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05 April 2022 - NW921

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether, with reference to the internationally benchmarked systemic tests that were conducted by the Western Cape Education Department in January 2021, which provide for an independent analysis of learning losses suffered by learners during the COVID19 pandemic and rotational attendance by learners, her department has any plans to increase funding to support catching up of the curriculum, as the specified systemic tests have clearly showed that gains achieved in mathematics and language have reversed; if not, why not; if so, what amount in funding is being considered?

Reply:

The question asked has direct implication to the work of the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) of the Western Cape Provincial Government who has direct jurisdiction to the work referred to, not the Minister of Basic Education. The question has therefore been referred to the MEC of the Western Cape Department of Education for response. 

05 April 2022 - NW1150

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Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       What is the current (a) total number of (i) registered and (ii) unregistered early childhood development centres (ECDs) in the Republic and (b) breakdown of the number of ECDs in each province; (2) what (a) has she found to be the demand for such facilities and (b) number of the specified facilities meet compliance standards; (3) what number of children (a) need access to the facilities and (b) can the facilities accommodate; (4) what (a) is the current state of ECD infrastructure in the Republic, (b) number of ECDs do not have access to water, sanitation and electricity and (c) is the budget that was allocated to ECD infrastructure?

Reply:

The DBE has just completed the fieldwork on the National ECD Census and is busy with data analysis. The honourable member is therefore humbly requested to allow the DBE to finalise the analysis process and release the Census data as this will enable the DBE to respond.

05 April 2022 - NW1164

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Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What amount remains unspent on the budget for the (a) Basic Education Infrastructure Grant, (b) conditional grants and (c) funds from the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative in the 2020-21 financial year?

Reply:

What amount remains unspent on the budget for the 

(a) Basic Education Infrastructure Grant:

No amount was unspent on the budget. The total budget was transferred to provinces.

(b) conditional grants and 

The other conditional grants budgets were transferred fully, with exception for Learners with Profound Disability Grant where an amount of R17.1 million was not transferred to two province, namely, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape.

(c) funds from the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI) in the 2020-21 financial year?

Unspent amount for ASIDI was R321 million.

05 April 2022 - NW901

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Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether, with reference to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the increase of automation, more use for robotic components and an urgent need to upskill those whose jobs are in danger of becoming redundant and the many opportunities for the Republic to benefit from the changes 4IR will bring, her department has a plan to focus on skills development to ensure that (a) young persons are ready for this new development in the world and (b) the Republic does not fall further behind on a global scale; if not, why not; if so, what are the further, relevant details?

Reply:

Whether with reference to the fourth Industrial revolution, the increase of automation, more use for robotic components and an urgent need to upskill those whose  jobs are in danger of becoming redundant and the many opportunities for the Republic to benefit from changes 4IR will bring, her department has a plan to focus on skills development to ensure that (a) young persons are ready for the new development in the world and (b)the Republic does not  fall further behind on a global scale, if not why not; if so what are the further, relevant details?

Response

Basic Education Sector is at the centre of realigning the output of young people that the economy requires. The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) is at the centre of this realignment of the required skills of the future. The Department of Basic Education has a roadmap which it has followed by the development of a Coding and Robotics Curriculum for Grades R-9 which will eventually be offered in the FET Band (Grades10-12) responding to the changing work environment. This roadmap is aligned with the National Development Plan (NDP) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) to ensure that learners going through the educations system, are being exposed to Coding and Robotics will develop the Foundational Skills required from a workplace that has been changed by the 4IR e.g. Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, Automation of production systems, etc.  

Through the Coding and Robotics Curriculum, the DBE aim is to upskill the educators, education officials and youth in these areas. The Application Skills envisaged in the draft Coding and Robotics targets these specific skills required. In a short to medium term, the public-private partnerships including industry and Higher Education Institutions should activate plans that will mediate the required 4IR skills to the current workforce, to cushion the impact of change management and negative impact of automating the economic tools of production on labour.

The DBE has awakened to the realisation that the “Skills of a Changing World” is a reality that the country requires. Thus, the development and piloting of the Three Steams Model (Academic, Vocational and Occupational Steams) and the Multi-Certification Strategy in the curriculum offering by the DBE

The DBE has Orientated the Grade R-8 piloting schools’ teachers in the Draft Coding and Robotics Curriculum. The University of South Africa is currently training 950 Foundation Phase teachers in Coding and Robotics. This training will realise its objectives in the third quarter of 2022 with the support from the ETDP-SETA.

(b)the DBE does not believe that we are falling behind from the 4IR space since we are the country is amongst the first in the world to develop a formal Coding and Robotics curriculum which provide learners with necessary skills and competencies. There is no need to panic, as automation of the economic tools is not equal to job losses automated Machinery and Robots will need skilled personnel to design, manufacture, programme and code them. The   capacitation of our Human Resources both active in the economy through in-service programmes that the youth can be   part of and those in our education system will contribute to job creation and economic development noting the required “Skills of the changing world. The DBE is partnering with the private sector to resource and fund the programmes for teacher development and the youth at large

31 March 2022 - NW645

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       What interventions are made for the (a) development and (b) reskilling of (i) under- and (ii) unqualified teachers; (2) whether there are mechanisms in place to monitor the quality of teaching delivered by the specified teachers in the classroom; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

Response:

1.    (a) The DBE does not have developmental programmes for (1) unqualified teachers because the sector does not appoint such teachers since it is against the SACE requirements and laws. (2) the DBE has a small percentage of educators who are under qualified. To qualify this, these are educators with Diplomas in teaching - 3 year programme from former colleges of education. As per the guidelines of roles and responsibilities of subject advisors, they are entrusted with the responsibility to constantly provide improvement content programmes as indicated in the DBE three-year CPTD plan. Under-qualified teachers are also encouraged to enrol for the PGCE in order to upgrade their skills in specific content.

2.    The Department has mechanisms to monitor the quality of teaching through the QMS and trackers for the whole cohort of teachers without aggregating per level of qualifications.

30 March 2022 - NW251

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

In light of the fact that many schools in the Eastern Cape have still not received their stationery, which measures has she put in place to follow-up on suppliers about the deliveries?

Reply:

The Department together with the Provincial Education Department in the Eastern Cape Province as well as the project management office appointed by the EC continues to engage on daily meetings with distributors for continuous monitoring and control of the deliveries currently taking place.

30 March 2022 - NW870

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Sharif, Ms NK to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What (a) is the total number of incidents of (i) sexual harassment and (ii) sexual assault that were reported in her department (aa) in each of the past three financial years and (bb) since 1 April 2021, (b) number of cases (i) were opened and concluded, (ii) were withdrawn and (iii) remain open or pending based on the incidents and (c) sanctions were meted out against each person who was found guilty?

