we heed the finding of the Global Coalition on Women and AIDS report that, "If every child received a complete primary education, at least 7 million new cases of HIV could be prevented in a decade". The 2013/14 budget for basic education goes a long way in taking account of our task and commitment towards broadening access to quality education for all. Chairperson, the South African Human Rights Commission and UN Children`s Fund report pointed out that the near-universal primary education has been achieved in all our provinces and that one in two pupils in public schools receives free education, and that school attendance among children has increased steadily in the past 15 years.

Chairperson, the right to basic education is one of the guaranteed social rights enshrined in the Bill of Rights of our Constitution. However, the persistent prevalence of poverty in our communities across the country continues to present as a serious barrier to learning and development, and tends to be negatively influenced by factors such as malnutrition and hunger. It is against this background that the government led by the African National Congress established the National School Nutrition Programme. We congratulate the Department for having taken a bold step to include secondary schools in the nutrition programme. To date, more than 8 million learners, both in primary and secondary schools, are benefiting from this programme, receiving a hot cooked meal, every school day. We have noted great impact of the programme where children are kept at school and are able to effectively take part in the learning processes while their parents and communities benefit either through supply of food and other needs or by being food handlers. For 2013/2014, more than R5 billion has been set aside for the National School Nutrition Programme.

Chairperson, we have also scaled-up the number of no-fee with the intention of ensuring that all children have access to schooling. For 2013/14, over 80 per cent of our schools will now fall within the no-fee school threshold, with more than 7 million learners benefiting from the initiative. This is approximately R6.6 billion spending for 2013/14. This will go a long way towards relieving many parents from the burden of having to pay school fees; they are now able to focus on other aspects of their lives. In addition, Chairperson, the issue of voluntary contributions by parents in no-fee schools has been an issue of concern for the Department arising from the lack of norms and standards on this matter. We welcome the Department`s response to clarify the issue of voluntary contributions made by parents to assist schools and parents to understand what voluntary contributions are and how they should be administered. Chairperson, the Department is currently taking the policy through its internal processes.

Chairperson, we are having a quiet revolution taking place in turning around a situation of inappropriate school buildings, schools without water, sanitation and electricity. The bulk of these are found in the most rural provinces such as the Eastern Cape. We congratulate government for coming up with a programme that addresses the development of infrastructure for our schools, the accelerated infrastructure delivery initiative (ASIDI), funded from the Schools Infrastructure Backlog Grant (SIBG). We are delighted by the fact that the work done has not only provided schools with appropriate infrastructure, but it has also created jobs with the associated downstream effects on the local economy. The benefits from the water and sanitation programme are a further step in the Department`s quest to restore dignity in education. Much remains to be done, though, but our deliberations with the Department gave us confidence that the Department is on the right track. The infrastructure allocation for 2013/14 amounts to more than R9.6 billion. We are therefore looking forward to the completion of the projects, as this would have important spin-offs, including the fact that teachers and learners will now have less to worry about an enabling environment and focus on learning and teaching.

Chairperson, as a country we have been steadily moving towards a social reality on the delivery of Section 29 of the Constitution where "everyone has the right to a basic education". While there are still many challenges and more still needs to be done, conditions in the basic education sector have fundamentally improved. As the ANC we call on communities, parents and guardians to become more involved in our children`s education. Let us all work together in ensuring that our children are given every advantage to access quality education.

In conclusion the power of education extends beyond the development of skills we need for economic success. In South Africa the challenges are as stark as they are real. The previous system emphasised the physical and other differences of South Africans with devastating effects. We are steadily but surely introducing education that enables our children to exploit their similarities and common goals, while appreciating the strength in their diversity. Chairperson we need to educate our young people to become adults who cherish the values of respect for women and children. The majority of our children, especially in rural areas, depend on institutions that lack the teaching media and equipment needed for effective learning and teaching. ANC is joining thousands of workers who can now read and write; children who now have access to early childhood education facilities and those whose special educational needs have been satisfied. Let us join hands, as government, business, NGO`s and communities, let us work together to educate our nation.

