Questions and Replies

Reply:

a)  (i) (aa) (bb) Given that holiday and after-school programmes are provincially determined and driven programmes, the number of schools that participate in these programmes per province is not in the possession of the Department of Basic Education and may therefore be solicited from Provincial Education Departments (PEDs).

b) (ii)(aa)(bb) Similarly, the number of schools that do not participate in these programmes may be requested from the PEDs.

Reply:

1. The Department of Basic Education did not host any event or function

(a) N/A

(b) N/A

(c) N/A

2. The Department of Basic Education did not host any event or function and thus the above does not apply.

(a) N/A

(b) N/A

Reply:

Since the 2011 State of the Nation Address, the Presidency has established an interdepartmental coordinating mechanism to explore innovative means for implementing a sanitary dignity campaign, given the prevailing lack of resources in each department. The Department of Basic Education (DBE) continues to mobilise partners in business and civil society to support the cause of providing sanitary pads to leaners.

Reply:

(a) The total number of schools that have been converted into inclusive schools is 832.

(b) The information is not readily available in the Department of Basic Education and it should be requested from the Provincial Education Departments.

Reply:

a) (i) and (ii)

The Departments of Basic Education and Telecommunications and Postal Services in collaboration with ICASA provided 105 (North West=55, Mpumalanga=21 and Gauteng =29) schools with ICT equipment as part of the Universal Service and Access Obligations (USAO). Each school received the following ICT equipment:

• 24 x Tablets for learners;
• 1 x Server loaded with DBE electronic content;
• 2 x Teacher laptops;
• 2 x Wi-Fi Access Points;
• 1 x data projector; and
• 1 x Mobile charging trolley.

b) The budget for the rollout of USAO solution is part of the Network Operators Licence Obligations imposed by ICASA.

Further information about the procurement of tablets and laptops should be requested from the Provincial Education Departments. The PDEs are responsible for the rollout of tablets and laptops to teachers.

 

Reply:

The sector uses the instruments contained in the Education Management Service (EMS): Performance Management and Development System (PMDS) for office-based educators as contained in the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) Collective Agreement No. 3 of 2017; as well as the job description of subject advisors as contained in Collective Agreement No. 4 of 2017 to measure the performance and effectiveness of subject advisors.

(a) Yes. As a national ELRC collective agreement, it is available across all provinces and implementation is mandatory. Subject advisors enter into, and sign annual performance agreements with their immediate supervisor. The agreements contain among others, the following:

1. Key Result Areas (KRAs), which describe what is expected from the subject advisor in terms of the job description; and
2. Core Management Criteria (CMCs); which are elements and standards used to describe and assess performance, taking into consideration knowledge, skills and attributes.

The performance agreement serves as the cornerstone of performance management of subject advisors at the individual level, while a workplan describes what will be achieved within particular timeframes through clearly defined activities and performance indicators.

(b) There are consequences for non-compliance as determined by the Labour Relations Act and the Employment of Educators Act, which prescribe the processes to be followed during such misconduct.

(2) whether her department has ways to prevent provinces from appointing persons who are not capable and/or suitably qualified and were not achieving good results during their teaching careers; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NW1110E

Response

The process for the recruitment and selection of educators prescribed in relevant regulations, as stipulated in the Personnel Administrative Measures, Chapter B. The regulations prescribe educational requirements, statutory requirements, and experience required for appointment in education. The stipulated process includes the selection process, which involves formation of representative panels or Interview Committees that are responsible for the shortlisting a pool of suitable candidates and conducting interviews. It is the view of the department that the existing regulations and processes, are adequate to ensure that suitably qualified educators are appointed in every post.

Reply:

(a) (i) The National Department of Basic Education does not employ teachers.

(ii) The Department does not routinely collect information on the actual number of educators by Grade as part of regular monitoring and reporting. The figures below are an estimation based on the number of Grade 3 classes.

PROVINCE	ESTIMATED NUMBER OF EDUCATORS
Eastern Cape	5 125
Free State	1 680
Gauteng Province	4 770
KwaZulu-Natal	6 528
Limpopo	3 510
Mpumalanga	2 306
Northern Cape	805
North West	1 911
Western Cape	3 071
Grand Total	29706

Source: Education Management Information System Data, 2018

(b) (i) 2018 Foundation Phase (FP) English First Additional Language (EFAL) teachers were tested nationwide on English with emphasis on reading.

(ii) 65% of these teachers did very well, while the remaining 35% is getting attention through the Primary School Reading Improvement Programme (PSRIP).

Reply:

1. Rationalisation of schools cannot be implemented in a blanket approach, but on a case by case approach. In general, non-viable schools are a disadvantage to learners as they cannot be provided with resources and sufficient number of educators, to ensure quality education at par with other schools. However, where circumstances dictate that such schools be retained in communities where they are located, such a determination will be dictated by its peculiar circumstance. As such, it will not be prudent to commit that all non-viable schools will be retained where they are located.

2. The Department continuously monitors the effectiveness of the post provisioning norms including the provisioning to small schools. Once it is decided that it is viable to maintain or establish a small school after considering both educational effectiveness and cost efficiency, the post provisioning norms assists in determining the number of posts to be provided to such a school. The current Post Provisioning Norms are under review to ensure that small schools are adequately addressed. This is being done together with stakeholders in the Education Labour Relations Council.

 

Reply:

The information has been requested from the Eastern Cape Department of Education and the response will be provided as soon as it is received from the Province.

Reply:

1. See the attached list of schools declared as hotspots for the 2018/19 financial year.

Province	No of Schools
KwaZulu-Natal	202
Western Cape	147
Free State	90
Limpopo	22
Gauteng	251
Northern Cape	40
Eastern Cape	99
North West	80
Mpumalanga	414
TOTAL	2 345

2. The National School Safety Framework (NSSF) remains the Department of Basic Education (DBE) strategic response to school violence;

1. It is a comprehensive approach that coordinates and consolidates all school safety interventions in the sector;
2. It is based on a social ecological systems model which locates the school within its broader community;
3. It relies on collaboration and partnership; and
4. The INSPIRE framework provides further granularity to the NSSF focusing on seven (7) areas: Implementation and law enforcement; Norms and values; Safe environments; Parent and care-giver support; Income and economic strengthening; Response and support services; and Education and Life Skills.