Reply:

(a) (i) and (ii) In terms of section 17 of the Employment of Educators Act, cases of sexual nature are identified as sexual misconduct and as such are not recorded as sexual harassment or sexual assault. Since the inception of Collective Agreement 3 of 2018 which entrusted the responsibility for discipline management of sexual misconduct cases to the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC), the Department of Basic Education (DBE) rely on the information provided by the ELRC on cases of sexual misconduct. 

(aa) Therefore, according to the information received from the ELRC a total of 152 cases were received by the ELRC in the 2019/20 until 2021/22 financial years. This is the total number of the active cases and finalised cases. 

(bb) 66 cases were reported for 2021/22 financial year.

(b)   Cases (i); (ii); and (iii)

Year

Cases Opened

Cases concluded

Cases withdrawn

Cases pending

2019/20

Information not provided

20

0

17

2020/21

Information not provided

29

0

6

2021/22

Information not provided

33

0

47

TOTAL

         -

82

0

70

(c) Sanction for persons who were found guilty of sexual misconduct is dismissal.

30 March 2022 - NW761

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Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

How does the Quality Learning and Teaching campaign galvanise civil society to support and ensure the delivery of quality education?

Reply:

 In support of the provisioning of quality learning and teaching, the Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign (QLTC) has established inclusive QLTC structures across all levels of the system. In addition, the QLTC has established partnerships with relevant stakeholders who support education programmes.  The QLTC  has  developed monitoring and support programmes that assist the system to identify areas of need as well as develop strategies for intervention. The QLTC further participates in advocacy and campaigns to create awareness on critical programmes of education. The campaigns are conducted in collaboration with relevant stakeholders that will be  youth formation, traditional  leaders, Faith-Based Organisations, Non-Profit Organisations,  SGBs, Businesses, etc. 

28 March 2022 - NW837

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       What is the total number of teachers who have been identified as under-qualified for their positions in the (a) 2019, (b) 2020 and (c) 2021 academic years; (2) what is the total number of teachers who have been identified as (a) under- and (b) unqualified in each district where they do not possess the relevant (i) subject knowledge and/or (ii) qualification covering teaching methodology in the classroom in the specified period; (3) what is the name of each school that is affected by teachers who were found to be either unqualified and/or under qualified; (4) whether her department has taken any steps to compel the specified educators to attend further education to upskill themselves in the missing subject knowledge and/or teaching methodology qualifications; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

(1) (a) 912 (b) 706 (c) 547

(2) In terms of the valuation of educator qualifications, unqualified educators that are both academically and professionally unqualified with the qualification equivalent to Grade 12 while the under-qualified educators are those that are professionally qualified both in terms of subject matter and methodology but below the minimum qualification of matric plus three-year professional qualification. The table below summarises the number of qualified and unqualified educators as of December 2021. Only 218 were appointed permanently.

PROVINCE

UNQUALIFIED (a) (I)(ii)

UNDER-QUALIFIED (b)(i)(ii)

TOTAL

EASTERN CAPE                                      

29

132

161

FREE STATE                                        

44

40

84

GAUTENG                                           

8

62

70

KWAZULU/NATAL                                     

123

15

138

LIMPOPO

1

17

18

MPUMALANGA                                        

56

32

88

NORTH WEST                                        

3

84

87

NORTHERN CAPE                                     

308

10

318

WESTERN CAPE                                      

456

155

611

TOTAL

1 028

547

1 575

3. The detailed information per district and school is attached as Annexure A.

4. Over the years the Department has implemented various programmes, particularly, to assist un-and-under-qualified educators to improve their qualifications. The National Professional Diploma was implemented as an interim qualification for the purpose of upgrading under-qualified educators. 

24 March 2022 - NW774

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Opperman, Ms G to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       What total number of learners are not in any (a) early childhood development centre, (b) primary school and/or (c) high school due to a lack of (i) identity documents and/or (ii) birth certificates; (2) what total number of matriculants could not write the National Senior Certificate examination in 2020 due to lack of identity documents?

Reply:

1. (a) The Department has not yet taken control of early childhood development centres; and therefore, would not be able to provide such information. the function shift will only take place in the 2022/3 financial year.

(b) and (c) The Department is not aware of any learner at primary or high school, who has been denied access to schooling due to lack of identity documents or birth certificate. Such documents have been outlawed as prerequisites for admissions by the Court of Law; and that the Department has issued Circulars and mediated the information to all provinces, Districts and schools.

 (2)   We are also not aware of learners who could not write  the National Senior Certificate examination in 2020, due to lack of identity documents.  A Circular to that effect by Umalusi, was distributed and mediated to all schools.    

                                                                                                             

24 March 2022 - NW760

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What (a) is the (i) current average teachertopupil ratio in the Republic and (ii) recommended ratio and (b) steps are being taken by her department to ensure that the recommended ratio is applied across all schools?

Reply:

(a) (i) The average national teacher-to-pupil ratio in 2021 was 1:31.4 (School Realities, published in January 2020). 

(ii) There is no regulated teacher-to-pupil ratio in South Africa. However, there is an established guideline that the average teacher-to pupil ratio at public ordinary schools should not be above 1:35 at primary and 1:40 at secondary schools. Although the afore-mentioned guideline which was established in terms of the Education Labour Relations Council's Resolution 4 of 1995 has since been replaced by the current post provisioning norms, it is being used as a point of reference.

(b) As indicated above, there is no regulated teacher-to pupil ratio in public education. 

24 March 2022 - NW649

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What is the (a) current total cost of school vandalism that occurred in the 2020-21 financial year, (b) breakdown of the total cost in respect of each province, (c) total number of vandalised schools that are (i) not operational, (ii) semi-operational and (iii) fully operational, (d) breakdown of learner capacity of the schools that are not operational (i) in each province and (ii) nationally and (e) total number of vandalised schools that had plans underway to repair damages in the specified financial year?

Reply:

(a)    R135 549 259.

(b)    EC: R13 893 274.12.

        FS: R11 970 558.79.

        GP: R47 000 000.00.

        KZN: R50 000 000.00.

        LP: The PED utilised the Norms and Standards funding for repairs.

        MP: R3 059 644.50.

        NC: R9 625 782.00.

        NW: The PED utilised School Norms and standards funding for repairs.

        WC: The PED utilised the Norms and Standards funding for repairs.

(c) All schools are fully operational.

(d) As per above.

(e) All schools were repaired or provided with mobile classrooms where required, and are fully operational.

24 March 2022 - NW796

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       (a) By what date will the systemic tests commence nationally and (b) what grades will the specified tests cover; (2) whether all learners in those grades will be tested; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) who has formulated the tests; (4) whether the tests have been internationally benchmarked; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (5) whether the tests will be independently marked; if not, who will mark them; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

(1)       (a) By what date will the systemic tests commence nationally and (b) what grades will the specified tests cover;

            The systemic tests commenced on 28 February 2022 and covers grades 3, 6 and 9.