Chairperson, the African National Congress is of the view that the 2013/14 Budget Vote: 15 Basic Education is an important indication of government`s commitment towards broadening access to quality education for all. So, as the ANC, we support this budget vote.

I thank you.

Annette Lovemore, Shadow Minister of Basic Education 

 Note to Editors: This is an extract based on a speech delivered by DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Annette Lovemore MP, during today’s debate on the Basic Education budget vote in Parliament.

Highlights:
Only 35% of children who start school ever receive a Grade 12 certificate;More than 10,000 unqualified teachers are employed in our schools.SADTU has demanded - and the Department is about to agree to - no management requirements for appointment as a principal.SADTU immobilises almost any attempt to professionalise teaching and provide quality education.


Michelangelo is reported to have said, in the 1500s, “The greatest danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.”

It is absolutely relevant to our discussion today.

In determining where our aim should be set, we first have to determine why we do what we do. 

Why is the right to basic education constitutionally enshrined? Why does the President refer to education as an apex priority?  Why do we all consider education fundamentally important?

Allow me to attempt to answer this very personally Minister.

My alma mater is Kimberley Girls’ High School. Their mission statement is in the form of a short rhyme: 
We recognise each diverse soul,
And aim to educate the whole - 
That every girl, in every deed,
May think, discern, adapt, succeed. 

The school you chose for your daughters, Minister, is Parktown High School for Girls. The school proudly states:
“We have a vision of confident and courageous young women ready and willing to meet every challenge on the way to achieving their dreams.”

A selection of mottos from our countries top schools will emphasise the point:
Kearsney College: “Carpe Diem”
Roedean School: “Inspiring a Life of Significance”
Leap Science and Maths Schools: “Educating Future Leaders”

All of South Africa’s top schools focus squarely on WHY they educate. They start with their vision of the adults their efforts will produce. And so, Minister, should you.

When you do, you will quickly realise that this is not a tick box exercise for you or for any official of your Department. 

Anyone reading the Department’s Annual Performance Plan would be forgiven for thinking otherwise.

Nowhere does the reason for your existence and the reminder of your accountability to every child appear. There is a flagrant lack of commitment to producing courageous, confident and capable adults.

Before we consider your plan for this year, let us pause for a moment, and reflect on the current situation which can best be described as tragic.
Only half of Grade 3 learners are literate;
13% of Grade 9 learners achieve a 50% pass mark in mathematics;
The World Economic Forum ranks our Maths and Science education second last in the world;
The International Mathematics and Science Study of 2012 ranks South Africa third last for mathematics; 
The International Reading and Literacy Study of 2012 placed South Africa fourth last; 
20% of our schools have no or unreliable access to water;
79% of our schools have no library;
80% of teachers of the deaf are not fluent in sign language;
80% of teachers of the blind are unable to read Braille;
We have one of the world’s highest teacher absenteeism rate;
60% of Grade 6 teachers cannot pass tests their learners are expected to pass;
Half of the children who start school never finish;
Only 35% of children who start school ever receive a Grade 12 certificate;
More than 10000 unqualified teachers are employed in our schools.

The achievement so often proudly touted – access to schooling for all our children – pales somewhat in significance when we consider the immense failure in ensuring access to quality education in our public schools.

Now, answer this Minister. Is it acceptable, in light of the current abominable situation in public education in this country, to take incremental steps towards improvement? 

The answer has to be a categorical no. 

We cannot afford another year of producing Grade 12 learners who predominantly have no connection with values and principles, who cannot make career decisions, who are not capable of tertiary study, who do not have the confidence or initiative to become entrepreneurs and who are considered unteachable by many prospective employers.

We need massive change. Massive in at least three senses:
The change must be massive in that much must change; 
The change must be massive in that it must be radical; and
The change must be massive in that every one of the hundreds of thousands of children who need that change must feel that change.
Recall the earlier quote. “The greatest danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.”