The DBE also supports provinces to implement a number of interventions in response to crime and violence in schools; including for example:

1. Strengthening the School Safety Committees through training to adequately respond to the challenges school face;
2. Bullying prevention programmes roll-out in Eastern Cape
3. Anti-gangsterism joint intervention programme with South African Police Service (SAPS) in the Northern Education Region – Port Elizabeth;
4. In partnership with SAPS, searches and seizures are randomly held to seize dangerous weapons in school campuses;
5. Moral rejuvenation seminars held in all North West Education districts in partnership with the QLTC in the Office of the Premier;
6. District Safety Coordinators trained on Protocols on prevention of Corporal Punishment and Sexual Abuse and Harassment of leaners in schools;
7. After the National Summit on School violence hosted by Minister in 2018, five provinces (Gauteng, North West, Free State, Western Cape and Eastern Cape) have convened provincial summits to roll-out the Declaration and implementation of the recommendations to enhance safe learning environments and instil a culture of respect and discipline among leaners and educators.

Reply:

Province	Number of Principal Vacancies as at the end of June 2019	Number of Teaching Vacancies (Includes Deputy Principal, HOD and Post Level 1)
Eastern Cape	562	3 618
Free State	134	943
Gauteng	77	2 783
KwaZulu-Natal	322	758
Limpopo	697	6 124
Mpumalanga	113	237
North West	226	736
Northern Cape	37	195
Western Cape	234	1 211
Total	2 402	16 605

Source: Provincial Education Department Reporting, end of June 2019

Reply:

1. a) The Foundation Phase policy on promotion requirements is stipulated in the National Policy Pertaining to the Programme and Promotion Requirements of the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) and the National Protocol on Assessment (NPA), which state that a learner may only be retained once in the Foundation Phase in order to prevent the learner being retained in this phase for longer than four years.

• In the Basic Education Budget Vote Speech for the 2018/19 Financial Year, it was announced that the progression and promotion policies, especially in the lower Grades needed to be reviewed, a policy proposal that is currently under consideration.

 

b) The international literature on this topic demonstrates very little evidence for repetition policies actually benefitting children. At best, these policies appear to have no effect on learner achievement and dropout, despite the immense financial stress they place on the schooling system. However, in many cases they have a negative effect on child outcomes.

Two early meta-analyses (Holmes, 1989; Jimerson 2001) showed strong negative effects of retention policies on academic achievement and socio-emotional adjustment. A recent and more rigorous meta-analysis (Allen 2009), indicated that on average repetition either had a negative effect or a null effect on academic achievement.

As such, support for automatic progression within the South African context is being considered as a possible policy position, given that repetition is regarded as being associated with learner dropout and poor academic performance (Branson, Hofmeyr and Lam, 2013; Hartley, 2006).

Indeed, many scholars (Jimerson et al., 1997) hold the view that the negative effects of repetition far outweigh automatic promotion.

Within this debate, we must also consider issues of efficiency and human rights aspects of over-sized classes, as well as the unaffordability of bringing the learner/educator ratio down substantially via hiring of additional teachers.

Many school systems in both developed and developing countries have adopted automatic promotion policies which stipulate that all learners who complete a given school year be promoted to the next grade, regardless of their levels of achievement.

2. The Minister will not make a statement. The Department of Basic Education (DBE) is putting plans in place to make the necessary policy amendments which could give effect to automatic progression in the Foundation Phase:

• Every learner will be supported to achieve the expected levels of performance for the grade. There will be adequate support for learners at risk throughout the phase.
• For the breadth of foundational skills across the phase, there will be an identified set of skills per grade to focus on, thus making it possible to give more opportunities to demonstrate competence in the next grade on the same skills if there is a need.
• Learners who experience barriers to learning will be given the opportunities to demonstrate their competence in ways that suit their needs. This has the following implications:
• Some learners may need concrete apparatus for a longer time than their peers.
• Assessment activities, especially written activities, may have to be broken up into smaller sections for learners who cannot concentrate or work for a long time, or they may be given short breaks during the tasks.
• A variety of assessment instruments should be used, as a learner may find that a particular assessment instrument does not allow her to demonstrate her true competence.
• In the Foundation Phase the inability to read should not prevent learners from demonstrating their mathematical competence, because this produces misleading results that are of no use to the learner, the teacher who has to plan the learner’s learning sequence, and the education authorities who have to identify problems in the education system.
• The usage of Mathematical terms should not be confined to the Language of Learning and Teaching (LoLT), the knowledge of Mathematical concepts in other languages should be accepted as correct.
• Reporting will be comprehensive, giving the teacher in the next grade and the parents a clear indication of strengths and skills that need further development.

Reply:

Procurement of learner transport service providers and payment of these service providers take place at a provincial level, as such, the information on these payments, or lack thereof is located in provinces. Information has been requested from all the Provincial Departments responsible for the provision of Learner Transport Programme and will be provided as soon as it is received. The Honourable member must also note that the Learner Transport Programme is provided by both the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Transport and that in some provinces the function resides with the education sector whilst in others resides with the transport sector.

Reply:

1. The National Education Infrastructure Management System Report dated January 2018, is information of NEIMS condition Assessment done in the years 2013 to 2014, also information of completed projects which the Provincial Education Department submit every quarter.

2. Yes, DBE have engaged with Provincial Education Department requesting them to make budget allocations for the financial year 2019/20 to ensure that NEIMS condition assessments are done for the updating of the system.

Reply:

(a)(i)(ii)The official international trips that the Minister and her deputy might undertake in 2019-22 depends on, as and when the Department of Basic Education receive an invite, the invitation is then assessed and accepted subject to the president’s approval, or declined if it’s of little value to the department for consideration.

(b)(i)(ii)(iii) Dependant on (a) above, therefore currently not available.

(c)(i)(ii)(iii) Dependant on (a) above, therefore currently not available.

Reply:

