I still find myself deeply bothered by our education system.
I’m not the gullible type and I’m not entirely ignorant of the transactional nature of everything. But for some reason, I never really noticed how ingrained capitalism is in our education system.
And quite frankly, I am sickened to my stomach, because it turns out that the “outcomes” referred to in our outcomes-based education, is deepening our economic divide.
Thirty years into democracy and I’m wondering how we have tolerated this for as long as we have.
It is painfully obvious to me that the key to our prosperity as a nation, is an intense and laser-sharp focus on quality education.
We literally need to ignore every other necessary government spending for a decade or more, in favour of education spending.
Forget the potholes and let hospitals fall apart, train lines rot and government services remain antiquated for a period of time.
Because if we give our kids an exceptional level of education, they will come back and fix everything to benefit them; so they can achieve their dreams.
Last week, I criticised Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi for giving performance bonuses to two of his district directors for the province’s increased matric pass rate. I found it ridiculous that the kids’ hard work got rewarded with applause, while the executives got cash for essentially doing nothing more than their jobs.
But there is something that Lesufi and I agree on in principle – that all our learners should be educated to the same standard, so that they can all take the same exams.
Lesufi wants our two examination systems to be amalgamated, instead of one for government schools and a perceived higher quality one for private schools writing the IEB exams.
The general consensus is that this is the beginning of the end for those educated in government schools. Even if the difference in quality is only a perceived one.
There are exceptions of course, like the case of the exclusive private school in Johannesburg that produced a dismal matric result of just over 50%, contrasting starkly with the overall 98% matric results for the Independent Education Board (IEB).
And it’s this consistently high pass rate that attracts parents, encouraging them to sacrifice enormously, to give their kids the best possible kickstart in life.
The belief is private-school kids end up doing very well in life, as bosses will give preference to other private-school kids, effectively shutting out everyone else – an “old-boy” mentality.
I know of even government department heads who prefer candidates with a private school education, or at least from former Model-C schools.
Then of course it’s no secret that most, if not all politicians send their own kids to private schools with the comfortable salary packages that they approve for themselves from our tax money.
And if that is not an admission of government-school failure of sorts, then I don’t know what is.
Lesufi has a few other progressive ideas that deserve attention. Like suggesting that teachers get tax-free salaries, so they are less likely to leave for private school posts. Whether you agree with him or not, the fact is, he is thinking about how to overhaul a system that is clearly not working, and from the looks of it, getting worse year after year.
It’s an interesting proposition that aims to put government school teachers on a relatively equal footing with those at private schools. But that is a topic we can cover another time.
For now, it’s not tenable that year after year, the majority of South African kids enter the adult world at an extreme disadvantage not of their own doing.
And it’s not tenable that business tacitly supports this, by giving preference to young people with a “better education”.
Instead of supporting equality across the board, business instead exploits the status quo by investing in private schools. Profit over social justice, it seems. Essentially they are robbing the youth of their future.
So how do we fix it? Painfully and with unwavering political will, is the short answer. This is a generational curse whose back must be broken.
Destroy existing township schools; go on a national construction campaign to build as many quality schools as needed. Incentivise the private sector to fund this drive, if needed. Make sure these schools have the exact same facilities, nurturing all aptitudes in children, by teachers on draw tax-free salaries.
Keep kids at school all day and make sure they are safe, stimulated, engaged and fed. Ensure quality control by making it mandatory for all public servants’ children to attend these schools.
Make all of this free, including free university, tied to compulsory community service afterwards.
Slap heavy taxes on any private schools that continue to operate and the profits that are generated.
Keep doing this for two generations and watch SA propel itself into immediate prosperity.
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