(2)       whether all learners in those grades will be tested; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;

           In line with international testing methods, an intact class is randomly selected in approximately 3000 sampled schools for participation. All learners in this class participate but the learners in the other classes do not. This methodology maintains that a random selection of learners is able to statistically represent the broader learner population. The selected class is not known to the school before the test administration and the test items are confidential. 

(3)       who has formulated the tests;

        The tests were developed by test development panels who have been appointed and specifically trained by the Department of Basic Education to set high quality test items using item response theory. 

(4)       whether the tests have been internationally benchmarked; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details;

            Yes, the tests and test items have been quality assured by the Australian Council for Education Research (ACER)

(5)       whether the tests will be independently marked; if not, who will mark them; if so, what are the relevant details?    

            The tests have only multiple choice questions which are marked by a computer system. The marking is automated to reduce error and improve efficiency of resulting.                          

24 March 2022 - NW745

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Mokgotho, Ms SM to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

By what date will the construction of the primary school in Mamusa Ward 5 in the North West, which her department commenced with in 2015, be completed?

Reply:

The question has been referred to the North West Department of Education and a response will be provided as soon as it is received.

24 March 2022 - NW842

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Schreiber, Dr LA to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What total amount in Rand has been spent on (a) catering, (b) entertainment and (c) accommodation for (i) her, (ii) the Deputy Minister and (iii) officials of her department since 29 May 2019?

Reply:

Item

 

 

 

 

 

(i)Minister

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

(a)Catering

 

R250 116.50

R2 268.23

R846 620.54

(b) Entertainment

 

R3 942.86

N/A

N/A

(c)Accommodation

Foreign

R467 832.40

N/A

R517 439.79

 

Domestic

R939 288.34

R159 237.37

R462 351.84

 

(ii)Deputy Minister

 

 

 

(a)Catering

 

R8 573.70

R30 000.00

N/A

(b) Entertainment

 

R1 651.60

N/A

N/A

(c)accommodation

Foreign

R237 932.03

N/A

N/A

 

Domestic

R584 789.89

R989 829.05

R1 277 926.79

 

(iii)Other Officials

 

 

 

(a)Catering

 

R20 704 303.00

R3 457 792.24

R4 494 936.00

(b)Entertainment

 

R140 303.40

R3 159.10

R47 610.26

(c)accommodation

Foreign

R3 910 625.20

R10 683.04

R1 532 877.43

 

Domestic

R54 594 428.70

R17 723 630.00

R36 457 309.90

16 March 2022 - NW759

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What measures have been put in place by her department to develop a curriculum that empowers the youth to be manufacturers and producers of goods and services, which can be consumed in the communities where they reside?

Reply:

The Department of Basic Education has introduced the Three-Stream Curriculum Model. Through this Model the DBE seeks to strengthen the offerings of subjects that equip learners with skills and competencies that enables them to fix, maintain and build products, such subjects include woodworking where learners are able to build chairs, tables, cabinets just to give an example.

Learners also offer hospitality subjects, where learners amongst others learn how to cook.  The products produced through learning these subjects may be sold during open days at schools as well as to individuals who are willing to purchase them.

Children in Agricultural schools are not only taught how to produce agricultural produce, but are also taught entrepreneurial skills, and how to access the markets to sell their produce.

These are some of the efforts of the Department offer curriculum that teach learners how to manufacture and produce goods and services which can be consumed by communities they reside in.

16 March 2022 - NW685

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Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What is the total number of (a) single-medium schools of each language in the Republic, (b) schools for each language in each province and (c) single-medium schools that were closed in each province in the (i) 2020-21 and (ii) 2021-22 financial years and (ii) what were the reasons for each closure?

Reply:

Response: (a) (b)

Table 1 indicates that, there were 7 106 single medium schools in the country. Majority of these schools were English medium with 5 964 schools.

Number of Single Medium Schools per Province, in 2021

Source: LURITS 2021

(c) (i) During the 2020/21 and 2021/22 financial years there were eight (8) single medium schools that were closed and these schools were from Mpumalanga.

(ii) Reasons for closure: There are various measures that can lead to merger or closure of schools. The Department of Basic of Education has provided Provincial Education Departments with Guidelines for Rationalisation and Re-alignment of Public Schools; Holistic Approach. The primary objective of the School Rationalisation process is to continue providing universal access to quality basic education in a rational manner, doing so cost effectively with respect to resource provisioning, where the costs being referred to are not only limited to monetary costs but also socio-economic imperatives.

16 March 2022 - NW644

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       What is the total number of teachers who have been identified as under-qualified for their positions in the (a) 2019, (b) 2020 and (c) 2021 academic years; (2) what is the total number of teachers who have been identified as (a) under- and (b) unqualified in each district where they do not possess the relevant (i) subject knowledge and/or (ii) qualification covering teaching methodology in the classroom in the specified period; (3) what is the name of each school that is affected by teachers who were found to be either unqualified and/or under qualified; (4) whether her department has taken any steps to compel the specified educators to attend further education to upskill themselves in the missing subject knowledge and/or teaching methodology qualifications; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

(1) (a) 912 (b) 706 (c) 547

(2) In terms of the valuation of educator qualifications, unqualified educators that are both academically and professionally unqualified with the qualification equivalent to Grade 12 while the under-qualified educators are those that are professionally qualified both in terms of subject matter and methodology but below the minimum qualification of matric plus three-year professional qualification. The table below summarises the number of qualified and unqualified educators as of December 2021. Only 218 were appointed permanently.

PROVINCE

UNQUALIFIED (a) (I)(ii)

UNDER-QUALIFIED (b)(i)(ii)

TOTAL

EASTERN CAPE                                      

29

132

161

FREE STATE                                        

44

40

84

GAUTENG                                           

8

62

70

KWAZULU/NATAL                                     

123

15

138

LIMPOPO

1

17

18

MPUMALANGA                                        

56

32

88

NORTH WEST                                        

3

84

87

NORTHERN CAPE                                     

308

10

318

WESTERN CAPE                                      

456

155

611

TOTAL

1 028

547

1 575

3. The detailed information per district and school is attached as Annexure A.

4. Over the years the Department has implemented various programmes, particularly, to assist un-and-under-qualified educators to improve their qualifications. The National Professional Diploma was implemented as an interim qualification for the purpose of upgrading under-qualified educators. 

15 March 2022 - NW296

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Chirwa, Ms NN to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What steps has she taken to ensure that the allegations of corruption and mismanagement at Nokuthula Special School in Johannesburg are fully investigated and (b) by what date will her department ensure that the resources needed by the learners at the specified school are supplied?

Reply:

The administration and management of schools is the competence of provincial education departments.  I therefore, had to consult with the MEC for Education in Gauteng Province, who has advised that: 

(a) The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) has instituted an investigation on financial irregularities at the school, based on an anonymous tip off received on 29 November 2021.  The investigation is expected to be complete by 31 March 2022.