(a) The total amount Budgeted for her private office is R 9 342 585.00

Incumbents from 31 May 2019 to date	(b)(i) Total Remuneration	(b)(ii) Salary Level	(b)(iii) Job Title	(b)(iv) Qualification	(b)(v) Job Description
PRIVATE OFFICE
P Sehlabelo	1,308,345.00	14	1 X Chief of Staff	Baccalaureus Artium (BA), University Education Diploma,	Chief of Staff
S Mabua	978,924.00	12	1 X Private Secretary	Diploma Office Administration, Diploma Secretarial Skills & Computer Software	Private Secretary
W Mncube	1,089,294.00	13	1 X Media Liaison Officer	Bachelors Degree In Technology Journalism, National Diploma Journalism	Media Liaison Officer
MJ Letsoha-Mathae	1,023,645.00	12	1 X Community Outreach Officer	Diploma: Project Management	Community Outreach Officer
EN Mbatha	553,677.00	10	1 X Assistant Appointment Secretary	National Diploma: Hospitality Studies	Assistant Appointment Secretary
JN Skwatsha	303,339.00	7	1X Principal Ministerial Typist	Grade 12 & Certificate In Introduction	Principal Ministerial Typist
PM Mphigalale	234,960.00	6	1X Secretary/ Receptionist	Bachelor of Social Science	Secretary/ Receptionist
DR Kunene	122,595.00	3	2 X Domestic Worker	Grade 12 Matric	Domestic Worker
PT Mashaba	122,595.00	3		Grade 12 Matric	Domestic Worker
ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF
MB Masuku	1,245,495.00	13	1 X Administrative Secretary	Bachelors Degree in Paedagogia, Masters of Law	Administrative Secretary
NM Ramahuma	908,694.00	12	1 X Parliamentary and Cabinet Support	Primary Teachers Diploma, Further Diploma In Education, Baccalaureus Educationis Honoribus, Master Artium (MA)	Parliamentary and Cabinet Support
T Mohlala	869,007.00	12	1 X Cabinet and Parliamentary Officer	N4 Certificate: Business Studies, UNISA - Executive Leadership Municipal Development Programme	Cabinet and Parliamentary Officer
A Segakweng	261,372.00	7	1 X Registry Clerk	Grade 12 Matric	Registry Clerk
MA Mashaba	218,109.00	6	1 X Driver/Messenger	Grade 12 Matric	Driver/Messenger
SM Hlatshwayo	102,534.00	2	1 X Food Aide Services	Grade 11	Food Aide Services

Reply:

All schools have established School Safety Committees in line with the National School Safety Framework. Each Committee is comprised of internal representatives from the School Governing Body (SGB) School Management Team (SMT), educators and learners. External role players are comprised of representatives from Government Department such as, South Africa Police Services (SAPS), Health, Social Development, Municipalities as well as Non-Governmental Organisations NGO) including Faith-based organisations.

The Department of Basic Education has also entered into partnership with the National Education Collaboration Trust (NECT) to coordinate a wide spectrum of stakeholders through the National School Safety Steering Committee (NSSSC).

 

Reply:

(a) Table 1, 2 and 3 below provides figures for the past three years and (b) since 1 January 2019, (i) 3 632 educators have been trained on various ICT programmes and (ii) all trained educators have completed the training, (iii) 3 632 educators benefitted from ICT training and (iv) the DBE can provide data on how many educators and/ or schools have received ICT devices. However, the data on the usage of these devices lies in Provinces.

The data as captured by the Curriculum Branch on the training provided to educators on how to operate ICT devices, sourced from NSLA reports and the Moodle Platform is as follows:

Province	2016	2017	2018/19
	BASIC	INTERMEDIATE	ADVANCE	TOTAL	BASIC	INTERMEDIATE	ADVANCE	TOTAL	BASIC	INTERMEDIATE	ADVANCE	TOTAL	GRAND TOTAL
Eastern Cape	2 999	782	632	4 413	8 826	14 653	2 852	26 331	4 056	2 667	291	7 014	37 758
Free State	408	8 092	632	9 132	8 172	3 593	6 378	18 143	181	185	39	405	27 680
Gauteng	1 171	502	632	2 305	4 028	6 885	1 326	12 239	1 987	1 700	600	4 287	18 831
KwaZulu-Natal	57	1 555	632	2 244	4 186	8 315	1 507	14 008	4 470	351	295	5 116	21 368
Limpopo	700	300	632	1 632	2 632	4 564	8 828	16 024	343	223	20	566	18 222
Mpumalanga	3 416	12 914	632	16 962	5 599	6 778	1 226	13 603	1 236	592	321	913	31 478
North West	2 638	1 307	632	4 577	8 615	14 592	2 787	25 994	296	4 675	266	5 237	35 808
Northern Cape	374	1 187	632	2 193	4 131	7 888	1 458	13 477	301	121	266	688	16 358
Western Cape	38 314	250	632	39 196	7 760	7 206	23 416	38 382	6 973	3 221	3 245	13 439	91 117
TOTAL	50 077	26 889	632	77 598	53 949	74 474	49 778	178 201	19 843	13 735	5 323	37 665	298 620

Table 1

The data as captured by the Teacher Development Branch sourced from the NSLA on the ICT integration into teaching training programmes:

PROVINCE	2017/18	2018/19	2019 (Quarter 1)
Eastern Cape	2 334	4 661	1 750
Free State	995	1 205	43
Gauteng	11 574	216	0
KwaZulu-Natal	359	234	368
Limpopo	950	1 480	200
Mpumalanga	1 928	1 605	0
North West	1 547	806	137
Northern Cape	250	727	0
Western Cape	3 832	1 879	634
Total	23 769	12 813	3 132

Table 2

Training provided on the Professional Development Framework for Digital Learning since 2018.

PROVINCE	Target Group	Date
KwaZulu-Natal	405 (Provincial Core Training Team)	July 2019
Gauteng	200 subject advisors (3 hour workshops)	August to September 2018
North West	91 (Provincial Core Training Team)	July 2018
Western Cape	30 (30 e-learning specialists, Curriculum Support and Teacher Development)	April 2018
Total	371 provincial and district officials

Table 3

Reply:

a) The Plan is to have a Technical High School in each Circuit. Provinces have not yet identified the schools to be transformed into technical schools.

b) The time frame for the transformation and expansion of schools will be over a period of 5 years starting in 2020 – 2025.

c) Details of how the transformation will take place:

• Identification of schools by the 9 Provincial Education Departments;
• Mapping of schools in circuits to be undertaken;
• An onsite audit of schools will be conducted by the National and Provincial Departments;
• Mathematics, Science and Technology (MST) Conditional Grant covers all schools offering Technical Occupational and Technical vocational subjects.

d) Costs that will be incurred in each case will include the following:

• Infrastructure renovation and construction (workshops).
• Provisioning of equipment tools and consumables for the Technical specialisation subjects.
• Human Resource recruitment.

Reply:

(a), (b), (c) and (d).

As part of monitoring, the National Department only collects aggregated information on teacher attendance. The Honourable Member is kindly advised to request the detailed information as requested directly from the Provincial Education Departments.

Reply:

a) During the Basic Education Budget Vote 14 debate for the 2019/2020 financial year, it was indicated that the Department of Basic Education (DBE) has committed to developing a comprehensive plan to ensure a phased-in and systematic relocation of the responsibility and leadership for ECD. It was further indicated that this comprehensive plan will include the provision of two years of compulsory ECD prior to Grade 1; as well as the provision of Early Childhood Development (ECD) for 0-4-year-olds. Finally, the Department committed to the costed plan being finalised by March 2020.

