Education Department in deep crisis

THE education crisis in the northern areas is symptomatic of the Eastern Cape Education Department (ECED) being in deep crisis. Lest we forget it was in Pearston, Graaff-Reinet, Somerset East and a host of other towns in the province that this problem first surfaced.

The 12km protest action in Stanford Road by parents, teachers and pupils has been triggered by an inept and bumbling Education Department, unable (or afraid) to carry out its mandate of providing quality education to the pupils of this province. What are the problems facing the ECED?

Schools in all townships have been sadly neglected. The collapse of education is evidenced by the atrocious matric results, its own annual national assessment results and the fact that South Africa is always ranked bottom (or close to) of the class according to international surveys. Add to this the abnormally high drop-out rate prevalent in township schools, infrastructure deficiencies in schools in the townships – lack of decent school buildings, absence of sporting facilities, school halls, libraries and laboratories.

All this adds to the stresses and strife of the teacher in the townships.

Then we have to take cognisance of the adverse socio-economic conditions of the pupils in the townships (including the numerous service delivery protests) that add to the woes of learning and teaching. The ECED cannot say this is not its problem.

Pupils have relocated in droves to KwaZulu-Natal, the Free State and the Western Cape.

This has meant that pupils in the townships, including those who can afford (or make supreme sacrifices) to attend the ex-Model C schools have abandoned the township schools because they haven't been providing quality education.

This in turn has led to teachers being in excess in township schools which has further led to a stand-off between teacher unions, particularly Sadtu, and the ECED on the question of redeployment.

How difficult is it to place teachers in vacant substantive posts? There is apparently a discrepancy between the total number of teachers employed by the department and that claimed as actual by the unions.

How difficult is it to reconcile these totals? There must have been more than 10 head counts over the years. Is the Education Department unable or incapable of this minor service delivery?

In most modern countries today, including Australia and Canada, there's no retirement age. In addition there are many teachers roaming the streets who have resigned (some for financial reasons) who can be approached to add to the complement of teachers.

Surely some arrangement can be made to include those still willing and able to teach. Further, in-built mechanisms can be employed to ascertain whether a teacher can still play a role in teaching.

However why is it that many cannot wait until they are 60 before retiring?

Keep teachers happy! How difficult is it to process the payment of teachers who have not received their IQMS payments since June last year?

Would those in authority neglect to process and disburse payments to themselves?

On questioning the non-payment of monetary allocation to schools the reply was; "Don't worry; we'll pay before November 15". Good grief! Why hasn't the monetary allocation been made to schools?

Teachers are now more than ever saddled with fund-raising. Can they do the job of teaching effectively when they have to fund-raise to keep the school going?

If the matters mentioned do not receive immediate attention by all in the education sector, township schooling in this province will become non-existent.

Significant changes in education are however still possible and a reform agenda could be pursued to ensure incremental improvements in the education system. What we need now is a concerted effort by everyone, but most of all by the education authorities.

Hamilton Petersen, Uitenhage