(b) The school is a section 21(1)(c) of the South African Schools Act, 1996; and is responsible to purchase textbooks, educational materials, or equipment from the specific budget allocated.  For the 2021/22 financial year, the school has received 100% of its allocated budget to fulfil the allocated function.

10 March 2022 - NW472

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What (a) is the current backlog of schools requiring (i) sanitation, (ii) electricity, (iii) water, (iv) replacement due to inappropriate materials and (b) total number of the schools was provided with the specified infrastructure in the (i) 2019-20 and (ii) 2020-21 financial years?

Reply:

a) (i) 35 of the scope on the ASIDI programme

    (ii) The scope for electricity is completed

    (iii) 101 of the scope defined on the ASIDI programme

    (iv) 41 of the scope defiend on the ASIDI programme

 

b) (i) Sanitation: 544 on the ASIDI & SAFE programmes

        Electricity: Scope completed

        Water: 87 on the ASIDI programme

        Inappropriate Structures: 28 on the ASIDI programme

    (ii) Sanitation: 263 on the ASIDI and SAFE programmes

        Electricity: Scope completed

        Water:  100 on the ASIDI programmes 

        Inappropriate Structures: 32 on the ASIDI programme

10 March 2022 - NW228

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Shembeni, Mr HA to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What action has she taken to ensure that the Mjokwane Secondary School in Nkomazi, Mpumalanga, which was declared a science school, is provided with sufficient (a) number of teachers and (b) learner support material, such as computers?

Reply:

What action has she taken to ensure that the Mjokwane Secondary School in Nkomazi, Mpumalanga, which was declared a science school, is provided with sufficient (a) number of teachers and (b) learner support material, such as computers?

(a) number of teachers

There are norms and standards which stipulate learners teacher ratio. Mjokwane Secondary School is treated like any other public school in the country in terms of the number of teachers which this school should have. If there are vacant posts, the management of the school would follow all the necessary procedures to appoint teachers.  

(b) learner support material, such as computers

The same applies with learner materials, there are also norms and standards which govern how learner materials should be distributed. All schools in the country operate homogeneously in term of learner materials. For an example, one learner gets one textbook for a subject a learner is offering. Schools which offer Computer Applications Technology (CAT) have computers. Mjokwane Secondary School does not offer CAT hence computer at this school is primarily used for administration purposes. Kindly note the subjects offered at Mjokwane Secondary School from their 2021 Grade 12 Results:

 

10 March 2022 - NW247

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Tafeni, Ms N to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What assistance is provided to families of learners in public schools who cannot afford to buy books and stationery?

Reply:

The procurement of textbooks and stationery are managed by Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) through their allocated budgets for Learning and Teaching Support Materials(LTSM). The Department of Basic Education (DBE) has developed catalogues for Grades R-12 from which Provinces have to procure textbooks for all their learners in different grades. The DBE delivers only workbooks for Grades R to 9 to about 24 000 public schools. In addition, DBE has developed state owned resources for Reading ( Grades 1-3 Readers and Big books in 11 Languages) Physical Sciences, Natural Science and Technology and Mathematics in selected Grades and provinces have been provided with DVDs with these materials for printing. For stationery, provinces have been provided with allocations on LTSM to procure for all learners. These state owned resources were also made available on DVDs and are accessible through the DBE website.

10 March 2022 - NW625

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Nolutshungu, Ms N to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What total number of schools in (i) the Eastern Cape and (ii) KwaZulu-Natal are still without scholar transport, (b) by what date will each specified school that needs assistance from her department with scholar transport be provided with such assistance and (c) what is the total budget allocation by her department for scholar transport for each specified province?

Reply:

a) (i) 00 and (ii) 397

b) The shortage of scholar transport in KwaZulu Natal is attributed to shortages in funding from the Equitable Share. Discussions are however, ongoing with the respective Provincial Treasury to ensure that the Learner Transport Programme in KwaZulu Natal is funded, adequately. The Sector is also working towards an integrated sectoral school infrastructure planning, in trying to ensure that schools are build where there is a massive need, to relief pressure off the Learner Transport Programme. In the interim, the Sector is also working closely with the Department of Transport through the Shova Khalula Bicycle Programme, with the primary target being learners in rural, remote and poorly resourced areas, who walk longer distances to schools are provided with bicycles. The intended outcome is to reduce travel time for learners and improve school attendance thereby providing relief to the Learner Transport programme.

c) (i) Eastern Cape-R791 380 256.52 and (ii) KwaZulu Natal-R457 000 000.00

10 March 2022 - NW615

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Arries, Ms LH to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       What total number of temporary teachers are employed in all public schools; (2) whether her department has any plans to place such teachers in permanent positions; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

(1) There are three categories of educators appointed in a temporary capacity. Those appointed in posts that are temporary in their nature or posts that are additional to the declared school post establishment. These include educators appointed in temporary posts such as Dinaledi posts, growth posts, class size reduction posts etc. Those that are appointed against vacant substantive promotional posts. This is to address the temporary workload increase as a result of the vacant promotional post. And those that are appointed in vacant substantive post level one posts. These are vacant post level one posts that are part of the post establishment of a school and are filled through matching and placement in order to ensure that there is a teacher in front of the class and are continuously being converted to permanent in terms of section 6B of the Employment of Educators Act (EEA) and Collective Agreement 1 of 2018. Therefore only the latter group can be converted to permanent if they meet the requirements of the posts.

As of the end of December 2021, there were 8 713 temporary educators that were appointed in vacant substantive post level one posts.

(2) As indicated above these educators are continuously being considered for permanent placement upon confirmation by the Head of Department after consultation with the school governing body and confirmation that they meet the requirements of the post.

10 March 2022 - NW686

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Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       (a) How is the equitable share calculation to provinces made and (b) what is the formula that is used for the portion allocated to public ordinary schools; (2) whether there is an allocation to public special needs schools; if not, (a) why not and (b) how are the learners of such schools funded; if so, what is the formula that is used; (3) whether there is an allocation for learners outside the compulsory school-going age of 7 to 15 years; if not, (a) why not and (b) how are such learners funded; if so, how is it calculated?

Reply:

Answer: 1(a): In terms of the equitable share, 48% of the overall budget should be allocated to Basic Education in the provinces but this is not always the case. The allocation of the budget (i.e. equitable share) in the provinces is the prerogative of the Provincial Executive.

Answer 1(b):  The Public Ordinary Schools’ operations are funded through the National Norms and Standards for School Funding (NNSSF). The NNSSF takes into account the quintile (Q) ranking of the schools which is pro poor with the poorest (Q1 to Q3) which are no fee schools receiving the highest subsidy. 

Answer question 2: The Department of Basic Education (DBE) does not have policy relating to the funding of Special schools.  The draft policy was not approved due to budget constraints. The DBE has developed Guidelines for Resourcing for Inclusive Education System in a quest to guide the PEDs whilst working towards a policy document in this regard.