The development of these plans is based on two principles:

1. The plans should ensure that both the access and quality of ECD should improve significantly over the next 10 years; and
2. The plans should be sensitive to the current model of ECD provision and not destabilise nor cause confusion in either the ECD or schooling sector.

b) The detailed plan for institutionalising the abovementioned high-level objectives is still being developed.

c) The DBE is working towards finalising a detailed, costed plan by March 2020, while at the same time beginning preparations for implementation.

d) The cost will be clarified through the detailed, costed plan.

Reply:

The response below is as received from the Gauteng Department of education.

a) The Gauteng Department of Education completed infrastructure assessments with regard to the number and type of facilities during the 2018/19 financial year. This data informs the number of additional facilities, including classrooms, required per school and by implication the number of new schools required in any given residential area.

b) There is a total of 38 public ordinary schools in the wards referred to above of which 28 are primary and 10 are secondary schools. There is a total shortage of 23 classrooms in 9 primary schools and 3 classrooms in 1 secondary school, whilst there is a surplus of 53 classrooms in 19 primary schools and 61 classrooms in 9 secondary schools, based on our learner: classroom ratio of 40:1.

c) There are no plans to build additional schools in the area as there isn’t a need for additional schools based on our learner: classroom ratio of 40:1. After the construction of Glenvista Primary School in 2015 the overcrowding in primary schools in these areas was significantly reduced.

d) See (c) above.

Reply:

The Department has a component that helps develop and empower the principals of schools in management on an ongoing basis in the same way as Subject Advisors assist schools teachers with subject related matters. These are Circuit Managers who are supervisors of school principals. Each Circuit Manager is responsible for between 25 and 30 school principals according to the Policy on the Roles and Responsibilities of Education Districts with consideration to provincial differences.

Reply:

The National School Safety Framework (NNSF) provides the Basic Education Department with an organising framework to coordinate all efforts in response to school related violence. This Framework provides evidence-informed approaches based on accurate and comprehensive data of the effectiveness of existing programmes.

A key pillar of the NSSF is collaboration and partnerships. School violence cannot be separated from the high levels of violence that are experienced in some of our communities. The Framework encourages partnerships with sister departments like the SAPS, civil society organisations, academic institutions and education stakeholders. The Minister convened a School Safety Summit in October 2018 and one of the recommendations of this summit was the establishment of a School Safety Steering Committee comprised of a wide spectrum of education stakeholders including SGB federations, learner formations and teacher unions.

The Department has provided a manual on how to address violence at school level to all schools. The provincial education departments continue to provide training and support to schools, particularly those schools in high crime areas, to effectively respond to school violence and bullying. These hotspot schools have also been linked to local police stations through a national partnership with the SAPS. The manual encourages all schools to establish school safety committees and provides evidence informed strategies to address bullying, homophobia, xenophobia and gangsterism.

In addition, through the Council of Education Ministers, the Department has made available two key protocols on how to address corporal punishment and sexual abuse in schools. The Department has provided training to all provinces and districts on how to utilise these protocols in schools.

The Department, in partnership with UNICEF and Save the Children, will be undertaking the third School Violence Survey in 2019 to continue to monitor the effectiveness of the implementation of the NSSF.

Reply:

(1);(2) This information is not routinely collected by the national department. The member is advised to request the information directly from the provincial departments.

Reply:

1. The national Department of Basic Education has a responsibility to oversee, guide, monitor and support the provinces in the implementation of the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP), and to ensure compliance with National Treasury regulations and the Conditional Grant Framework in particular. The Provincial Education Departments on the other hand, have a key responsibility to implement the programme in line with the applicable prescripts and guidance. Procurement of services for the NSNP is a provincial responsibility. To ensure that learners benefit maximally, the Conditional Grant Framework of the NSNP specifies the following conditions: the percentage of funds that are to be used for procurement and cooking of meals (feeding); the quality of school meals; as well responsibilities for districts and provinces with respect to monitoring and support to ensure adherence.

2. The selection of service providers in the NSNP is managed like all procurement processes in the public service. The selection is done by provinces in line with the Supply Chain Management (SCM) System processes and applicable prescripts. Where the procurement model is centralised (Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Western Cape), an open tender process is followed. In the remaining provinces where the decentralised model is used and funds are transferred to schools, the 3 quotation system is mostly utilised, as determined by the ceiling price of the service in line with SCM prescripts. In all instances, procurement is required to be open, fair, transparent, equitable, effective and efficient, among others. The DBE has developed a guideline for schools on the management of NSNP funds which was disseminated to provinces and districts. School Management Teams were trained on the use of this guideline.

Reply:

1. The Teacher Laptop Initiative was part of a strategy to take forward the objective of improving Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in teaching and learning.  After its announcement in 2009, the initiative was widely hailed as one of the critical steps towards the improvement of the quality of education. The initiative’s aim was to ensure that every teacher owns and uses a laptop, by providing them with a monthly allowance which will contribute to the purchase costs as well as the costs of connectivity.

2. Due to a number of challenges the Department did not launch this project.

3. STATE OF THE NATIONS ADDRESS (SONA) INJUNCTIONS

Based on the 2019 SONA injunctions, the DBE plans to provide each learner and teacher with an ICT device with access to digitised Learning and Teaching Support Material (LTSM).

3.1 A comprehensive ICT plan has been developed to provide a framework for an affordable and sustainable implementation of ICTs in education. The plan will be implemented in three phases, commencing with Phase 1 that will target multi-grade, multiphase, farm and selected rural schools (2020-2021). The Second Phase will target quintile 1 to 3 schools (2022-2023), and Phase 3 will target quintile 4 and 5 schools (2024). All Special schools will be accommodated in all phases according to the type of disability.

3.2 The DBE will work with other government departments, the private sector and social partners in the deployment of ICTs, and will drive a sector-wide campaign to maximise the benefit of e-Learning at all schools in the country.

4. FOCUS AREAS

Four areas have been identified from the e-Education White Paper (2004) as follows:

4.1 Digital content resource development (digitisation)

The DBE will invest in digital content development to ensure that high quality digital resources are available free of charge offline and online via the DBE Cloud, Thutong and other platforms. The basic education sector aims for a balance between ‘state-owned’ content resources, open education resources (OERs) and publisher-created (proprietary) content resources. The Department will continue with its initiative of digitising state-owned content resources.