Setting the aim too low is exactly what your department has chosen to do Minister. Not taking any chances on being found wanting with respect to achievement of outcomes. Not making any commitments that might result in the boxes not being ticked.

The only meaningful target – and that is questionable – that has been left in this plan is the matric pass rate. And guess what, South Africa? The target is exactly what was achieved last year. 74%.

Every other target that might be used to measure the immediate effectiveness of the department has been removed. We have no targets for:
The percentage of schools with a very basic level of infrastructure
The percentage of schools having access to a library
The percentage of learners with a textbook for each subject
The number of learners who have received workbooks
The percentage of Grade 3 learners performing at the required numeracy and literacy levels
The percentage of Grade 6 and 9 learners performing at the required mathematics and language levels
The number of Grade 12 learners passing mathematics or physical science
The number of Grade 12 learners who become eligible for a Bachelor's programme at university

We are sincerely grateful to every school in South Africa, both independent and public, that understands why it is educating children. It is clear that the department needs, urgently, to support these schools, and to duplicate their efforts to benefit every child.

Independent and successful public schools understand the concept of accountability. They are accountable to their funders, whether they are sponsors or parents. If the schools fail to perform, fail to produce young adults who can utilise every opportunity to fulfil their potential, they lose their funding, and they cease to exist. The crises in Limpopo and the Eastern Cape demonstrate vividly the results of the collapse of accountability in the education system.

These schools understand the need for each child to discover their identity, their talents, their strengths and weaknesses. They understand the need to inculcate values and principles, the need for respect for others. They understand that children, especially those with learning difficulties, cannot develop to their full potential in the huge classes the department tolerates.

These schools understand that children cannot develop skills and talents without exposure to as wide a spectrum of resources as possible. They are the breeding grounds for the Chad le Clos or the Lindiwe Mazibukos of the future. They would never have to be instructed by a court to provide desks or textbooks or to fill teacher vacancies or to attend to unsafe structures. 

These schools understand the need for positive role models. Teachers are properly qualified, constantly developing and truly professional. The thought of employing unqualified teachers, of regularly absent teachers or of teachers using learners as pawns in political battles would be absurd. 

The work ethic in these schools is exceptional. Not something the department expects. It has yet to take action against those Eastern Cape teachers who were on strike for a full term last year.

I use this opportunity, Minister, to welcome the apparently amiable end to the SADTU work-to-rule campaign yesterday. Many matters raised by SADTU remains unaddressed, and, of course, the necessary action against SADTU’s striking members that caused learners to lose out on learning hours still has to be taken. We will be monitoring developments carefully, as is our obligation and our wont.

Chairperson, successful independent and public schools have principals who are managers and visionary leaders. SADTU has demanded - and the Department is about to agree to - no management requirements for appointment as a principal.

These schools appoint on the basis of expertise, not on the basis of union affiliation. These schools understand that education is more about learning than it is about teaching.

These schools understand discipline and a culture of continuous learning. They do not teach to the tests, nor do they need to cram knowledge into winter or spring camps.

These schools form partnerships and networks with others from whom they can learn more. They form, for example, the Extraordinary Schools Coalition – a categorical statement of excellence if ever there was one. The Department depends on its largely dysfunctional district offices to provide support, but does not even have the political will to insist that subject advisors must be proven exceptional teachers. 

Minister, despite a budget of R17.6 billion and a slew of policies, your education system does not work.

Admit failure.  Until you do, you will never make the massive changes that are required for this country to succeed.

Understand why you are educating; understand that education is the foundation for the future, for every child, and for this country.

Commit to success, and removing every obstacle to success. That will include SADTU. SADTU immobilises almost any attempt to professionalise teaching and provide quality education.

You are in charge Minister. You have to make that unconditionally clear. 

Massive change cannot happen overnight. But it cannot happen incrementally either. And it will never happen if we accept plans such as that presented for this year by your department.

I challenge you Minister to surround yourself with expertise and to publicly commit to realistic but challenging targets to change our education outcomes, to produce capable and courageous adults. 