Answer question 3: According to the National Treasury 2022 Budget, the equitable share formula for basic education is based on the age cohort 5 to 17 for school-going age and not 7 to 15. Table 2 is an example of the 2022 Budget. There is no earmarked or specific funding for learners above 17 years. The same allocation for the age cohort 5 to 17 is also extended to learners above 17 years. 

07 March 2022 - NW91

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       With reference to the violent looting that occurred in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng in July 2021, what (a) was the total cost of damages to schools in her department and (b) is the total value of goods in Rand that were looted from schools but were later recovered; (2) what is the total cost of school vandalism to her department since 2014 up to the latest specified date for which information is available?

Reply:

1 (a) The total damage to schools in both Provinces amounted to: R203 900 949.77

(b) affected provincial  education departments have been requested to respond to any information on goods and services. 

2. The request has been referred to provincial departments and a response will be provided as soon as it is received.

07 March 2022 - NW470

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       With reference to the advertised positions in Publication 25 for the position of (a) Deputy Director Reference number DBE/43/2021, (b) Deputy Director Reference number DBE/44/2021 and (c) Assistant Director Reference number DBE/45/2021 on 16 July 2021, (i) what are the job requirements for each post, (ii) on what date was each position advertised, (iii) what was the closing date of applications for each position and (iv) what are the qualification requirements for each position; (2) whether the specified positions are currently filled; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, will she furnish Mr B B Nodada with the name of each person who is currently appointed in each position?

Reply:

a. Post:

Deputy Director – Ref No: DBE/43/2021

Branch: Social Mobilisation and Support Services

Chief Directorate: Care and Support in Schools

Directorate: National School Nutrition Programme

(I) Job Requirements:

Three year relevant (NQF level 6) post matric qualification or equivalent qualification as recognised by SAQA; Four (4) years’ relevant experience at supervisory/middle managerial level in a Nutrition related field (must submit academic record or statement of results with application). Knowledge of relevant education policies and current trends in the field of education and nutrition; Knowledge of the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS); Knowledge of policy formulation; Knowledge of project and financial management; General knowledge of research methods and tools; Good knowledge of public sector legislative and regulatory environment; Proven experience in report writing; Proof of a valid driver’s license is a prerequisite (travel extensively).Skills Required: Coordination, facilitation, analytical, critical and creative thinking; Strong report writing skills and communication (verbal and written); Attention to detail and high level of accuracy, effective public relations and public speaking skills; Self-disciplined; Ability to work well under pressure with minimum supervision; Leadership, management and conflict resolution skills; Strong organisational, planning and problem solving skills; Supervisory and Inter-personal skills; Proven ability to engage in proactive and informative discussions at all levels; A high degree of sound judgement in dealing with Government Officials, counterparts and other role-players. Computer literate in MS Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint.

ii) Date of Advert

  1. July 2021

iii) Closing date of advert

30 July 2021

iv) Qualification requirements

Three year relevant (NQF level 6) post matric qualification or equivalent qualification as recognised by SAQA

 

(2)         Status of post DBE/43/2021

Shortlisting to be held 04 March 2022

        b. Post:

Deputy Director – Ref No: DBE/44/2021

Branch: Social Mobilisation and Support Services

Chief Directorate: Care and Support in Schools

Directorate: National School Nutrition Programme

i) Job Requirements:

Three year relevant (NQF level 6) post matric qualification or equivalent qualification as recognised by SAQA; Four (4) years relevant experience at supervisory/middle managerial level; Knowledge of relevant education policies and current trends in the field of education and nutrition; Knowledge of policy formulation; Knowledge of project and financial management; General knowledge of research methods and tools; Good knowledge of public sector legislative and regulatory environment; Proven experience in report writing; Proof of a valid driver’s license is a prerequisite (travel extensively).Skills Required: Coordination, facilitation, analytical and creative skills; Strong report writing and communication (verbal and written); Attention to detail and high level of accuracy, effective public relations and public speaking; Critical thinking and self-discipline; Ability to work well under pressure with minimum supervision; Leadership, management, conflict resolution; Strong organising, planning and problem solving; Supervisory and Inter-personal; Computer literate in MS Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint.

ii) Date of Advert

  1.      July 2021

iii) Closing date of advert

30 July 2021

iv) Qualification requirements

Three year relevant (NQF level 6) post matric qualification or equivalent qualification as recognised by SAQA

 

(2)         Status of post DBE/44/2021

                             Shortlisting was held 15 February 2022 – Submission is on route for approval of shortlisted candidates

c. Post:

Assistant Director – Ref No: DBE/45/2021

Branch: Social Mobilisation and Support Services

Chief Directorate: Care and Support in Schools

Directorate: National School Nutrition Programme

i) Job Requirements:

The applicant should have a three-year relevant post matric qualification (NQF Level 6) or equivalent as recognized by SAQA; and at least three years’ experience in the relevant field with a proven record in project management; Understanding of government strategic vision and public service legislation and policies pertaining to the education sector in South Africa; Knowledge of project and financial management; Co-ordination, facilitation, analytical and creative skills; Strong communication (verbal and written); Computer literacy skills (MS Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint) and interpersonal skills; Experience in community nutrition will be an advantage; Proof of a valid driver’s license is a prerequisite. Skills Required: Project management; Conceptual and analytical skills; Financial management; Coordination and training/facilitation skills; Assessment and provision of guidance on the nutritional needs of schoolgoing children; Report writing, Strong communication and interpersonal skills; Leadership, conflict resolution, negotiation and problem-solving skills; MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint; Ability to establish and work with a spectrum of stakeholders

(ii)         Date of Advert

  1. July 2021

iii) Closing date of advert

  1. July 2021

iv) Qualification requirements

The applicant should have a three-year relevant post matric qualification (NQF Level 6) or equivalent as recognized by SAQA

(2)         Status of post DBE/45/2021

Shortlisting to be held 08 March 2022.

07 March 2022 - NW471

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

With regard to the projects implemented as part of the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative of her department, what is the total number of schools that (a) were built, (b) were provided with sanitation, (c) were connected to water, (d) were supplied with electricity and (e) had renovations undertaken to eliminate pit toilets in the (i) 2019-20 and (ii) 2020-21 financial years?

Reply:

(i) FY 2019-20

(a)    28

(b)    103

(c)    87

(d)    The electricity scope for ASIDI was completed in previous years.

(e)    DBE does not do renovations in ASIDI to eliminate pit toilets.

 

(ii) FY 2020-21

(a)    32

(b)    41

(c)    100

(d)    The electricity scope for ASIDI was completed in previous years.

(e)    DBE does not do renovations in ASIDI to eliminate pit toilets.

07 March 2022 - NW503

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Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       Whether all teacher posts are filled at the (a) Siloe School for the Blind, (b) Setotolwane Learners with Special Education Needs Secondary School, (c) Rivoni School for the Blind and (d) Yingisani Learners with Special Education Needs in Limpopo; if not, why not; if so, (i) on what date will hostel or house staff posts be filled and (ii) what are the further relevant details; (2) whether there are any therapists available to the specified schools; if not, why not; if so, what are the details in each case?