4.2 ICT professional development for management, teaching and learning integration

The introduction of ICT in the education sector necessitates the professional development of all teachers, managers and educator support staff in the Provinces. This means the provision of appropriate training for teachers and managers before they attempt to introduce the use of ICT in the classrooms. The training of teachers will be guided by the Professional Development Framework for Digital Learning.

4.3 ICT infrastructure

The DBE plans to provide each learner and teacher with an ICT device to enhance teaching and learning. It should be noted that ICT infrastructure is fundamental to the implementation of e-Education and offers opportunities to access learning, redress inequalities and improve the quality of teaching and learning.

4.4 School connectivity

The Departments of Basic Education and Communications have developed a connectivity plan for schools. The plan seeks to provide cost-effective, secure and efficient connectivity that will advance the quality of teaching and learning in schools, specifically ensuring access to quality education.

 

Reply:

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) has not conducted teacher training for coding, however some PEDs and individual schools have conducted training and this information may be obtained from PEDs. DBE has finalised Plans to deliver training of Teachers on coding. 

Reply:

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) is responsible for the development of the National Catalogues of Textbooks. Provincial Departments of Education (PEDs) are responsible for the budget allocation for the procurement of textbooks for schools. The information on the schools must be sourced from the respective Provincial Departments of Education.

Reply:

Currently, the system appoints Learning Support Educators (LSEs). LSEs are appointed at district level, not at school level. This is because the resourcing model in this respect locates support at district level to ensure support provisioning for all schools rather than a few schools.

Reply:

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) works together with education stakeholders, social partners and the Departments of Social Development, Health and the South African Police Service to address the causes as well as the effects of violence prevalent in schools, as in society. In the implementation of the Integrated School Health Policy by the Departments of Basic Education, Health and Social Development, mental health screening is included in the school health service package. In addition, the Department has developed the draft DBE National Guidelines for Resourcing an Inclusive Education System, wherein social workers are included in the multi-disciplinary team at various levels of the education system.

In implementation, Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) establish partnerships with the Provincial Departments of Social Development (DSD) as well as universities and partners to provide social work services to schools. In addition, PEDs engage and place unemployed social workers as Learner Support Agents.

Reply:

Table 1: Number of learners that Failed Grade 12 (2014 – 2018)

Province	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018
EASTERN CAPE	23 158	37 615	33 734	23 667	19 340
FREE STATE	4 541	5 745	3 157	3 499	3 108
GAUTENG	15 231	17 115	15 448	14 458	11 464
KWAZULU- NATAL	42 223	63 897	49 616	33 728	27 667
LIMPOPO	19 811	34 629	38 212	28 603	23 476
MPUMALANGA	9 466	11 751	12 450	12 210	9 387
NORTH WEST	4 005	6 168	5 597	6 330	5 483
NORTHERN CAPE	2 079	3 559	2 139	2 127	2 645
WESTERN CAPE	8 472	8 232	7 153	8 427	9 404

Source: National Integrated Examinations computer system (IECS)

Table 2 below indicates the number of learners who repeated a grade per province between 2014 and 2018. Please note that number of repeaters are used as proxy for failure as the department does not collect data in this format.