I challenge you to gazette your commitments. Be bold. Call your policy SOUTH AFRICA’S PLAN FOR SUCCESSFUL EDUCATION. 

Minister, you cannot continue to fail our children and, directly, our nation.

“The greatest danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.”
 

Vote 15 - Education Budget Vote Debate   Mr AM Mpontshane MP

Honourable Speaker,   Thirty eight years ago, the National Cultural Liberation Movement, now Inkatha Freedom Party, was founded. At the time, the political situation was paralyzed, waiting for leadership and the IFP emerged to provide it. We are now in a similar situation of paralysis and the education system shares a fair amount of this paralysis at the most important levels inclusive of provincial and district levels.   The on-going power tussle between SADTU and the Minister of Basic Education is paralyzing education. The work-to-rule policy of SADTU will only further cripple the system. The continued politicisation of teacher unions is holding most of the Department's policy choices and programmes to ransom.   For over four years now, the department has been unable to have simple performance agreements for Principals and Deputy Principals signed. There is also a deadlock in the ELRC. Competency tests for markers were abandoned at the last minute last year, because unions objected to it. This is simply unworkable. The system is crying out for bold, decisive and accountable leadership. Education must become an essential service if we are ever to move forward.   Let me turn my focus onto the immediate matter before us:  The Budget.   This year's budgetary allocation shows that government is spending enough on education. The budget has increased from R16.3 billion to R17.6 billion. The vexing question remains though: Why are our children still being taught so badly? Why are our children still performing poorly in competitive forums, the recent World Economic Forum ranked our learners at number 142 out of 144 countries. This year's bulk of the budget has been allocated to programmes 4, 5 and 2. These allocations consist mainly of transfers to Provincial Education Departments for them to address core priorities, such as infrastructure, the National School Nutrition Programme, curriculum implementation and monitoring.   The main challenge which has continued to face the Department of Basic Education is that some provinces are still showing signs of poor fiscal discipline. Last year, for instance, only Free State, Gauteng and Mpumalanga received unqualified reports. Eastern Cape and Limpopo received disclaimers. Whilst the picture has somehow improved this year, instances of irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure still persist in most provinces. We need to put in place more mechanisms that will assist provinces to improve their financial management capacity and their internal controls, especially the serious weakness so prevalent in leadership.   The Department's monitoring and delivery unit must play a more effective role in this regard. Our system of education will continue struggling if we do not get the basics right. Teachers are at the centre of our struggling school system.  Government as a whole has acknowledged that the system lacks sufficient quality teachers.   According to uMalusi, many teachers who mark matric papers cannot apply marking tools consistently because their subject knowledge is often poor and inadequate.   The research results by CDE have indicated that many of the existing teachers are not teaching well and are also poorly managed.  The key reason for all this is, bad training. The Department has set itself 5 strategic goals, the first 3 being the most important: 1. Improve quality of teaching and learning 2. Improve quality of early childhood development 3. Track progress across the education system through regular assessment.   These goals are achievable, but only if we have well-trained teachers; unfortunately most are not. Many studies have confirmed that poor performance of many teachers is a major reason for the continued bad results. The debate about the role of teachers leads to another very important question:   Are our teachers being adequately remunerated? The IFP welcomes the establishment of the Presidential Remuneration Review Commission, as announced by the President during the State of the Nation address. One only hopes that this will not go the way of other promised initiatives, which have not been followed through upon. The 'teacher laptop' programme being one of those un-kept promises.  Rural areas continue to suffer the most.   Teachers teaching in rural areas were promised rural incentives.  In some instances, these 'carrots' may work effectively to attract good teachers to rural areas, especially for scarce subjects, like maths and science.   I am aware of the fact that teacher-training is the competence of the Department of Higher Education and Training.  But surely the Department for Basic Education cannot just keep quiet on such an important issue?   The Department cannot, if it wants to see its strategic goals achieved, continue to rely on the current system of teacher-training. The system of distance teacher training requires urgent review.   The IFP supports the Bill.   I thank you.