Reply:

(1) (a), (b), (c) (d) (i)(ii) and (2). The two sub-questions have been referred to the Limpopo Department of Education and the response will be forwarded as soon as information is received from the province. 

07 March 2022 - NW557

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Shembeni, Mr HA to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What progress has been made to resolve the non-payment of stipends for teacher assistants in the Eastern Cape and (b) which other province has failed to pay their teacher assistants over the past 12 months?

Reply:

(a) The question has been sent to Eastern Cape Head of Department for a response. 

(b) The Department will provide the response as soon as it is received. 

07 March 2022 - NW573

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Siwisa, Ms AM to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether the teacher who administered corporal punishment on a Grade 4 learner at Willow Primary School in Heideveld has been put on suspension pending outcome of investigation; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

The provincial education department, Western Cape Education Department (WCED) is dealing with the matter via the disciplinary procedures.

They reported that the teacher was not suspended pending the investigation as her presence at school will not jeopardise the investigation or endanger the wellbeing or safety of the learner. The learner was placed in another class. The social worker, who is supporting the learner confirmed that the learner is happy in her new class.  The WCED has a policy of zero tolerance with regard to corporal punishment. The allegation is being investigated. If there is substantive reliable evidence for a charge of misconduct, the teacher will be formally charged.   

02 March 2022 - NW104

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       Whether her department has any programmes and/or workshops that intend to upskill and improve the professional development of teachers nationwide; if not, who is responsible for the training and continued professional development of teachers after they have graduated and qualified; if so, (a) how is the success of the specified programmes measured and (b) what is the success rate of the programmes; (2) whether her department has any public-private partnerships with education training institutions in order to provide professional development workshops to teachers in the country; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) whether she will furnish Mr B B Nodada with a list of programmes that are currently underway in each province; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

Question 1: The Department of Basic Education (DBE) has a number of programmes and/or workshops that intend to upskill and improve the professional development of teachers nationwide. Together with provinces, DBE developed a three-year plan which highlights all national priority programmes. These programmes and implemented by all provinces and monitored quarterly by the Department.  The success of these programmes is monitored by subject advisors as they regularly visit schools. Tracking of learner participation and performance in provinces through the NSLA has an indirect way of assessing teacher programmes.  The DBE has further just developed impact assessment tools which will used as from 2022 to determine the impact Teacher Development programmes.

Question 2: The Department has 133 District Teacher Development Centres and 9 Provincial Teacher Development Institutes which are used as hubs for Continuing Professional Teacher Development. The DBE also collaborates with Teacher Unions to deliver DBE priority programmes. The Department further works with the National Education Collaboration Trust (NECT) to delivery the Primary School Reading Programme to General Education and Training (GET) teachers. A number of partners such as Sasol Foundation for Coding and Robotics,  Siyavula for Maths and Sciences, Cisco, SchoolNet and Vodacom for ICT programmes and Higher Education Institutions such Wits and University of Johannesburg in ICTs and Maths programmes and UNISA for Coding and Robotics.

Question 3: As indicated in Question1, the Department will share the 3- year plan for Continuing Professional Teacher Development (CPTD). The Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) have a range of programmes covering a wide scope of subjects and grades. Some of the DBE initiated programmes are

* Support for Further Education and Training (FET) Accounting and Economics teachers

* Support for Senior Phase Mathematics and Natural Sciences

02 March 2022 - NW252

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What (a) is the current total number of schools that still have pit toilets in the Republic and (b) action is currently being taken to totally eradicate them?

Reply:

(a) At the inception of Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) Initiative, Provincial Departments of Education identified schools dependent on basic pit toilets.

  • A total of 3898 schools were identified at the time.
  • Subsequent to that, some schools were closed as part of rationalisation and the sanitation at some schools were addressed under other programmes.
  • At present, there are 2814 schoosl on the SAFE programme.
  • Of these 2814 schools, the upgrading of sanitation has been completed at 1564 schools.
  • The balance of the schools are scheduled for completion by the end of 2022/23..

(b)The Department of Basic Education is currently engaging with Provinces to establish whether such Provinces became aware of additional schools dependent on basic pit toilets.  Early indications are that there are some additional schools in Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo.

02 March 2022 - NW567

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Langa, Mr TM to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

On what date is it envisaged that infrastructure of schools like Impumelelo Combined School in kwesakwaMthethwa under the kwaMbonambi Municipality will be repaired, so that they are in an acceptable condition that gives hope to our children for a better future?

Reply:

The question has been referred to the KZN Department of Education and a response will be provided as soon as it is received. 

02 March 2022 - NW560

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Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What measures has she put in place to ensure that there is no overcrowding of learners at (a) Wesbank Secondary School and (b) Ilingelethu Secondary School in Malmesbury?

Reply:

The question has been referred to the Western Cape Department of Education and a response will be provided as soon as it is received.

02 March 2022 - NW393

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Ceza, Mr K to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

By what date will additional classrooms be built for the L D Moetanalo Secondary School in Middelburg, Mpumalanga?

Reply:

The question has been referred to the Mpumalanga Department of Education and a response will be submitted as soon as it is received.

02 March 2022 - NW371

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Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       (a) What is the total staff component at the (i) Helen Franz Special School and (ii) Tshilidzini School for Special Education in Limpopo, (b) what is the total number of vacancies at each specified school, (c) how long have the vacancies existed in each case and (d) on what date will the vacancies be filled; (2) whether there are any therapists at the specified schools; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) whether she intends to undertake an oversight visit to the specified schools to ensure that learners with special educational needs are being catered for appropriately; if not, why not; if so, on what date will (a) she visit and (b) she report to the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education about her findings?

Reply:

(1)(a)(i)((ii), (b), (c),(d) and (2). The two sub-questions have been referred to the Limpopo Department of Education and the response will be forwarded as soon as information is received from the province. 

(3) The Minister does not have plans to conduct an oversight visit to Helen Franz Special School. However, the Minister will, after assessing the information provided by the Limpopo Department of Education, request the Member of Executive Council (MEC) and the Head of Department (HoD) to address any issues identified.