P

rovince	Province	Grade R	Grade 1	Grade 2	Grade 3	Grade 4	Grade 5	Grade 6	Grade 7	Grade 8	Grade 9	Grade 10	Grade 11	other	Grand Total
	Eastern Cape	14 066	28 564	24 952	19 778	18 726	14 234	11 614	11 766	10 629	17 803	34 687	31 193	10	238 022
	Free State	365	4741	3757	2770	5289	4452	4529	4447	8706	13986	12423	6176	0	71 641
	Gauteng	1 472	19 693	14 348	10 098	11 098	8 623	6 947	3 195	9 595	20 801	41 596	18 437	285	166 188
	KwaZulu-Natal	8 422	38 940	23 967	18 159	17 427	13 326	11 218	8 392	22 820	27 467	57 075	43 211	295	290 719
	Limpopo	2 354	18 755	16 563	13 722	15 740	12 962	11 214	6 580	10 980	58 612	71 992	34 999	0	274 473
	Mpumalanga	1 722	17 965	14 406	11 651	11 764	10 137	8 308	7 856	13 416	13 697	22 348	18 128	297	151 695
	Northern Cape	438	4 533	2 788	2 273	3 412	2 351	1 963	1 788	3 282	5 068	6 890	4 175	0	38 961
	North West	1 711	14 746	12 177	9 675	10 567	7 827	5 949	4 142	6 374	17 068	21 587	10 012	0	121 835
	Western Cape	3 766	15 273	8 778	4 624	9 265	5 375	3 403	1 541	4 060	12 321	10 992	4 805	188	84 391
2014	Total	34 316	163 210	121 736	92 750	103 288	79 287	65 145	49 707	89 862	186 823	279 590	171 136	1 075	1 437 925
	Eastern Cape	14 260	38 391	26 949	21 375	19 841	14 843	11 863	12 206	15 013	18 114	37 482	27 212	22	257 571
	Free State	475	3934	3110	2680	5156	3898	3060	5140	8883	9541	10937	5444	0	62 258
	Gauteng	1 543	21 194	15 259	11 269	12 526	7 395	5 856	5 231	18 413	22 370	39 127	21 729	207	182 119
	KwaZulu-Natal	7 344	34 623	24 754	19 882	19 510	13 468	12 023	11 078	24 136	28 735	51 157	45 248	30	291 988
	Limpopo	2 533	17 969	16 355	13 289	15 501	10 108	8 728	7 667	15 862	35 155	54 002	28 337	0	225 506
	Mpumalanga	2 755	18 461	13 178	10 590	10 648	7 828	6 237	7 623	13 973	13 212	22 585	17 014	51	144 155
	Northern Cape	700	4 343	2 901	2 743	3 185	2 526	2 118	2 351	3 595	3 688	3 967	2 843	0	34 960
	North West	890	7 222	10 162	12 368	5 791	3 057	2 344	2 206	8 174	7 732	11 881	4 983	21	76 831
	Western Cape	3 757	12 341	7 727	4 295	9 830	4 052	2 395	3 108	7 313	13 131	10 343	5 439	159	83 890
2015	Total	34 257	158 478	120 395	98 491	101 988	67 175	54 624	56 610	115 362	151 678	241 481	158 249	490	1 359 278
	Eastern Cape	13 931	44 332	24 546	19 087	18 992	12 861	9 817	9 027	13 421	12 199	37 755	28 245	0	244 213
	Free State	1076	2171	2509	1756	3973	3076	2851	4914	15010	11176	14342	6255	0	69 109
	Gauteng	1 816	27 142	15 723	11 530	12 407	6 915	4 783	4 921	19 804	18 835	47 658	27 343	1 005	199 882
	KwaZulu-Natal	6 659	38 073	26 099	21 186	21 992	15 545	12 057	11 177	26 373	29 941	59 895	54 856	317	324 170
	Limpopo	1 836	16 884	14 742	12 059	15 262	9 769	7 254	7 102	19 560	29 489	71 703	40 541	608	246 809
	Mpumalanga	3 942	11 161	12 897	12 118	17 716	13 460	13 234	18 278	26 708	22 284	19 105	13 274	3	184 180
	Northern Cape	630	4 661	3 445	2 435	3 592	2 831	2 304	2 451	2 894	3 078	5 390	3 955	12	37 678
	North West	1 251	11 075	9 699	7 062	10 056	6 055	4 245	4 273	15 465	12 645	22 834	9 929	0	114 589
	Western Cape	3 851	11 433	8 346	4 692	9 222	3 685	2 036	2 836	8 741	8 941	10 907	6 663	100	81 453
2016	Total	34 992	166 932	118 006	91 925	113 212	74 197	58 581	64 979	147 976	148 588	289 589	191 061	2 045	1 502 083
	Eastern Cape	5589	17038	11844	11210	17041	12147	9169	9859	12393	10783	25108	18903	0	161 084
	Free State	584	6131	4463	3349	7445	4562	3329	5975	7521	5795	11868	5769	0	66 791
	Gauteng	814	12363	11968	12626	18310	14561	14314	20756	17609	16629	28011	17589	0	185 550
	KwaZulu Natal	1485	21451	20792	29450	33490	25818	23104	22293	27952	29641	43054	46692	0	325 222
	Limpopo	509	10659	10383	10693	17374	11259	8707	7118	18070	23056	44264	32711	0	194 803
	Mpumalanga	227	5052	5272	5503	7045	4537	3490	3386	5224	6530	12622	11861	0	70 749
	Northern Cape	51	2419	1574	1153	3045	1559	1247	1510	2151	1700	3890	2022	0	22 321
	North West	77	1707	3606	4433	8711	4085	3840	3205	4224	4013	12926	6397	0	57 224
	Western Cape	140	257	626	1644	8128	11191	7528	6406	7188	8012	8753	5727	0	65 600
2017	Total	9 476	77 077	70 528	80 061	120 589	89 719	74 728	80 508	102 332	106 159	190 496	147 671	0	1 149 344
	Eastern Cape	10 141	25 955	16 721	13 009	16 401	9 445	6 478	7 008	12 329	9 895	29 151	22 348	0	178 881
	Free State	2 114	8 518	5 309	3 432	7 627	4 183	2 499	4 809	9 026	5 537	11 192	5 248	0	69 494
	Gauteng	2 675	23 080	18 130	12 390	14 444	8 714	5 529	5 138	21 946	19 583	44 043	24 831	0	200 503
	KwaZulu Natal	3 749	29 636	16 902	15 717	17 489	11 400	7 565	6 551	24 134	21 642	44 804	43 067	0	242 656
	Limpopo	2 150	17 888	16 457	6 493	24 300	14 663	10 300	9 423	36 520	36 104	70 872	52 203	0	297 373
	Mpumalanga	1 219	11 781	8 483	13 766	7 023	3 967	2 773	3 440	9 042	8 404	19 785	16 805	0	106 488
	Northern Cape	299	3 961	2 820	2 013	3 904	2 396	1 868	2 193	3 334	2 624	5 040	2 602	0	33 054
	North West	747	6 964	6 128	5 174	9 490	4 114	3 733	2 845	11 008	6 455	14 319	6 701	0	77 678
	Western Cape	4 327	9 405	7 660	5 486	8 562	3 514	1 781	2 352	6 625	4 547	11 167	5 993	0	71 419
2018	Total	27 421	137 188	98 610	77 480	109 240	62 396	42 526	43 759	133 964	114 791	250 373	179 798	0	1 277 546

Source 1: 2014-16 Annual School Survey

Source 2: 2017-18 LURITS

Reply:

(a)(i)(ii) (b)(i)(ii) (c) (d) (i) (ii)

Chapter 10 of the Ministerial Handbook, Handbook for Members of the Executive and Presiding Officers indicates that the Minister and Deputy Minister are considered former “on the first day following the date on which they relinquished their office”

The political leadership of the Department of Basic Education (DBE) has been constant in the past five financial years and since 1 April 2018 and therefore there is neither a former Minister nor Deputy Minister.

Reply:

As education is a concurrent function, the requested information must be sought from the provinces.

 

Reply:

Infomation has been requested from the Gauteng Department of Education and the response will be provided as soon as it is received.

Reply:

The information has been requested from the Western Cape Education Department and will be provided as soon as it is received.

Reply:

Infomation has been requested from the Gauteng Department of Education and the response will be provided as soon as it is received.

Reply:

The number of teachers due to reach retirement age or age 60 in the next 10 years starting in 2019 per year by province.

YEAR	PROVINCE	TOTAL
	EC	FS	GP	KZN	LP	MP	NW	NC	WC
2019	1 281	466	1 495	1 694	1 548	806	656	206	794	8 946
2020	1 362	559	1 530	1 984	1 788	888	727	236	881	9 955
2021	1 346	598	1 617	2 073	1 880	931	713	265	802	10 225
2022	1 643	721	1 882	2 537	2 215	1 179	882	249	874	12 182
2023	1 887	803	2 082	2 699	2 563	1 333	961	255	1 006	13 589
2024	2 193	825	2 337	3 070	2 753	1 554	999	307	1 157	15 195
2025	2 430	857	2 554	3 190	2 844	1 563	1 101	300	1342	16 181
2026	2 696	870	2 659	3 270	2 946	1 705	1 237	392	1 371	17 146
2027	2 828	907	2 806	3 302	3 093	1 767	1 242	385	1 326	17 656
2028	3 272	902	2 821	3 747	3 266	1 821	1 365	397	1 292	18 883
TOTAL	20 938	7 508	21 783	27 566	24 896	13 547	9 883	2 992	10 845	139 958

Source: PERSAL, February 2019

Reply:

(a) and (b) (i)

The Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) are responsible for providing schools with the necessary computer equipment. It is for this reason that the Department of Basic Education (DBE) does not keep updated information on the number of schools provided with the necessary computer equipment. Such updated information should be requested from the PEDs.

(ii) Besides training offered by the provinces, the DBE has trained 43774 teachers in computer skills. Furthermore, teachers will be trained on coding from June to September 2019.

 

Reply:

The Department of Basic Education is currently embarking on a process to strengthen measures related to the appointment of educators in general and in particular school-based educators. This includes, among other measures, a protocol clarifying the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders with regards to vetting of educators and all other staff employed in positions where they will have contact with learners. The key stakeholders include the Departments of Social Development, Justice and Constitutional Development; the South African Council of Educators and the School Governing Body Associations.

Reply:

1. (a) In terms of Personnel Administrative Measures, Government Gazette No. 39684, dated 12 February 2016, an educator that is appointed as a marker must have at least a recognised three year post matric qualification which must include the subject concerned at second or third year level. In addition the marker must have appropriate teaching experience, including teaching experience at the appropriate level, in the subject concerned, language competency, and preference must be given to serving educators who are presently teaching the subject concerned.

(b) In terms of the appointment of markers for 2018, including Business Studies, the marker must have taught the subject or a related subject at the Grade 12 level for a minimum of two years in the last five years.

2. In terms of the Regulations Pertaining to the conduct, administration and management of National Senior Certificate Examination, the Head of an Assessment Body (i.e. the Provincial Education Department) is responsible for the appointment of markers. These records are therefore kept at the nine provincial education departments and not at the Department of Basic Education. Therefore access to the list of markers appointed to mark the 2018 NSC Business Studies examination should be obtained directly from the Heads of Department in each of the nine provinces.

Reply:

 

1. The National Education Infrastructure Management System (NEIMS) database indicates the assessment history of the schools as follows:

• An assessment was conducted on 08 April 2006, 20 September 2006 and 08 April 2014;
• The last assessment was conducted in July 2018, as part of the capacity audits determination for feeder zones.
• It must be noted that visual assessments were also conducted by the school and during the school readiness visits that occur on a quarterly basis.

2. Yes, the inspections have taken place in line with the education sector prescripts.

3. There are various prescripts for inspections in the education sector. These inspections vary and they include but are not limited to the following:

• School-Readiness Quarterly Assessments;
• Emergency Maintenance queries and complaints (inspections are done by works inspectors to ascertain the level of damage and the cost implication thereof);
• Assessments done by professional service providers, once schools have been identified to undergo major capital rehabilitation to define the scope and extent of the works;
• As part of the school capacity audits, assessments were done to look at the high level of infrastructure;
• Research Assessments done by education stakeholders (e.g.) Equal Education and Section 27;
• Visual inspections are done by principals of schools;
• Provincial Legislature oversight committees conducting monitoring assessments; and
• Condition assessments done by Department of Basic Education and the custodian Department (GDID) to update the NEIMS database.

4. All claims against the Department will be processed in accordance with Section 60 of the South African Schools Act, 84 of 1996, in line with the liability.

Reply:

(a) and (b)

PROVINCE (a)	2016/17 (b)	2017/18 (b)
EASTERN CAPE	171	230
FREE STATE	21	44
GAUTENG	65	98
KWAZULU-NATAL	172	234
LIMPOPO	115	161
MPUMALANGA	30	86
NORTH WEST	41	52
NORTHERN CAPE	9	20
WESTERN CAPE	31	84
Grand Total	655	1 009

Source: PERSAL

Reply:

(a) and (b)

PROVICE (a)	2016/2017(b)		2017/2018(b)
	Post Level L1	Post Level L2	Post Level L3	Post Level L4	Grand Total		Post Level L1	Post Level L2	Post Level L3	Post Level L4	Grand Total
EASTERN CAPE	552	141	44	171	908		763	189	56	230	1 238
FREE STATE	211	38	14	21	284		355	75	23	44	497
GAUTENG	419	117	44	65	645		706	254	70	98	1 128
KWAZULU-NATAL	472	154	67	172	865		724	254	60	234	1 272
LIMPOPO	536	118	30	115	799		959	161	43	161	1 324
MPUMALANGA	190	52	21	30	293		366	103	33	86	588
NORTH WEST	191	48	9	41	289		379	81	25	52	537
NORTHERN CAPE	47	16	3	9	75		110	33	14	20	177
WESTERN CAPE	146	52	20	31	249		418	140	59	84	701
Grand Total	2 764	736	252	655	4 407		4 780	1 290	383	1 009	7 462

Source: PERSAL

Reply:

a) (i)& (ii)

Table below indicates the number of schools opened and closed since 2017 -18 financial year.

PROVINCE	Closed schools	New Schools
	Officially Closed	Provisionally Closed	Total
EC	456		456	7
FS	51		51	13
GT	1		1
KZN	22		22	7
LP	2	20	22	7
MP
NC	0		0	0
NW
WC	5		5	11
NATIONAL	537	20	557	45

Source: EMIS Master list

(b) (i) ,(ii) & ( iii)

Refer to link: https://www.education.gov.za/QuestionNo742Schoolsbuiltandcloseddown.aspx

 

Reply:

a) Readiness in terms of budget

The plan will be operationalised starting 2019 with a preparatory phase, followed by three roll out phases focusing on the provision of gadgets with pre-loaded content including, but not limited to, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) Workbooks. The three phases target firstly learners in multi-grade and rural farm schools secondly learners in quintile 1 to 3 schools, and lastly learners in quintile 4 and 5 schools. The source of funds for the rolling out of tablets to all schools will utilise money previously allocated to the following:

1. Printing of Workbooks and textbooks since workbooks and textbooks are being digitised and will be pre-loaded into gadgets. Currently the workbooks are printed for a single use. Through converting the books to a downloadable, interactive electronic format, the longevity of the books would be increased as they could be used multiple times. In addition, loading workbooks onto electronic gadgets would have the added benefit of decreasing the dating and marking workload for teachers (as this could be done electronically) and minor edits could be made to the electronic versions without having to reprint and distribute, which would be much more cost effective than re-printing and distributing the books annually.
2. Grant money (e.g Operation Phakisa, Maths Science and Technology (MST) School Funding and other grants) will also be used for this purpose.
3. Money will also be drawn from the Provincial Education Equitable share funding to fund the plan.
4. The Private Sector will also be approached to beef up any short fall.

b) Readiness in terms of teacher training.