02 March 2022 - NW370

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Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       Whether, with reference to the transfer of early childhood centres (ECDs) to her department, her department intends to put more emphasis on registering ECDs that are currently unregistered; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) whether she has found that the transfer is going to result in more resources for ECDs; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, (3) whether there has been additional budget allocation for this purpose in the 2021-22 financial year; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

1) The Department of Basic Education is committed to creating an enabling registration process to facilitate the registration of more ECD programmes. To this end, the Department of Basic Education has conducted the ECD Census to determine the number of unregistered ECD programmes, and to identify areas that may require additional registration support. The Department has also held a broad stakeholder engagement session on 30 November 2021 to better understand the challenges in the registration process. It is recognised that there is a multitude of challenges facing ECD programmes in the registration process, and the Department has been working alongside the Department of Social Development in the Second Children’s Amendment Bill to, among other things, address some of the challenges which arise from the legislation, regulations, norms and standards. Similarly, the Department is in the process of ensuring that an online registration capturing system is in place to streamline the back-end processes related to registration. Finally, the Department has also partnered with organisations in the sector on a research study to better understand the current barriers to registration emanating from the current norms and standards. This research will enable the Department to come up with a more developmentally appropriate approach to ECD registration.

2) The Government Handbook on Function Transfers clearly stipulates that the principle to be followed in a function shift is that resources follow function. That means that all resources (human, financial and capital) that are connected to a function, need to be transferred from the relinquishing department to the receiving department. As guided by the Department of Public Service & Administration and the National Treasury, the DBE and DSD have followed this principle closely. In the financial year following the function shift, the same resources that have been devoted to ECD by the DSD will be devoted to ECD in the DBE. That being said, the Department has had multiple meetings with the National Treasury to seek additional funding for ECD, where National Treasury has committed that they have included ECD as a top priority in subsequent years. The Department will be working very closely with the National Treasury in the 2022/23 financial year, to build a business case for additional funding. This business case will build on the evidence collected through the ECD Census, the Thrive by Five Index and the Public Expenditure and Institutional Review.

3) No additional budget was allocated to the ECD function shift during the 2021/22 financial year, given that the function shift is an administrative process. Projects aimed at future improvements to the ECD function were undertaken through partnerships with key donor organisations.

02 March 2022 - NW349

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What number of staff vacancies existed at the various levels of the process of administering the National Senior Certificate examinations in the 2021 academic year?

Reply:

The DBE has collated the information from the nine Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) in terms of the vacancies at both the provincial head office level and at the district level, together with the DBE, and the table below provides the summary:

Province

Head Office

District

Eastern Cape

36

67

Free State

5

10

Gauteng

43

5

KwaZulu Natal

72

174

Limpopo

8

10

Mpumalanga

13

14

Northern Cape

33

12

North West

15

3

Western Cape

44

2

DBE

11

 

Total

280

297

 These vacancies exist across the following functions:

(a) Printing, packing, distribution  and storage of question papers.

(b) Monitoring of the writing.

(c) Marking 

(d) Data Capture

(e) Certification

(f) School Based Assessment

(g) System Administration

(h) General administrative responsibilities

PEDs have appointed staff on contract basis and utilised staff from other Units to assist with the examination functions, so as to ensure that the examination functions are not compromised. 

02 March 2022 - NW348

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Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What is the current vacancy rate for (a) teachers, (b) teacher assistants and (c) principals in each province?

Reply:

(a) The table below shows the vacancy rate for teachers (Post Level 1) in each province in terms of the latest available information which is at the end of December 2021.

PROVINCE

All PL1 Teachers

Number of PL1 vacancies

Vacancy rate

EASTERN CAPE                                      

44 054

4 777

10.8%

FREE STATE                                        

17 172

121

0.7%

GAUTENG                                           

54 863

87

0.2%

KWAZULU/NATAL                                     

72 037

2 237

3.1%

LIMPOPO PROVINCE                                  

40 828

3 219

7.9%

MPUMALANGA                                        

26 850

74

0.3%

NORTHERN CAPE                                     

7 236

23

0.3%

NORTH WEST                                        

21 786

89

0.4%

WESTERN CAPE                                      

25 712

40

0.2%

Grand Total

310 538

10 667

3.4%

Source: Persal, December 2021

(b) There is currently no national policy/norms to create posts for teacher assistants. 

(c)The table below shows the vacancy rate for principals (Post Level 1) in each province in terms of the latest available information which is at the end of December 2021.

PROVINCE

Number of Principal Post

Number of Principal vacancies

Vacancy rate

EASTERN CAPE                                      

5 190

1 032

20%

FREE STATE                                        

1 069

55

5%

GAUTENG                                           

2 215

355

16%

KWAZULU/NATAL                                     

5 882

1 457

25%

LIMPOPO PROVINCE                                  

3 732

850

23%

MPUMALANGA                                        

1 676

325

19%

NORTHERN CAPE                                     

556

108

19%

NORTH WEST                                        

1 487

271

18%

WESTERN CAPE                                      

1 525

334

22%

Grand Total

23 332

4 787

21%

Source: PERSAL December 2021 

02 March 2022 - NW268

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Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What total number of educators have been permanently placed through the Qualified Educators Recruitment Database programme since its introduction?

Reply:

Educators Recruitment Database is one of several sources of supply for the recruitment of educators. The Department provides the database as a service to districts and schools to access as one of the sources of supply to widen the pool of potential recruits to a national level. The Department does not actively manage the database as a placement service and therefore does not keep record of recruitment and actual placement from the database.

02 March 2022 - NW261

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Hendricks, Mr MGE to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       Given that Matric results are released under the exam numbers and clearly not contravening the Protection of Personal Information Act, Act 4 of 2013, and in light of the High Court ruling that Matric results be published on public platforms, what rationale did she use in her decision not to have the Matric results published in the printed media and on other public platforms; (2) whether she will reconsider the decision and/or advice of officials, as their actions clearly embarrassed her Office; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details

Reply:

1) It needs to be understood that the application of the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPI), Act 4 of 2013, in its current context, is new and there are no settled interpretations to some of the clauses in the Act.  The Department therefore, consulted extensively on this matter, specifically with regard to whether the examination numbers of candidates constitutes the personal information of the learner, before a decision could be made.  Besides the legal advice that was sought on this matter, the DBE also engaged the Information Regulator on this matter, both in writing and in meetings. 

The DBE was reminded by the Regulator that the Department could be penalised if found to be violating the prescripts of the POPI Act.  Therefore, the DBE adopted the cautious approach not to publish the results of the 2021 candidates in the media, and use this year to investigate this matter more thoroughly and extensively, to ensure a more considered and fully explored option is implemented for the Class of 2022.  This position was adopted in consideration that no candidate would be disadvantaged, given that the complete results of the candidates were available at the school, on the morning of the release under supervised conditions, and also the results were available on the DBE website.          

(2) There was certainly no embarrassment to the Department, given the fact that this matter was open to different legal interpretations.  We therefore, had no issue in complying with the order of the court.  In terms of future years, through the learner application forms, we will obtain from each Grade 12 learner and their parents, their individual consent with regard to the publication of their results in the media at the end of this year.     

02 March 2022 - NW151

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Bagraim, Mr M to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether she and/or her department ever received correspondence from a certain political organisation (details furnished), via email, WhatsApp, hardcopy and/or in any other format of which the original file is dated June 2020; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, (a) on what date was the specified correspondence received, (b) who was the sender of the correspondence and (c) what steps were taken by her department in this regard?