The DBE is on a trajectory towards the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and recognises that it is crucial to onboard key stakeholders like teacher unions, and to provide effective change management, training and support, not only to teachers but also for subject advisors and curriculum developers. Since 2005 province wide programmes on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) integration training for both teachers and subject advisors have been running. Training is classified into three levels: Basic Skills, Intermediate Skills and Advanced Skills. In some provinces such as Gauteng where there has been a rollout of SMART boards in the classroom, subject advisors and coordinators were trained on the use of interactive boards and tablets. In October 2016 the Directorate Curriculum Innovation and e-Learning had already developed three online platforms to train teachers on the use of technology to deliver the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum. The three platforms are:

1. The DBE MOODLE PLATFORM available at : https://dbemoodle.dedicated.co.za, the platform is a Learning Management System (LMS) (paperless) to deliver lessons with daily content and self marking learner classroom activities that are CAPS compliant. Hence saving time and hard work for teachers. The platform is for classroom utalisation with a teachers laptop and learner gadget to run an LMS.

2. DBE Cloud available at: http://www.dbecloud.org.za/lms/dbe/, the platform aggregate content and make it available online for parents, learners, teachers, subject advisors, subject coordinators and subject specialists.

3. Thutong Portal available at: http://www.thutong.doe.gov.za/, the platform is an online learning space managed by subject specialists at the DBE.

Training of teachers, subject advisers, subject coordinators and subject specialists at the DBE is ongoing, utilising the three platforms to integrate ICTs into teaching and learning. These trainings are coordinated and guided by the Professional Development Framework for Digital Learning which was approved by Council of Education ministers (CEM) in September 2017.

c) Readiness in terms of provision of security at school.

There is readiness in terms of security at school, conceptualised based on the categories as indicated below:

Computer Labs

Schools have to comply to very stringent security measures before a computer lab can be installed in that school. This will include among others the visibility of the lab to the surrounding community so that the community can report on matters that may put the security of the lab at risk. This go hand in hand with allowing communities to co-own these labs with schools so that communities can also benefit in using these labs. The specifications also include that the labs must be in the first floor to avoid roof entry, they must have safe iron doors and there should be only small horizontal windows with strong burglar bars to prevent entry. Other security measures include a dedicated alarm system, strict management protocols by schools regarding access to the lab and keys control.

Classroom tablets / cellphones

Suppliers of Classroom tablets/cellphones are required to adhere to strict supply specifications in terms of security of these gadgets. These include that these gadgets must be a trolley that is secured and can be locked while in the classroom. The trolley should have wheels to ensure that after use the gadgets can be transported from the classroom for safe keeping in the school safe made of brick and with an iron door. There should be a strict protocol approved by district and provinces from the school regarding the issuing and collection of these gadgets after lessons.

Take home gadgets

In other provinces such as Gauteng learners and teachers are allowed to take these gadgets home to keep them secured. In the next gadget delivery to teachers and learners, the DBE plans to design gadgets that are community unfriendly and only friendly for educational use only, without compromising the quality of the gadget.

Reply:

MINISTER – (GAUTENG PURPOSE)

(aaa) 2016-17 financial year

VEHICLE PURCHASED

a) MAKE – MERCEDES -BENZ

b) MODEL – MERCEDES –BENZ GLE 500 (W166)

c) PRICE – R 849 900.00

d) DATE PURCHASED – 15/09/2016

(bbb) 2017-18 financial year =NONE

MINISTER -

VEHICLE PURCHASED

a) MAKE –

b) MODEL –

c_ PRICE –

d) DATE PURCHASED –

(bb) since 1 April 2018 =NONE

MINISTER –

VEHICLE PURCHASED

a) MAKE –

b) MODEL –

c) PRICE –

d) DATE PURCHASED –

DEPUTY MINISTER –

(aaa) 2016-17 financial year

VEHICLE PURCHASED = NONE

a) MAKE –

b) MODEL –

c) PRICE –

d) DATE PURCHASED –

(bbb) 2017-18 financial year

DEPUTY MINSTER – (CAPE TOWN PURPOSE)

VEHICLE PURCHASED

e) MAKE – BMW

f) MODEL –BMW 5 SERIES SEDAN

g) PRICE – R 833 488.41

h) DATE PURCHASED – 28/03/2018

(bb) since 1 April 2018

DEPUTY MINISTER –

VEHICLE PURCHASED

i) MAKE – AUDI

j) MODEL – AUDI Q7.3 OTDI QUATTRO

k) PRICE – R 1 015 702.05

l) DATE PURCHASED –15/10/2018

COMPILER

MRS N THEBE

D: LOGISTICAL SERVICES

DATE

MR J VISSER

D: SECURITY AND ASSETS MANAGEMENT

DATE:

OFFICIALS INVOLVED

MS N MOLALEKOA

CD: ADMINISTRATION FINANCE

DATE:

MR PRM KHUNOU

DEPUTY DIRECTOR-GENERAL: FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION

DATE:

MR HM MWELI

DIRECTOR-GENERAL

DATE:

MR ME SURTY, MP

DEPUTY MINISTER

DATE:

COMMENT:

QUESTION 693 APPROVED / NOT APPROVED / AMEND

MRS AM MOTSHEKGA, MP

MINISTER

DATE:

 

Reply:

The information has been requested from the Gauteng Education Department and will be provided as soon as it is received.

Reply:

Response: (1)(a) (i) (ii)

Table 1: Number of (i) deaf and hard of hearing learners, by province, in 2018

Province	Deaf (i)	Hard of Hearing (ii)	Grand Total
Eastern Cape	722	1 819	2 541
Free State	364	285	649
Gauteng	1 305	510	1 815
KwaZulu Natal	1 359	1 090	2 449
Limpopo	494	189	683
Mpumalanga	191	138	329
North West	290	88	378
Northern Cape	98	46	144
Western Cape	935	219	1 154
Grand Total	5 758	4 384	10 142

Source: 2018 LURITS II

(1)(b) The data on the number of deaf and/or hard-of-hearing learners who may have been denied access to education due to the lack of resources is not available at the Department of Basic Education and should be solicited from Provincial Education Departments (PEDs).

(2) Deaf learners in Mpumalanga are accommodated in the following five (5) schools:

• Marietjie Special School;
• Wolvenkop Special School;
• KaMagugu Special School;
• Silondokuhle Special School; and
• Bukhosibetfu Full Service School.

(3) The information about the date for the envisaged building of a school for Deaf and/or hard-of –hearing learners should be obtained from a province as schools are established by the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for education in the province.

Reply:

(a) (i) One building

(ii) None

(iii) None

(aa) None

(bb) Public Private Partnership Agreement

(b) (i) Not applicable

(ii) The value of the building is unknown and the purpose is for office accommodation for the Department of Basic Education

(c) (i) The Public Partnership Agreement is for a contract period of 25 years

(ii) The Public Private Partnership is for the Department of Basic Education

(iii) Monthly Unitary fee is R13 731 406.74 excluding VAT