Reply:

(a) (b) (c) 

The Department of Basic Education is not aware of the correspondence referred to. 

01 March 2022 - NW179

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Kruger, Mr HC to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(a) What number of supplier invoices currently remain unpaid by (i) her department and (ii) each entity reporting to her for more than (aa) 30 days, (bb) 60 days, (cc) 90 days and (dd) 120 days, (b) what is the total amount outstanding in each case and (c) by what date is it envisaged that the outstanding amounts will be settled?

Reply:

(a) 

(i) Department of Basic Education

(aa) 30 days,  - 5

(bb) 60 days, - 2

 (cc) 90 days - 0

 (dd) 120 days,- 5

 

 (b) what is the total amount outstanding in each case:

 

No.

Order No

Amount

1

OR-013041

R24 909,00

2

OR-013070

R15 715,90

3

OR-012896

R4 218,20

4

OR-012347

R5 043,90

5

OR-012537

R2 314,38

6

OR-012733

R3 769,65

7

OR-012996

R10 301,62

8

OR-012708

R12 105,27

9

OR-012668

R9 078,95

10

OR-012742

R18 157,91

11

OR-012725

R12 105,27

12

OR-012816

R583 239,30

13

OR-012925

R16 883,00

(c) by what date is it envisaged that the outstanding amounts will be settled?       

  • 15 March 2022  

               

(ii) UMALUSI - See Annexure A Response received from UMALUSI 

 (aa) (bb) (cc) (dd), (b) and (c) 

 

SACE See Annexure B Response received from SACE 

  (aa) (bb) (cc) (dd), (b) and (c) 

01 March 2022 - NW516

Profile picture: Stubbe, Mr DJ

Stubbe, Mr DJ to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What is the (a) make, (b) model, (c) year of manufacture, (d) price and (e) purchase date of each vehicle purchased for use by (i) her and (ii) the Deputy Minister since 29 May 2019?

Reply:

There are no new cars for Minister and her deputy purchased since 29 May 2019. However, below are details of their current cars:

(a) What is the (a) make:
    (i) Mrs. AM Motshekga, MP Minister
        1. BMW - Cape Town
        2. Mercedes Benz – Pretoria


    (ii) Dr MR Mhaule MP Deputy Minister
        1. BMW - Cape Town
        2. AUDI - Pretoria


(b) Model
    (i) Mrs. AM Motshekga, MP Minister
        1. 535i Sedan
        2. GLE 500
    (ii) Dr MR Mhaule MP Deputy Minister
        1. 530
        2. Q7 3.0 TDI Quatro


(c) Year of Manufacture
     (i) Mrs. AM Motshekga, MP Minister
        1. BMW - 2014
        2. Mercedes Benz - 2016
    (ii) Dr MR Mhaule MP Deputy Minister
        1. BMW - 2018
        2. AUDI - 2018


(d) Price
    (i) Mrs. AM Motshekga, MP Minister
        1. BMW - R769,022.76
        2. Mercedes Benz - R849,900.00
    (ii) Dr MR Mhaule MP Deputy Minister
        1. BMW - R833,488.41
        2. AUDI - R1,015,702.05


(e) Purchase Date of vehicle
    (i) Mrs. AM Motshekga, MP Minister
        1. BMW - 23 September 2014
        2. Mercedes Benz - 26 October 2016
    (ii) Dr MR Mhaule MP Deputy Minister
        1. BMW - 28 March 2018
        2. AUDI - 13 December 2018

21 February 2022 - NW44

Profile picture: Van Der Walt, Ms D

Van Der Walt, Ms D to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

(1)       Whether, with reference to the (a) Siloe School for the Blind, (b) Setotolwane Secondary School for Learners with Special Education Needs, (c) Rivoni School for the Blind and (d) Yingisani School for Special Education, all teacher posts are filled; if not, (i) why not and (ii) by what date will each specified position be filled; (2) whether, with reference to the specified schools, all hostel and/or house staff posts are filled; if not, (a) why not and (b) by what date will each such position be filled; (3) whether any therapists are available to the schools; if not, why not, in each case; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?

Reply:

(1), (2) and (3). The Question has been referred to the Limpopo Department of Education and the response will be forwarded as soon as information is received from the province. 

21 February 2022 - NW242

Profile picture: Chirwa, Ms NN

Chirwa, Ms NN to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education

With regard to over 900 interns in the Eastern Cape who were dismissed by the department in the province before the end of their contracts, (a) what are the reasons that she did not intervene in the matter, (b) how was the money that was budgeted for the programme utilised if not for the interns and their remuneration, (c) on what date is it envisaged the interns will receive their remuneration and (d)(i) how will she ensure that all the interns are absorbed and (ii) by what date is it envisaged that they will be absorbed?

Reply:

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) has no jurisdiction in the appointment of interns by Provincial Education Departments. The matter should therefore be directed to the Eastern Cape Department of Education (EC DOE). In the interim, the DBE has directed the matter to the EC DOE.

11 January 2022 - NW2760

Profile picture: Thembekwayo, Dr S

Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What was the status quo in each province for delivering infrastructure projects through the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative as at the latest date for which information is available?

Reply:

 

Please see the attached table:

11 January 2022 - NW2462

Profile picture: Thembekwayo, Dr S

Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Basic Education

What intervention has she made in the Tshikombani Primary School in Nzhelele Circuit in Limpopo, where an administration block caught fire in a case of suspected

Reply:

 

Please find attached response as provided by the LP DoE

11 January 2022 - NW2680

Profile picture: Hendricks, Mr MGE

Hendricks, Mr MGE to ask the Minister of Basic Education

​1. Whether, noting that school learners should be taught about the importance of the sanctity and integrity of the human body (details furnished), her department’s Colloquium on Comprehensive Sexuality Education under the main theme the Key to Gender Responsive and Socially Inclusive Education with regard to the curriculum for 2022 will consider supporting views on fatherhood as expressed by leaders such as the late Chief Albert Luthuli; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; 2. whether her department has refrained from accepting Eurocentric ideas in the curriculum for 2022; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; 3. whether her department has ever considered that the school curriculum should rather be based on true African, Islamic, Christian, Jewish and Hindu values, instead of Eurocentric values; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

 

  1. The Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) content in Life Orientation (LO) covers fatherhood, responsibility and accountability when addressing issues of early and unintended pregnancies to indicate that pregnancy is not just a burden for girls, but a collective responsibility of both girls and boys when it occurs. The fatherhood work is extended outside the curriculum in the implementation plan of the prevention and management of learner pregnancy in schools.
  2. In South Africa, the curriculum is implemented on the basis of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), which has been developed in the South African democratic and constitutional context. The CAPS has a very explicit Afrocentric focus.
  3. The curriculum content is designed in a South African context, which promotes constitutional values and principles, and embraces multiculturalism and diversity in terms of religious practices and other identities.