Class struggle dawns

EDUCATION in “black” and ”coloured” schools are in a worse position now than in the 1970s. The breeding grounds for the 1976 revolution in our schools was the chaotic state and inequality of education in the 1970s. Today our communities are fortunate to put their children in the grand schools inherited from the apartheid-era, if you can afford it. These pupils enjoy state-of-theart facilities of an unequal system of the past.

Apartheid divided us on the basis of colour, but our new democracy divides us on the ground of economics. Is it fair that we can still have 75-80 pupils in a class since school started in January 2017 until today? Rusthof High School in Strand are still waiting for the WCED to appoint FOUR teachers to bring relief for FOUR Grade 8 classes.

I would like to know how we can expect township schools to perform well if the education authorities hesitate to provide resources to them. It is not a matter of party politics but rather a matter of a basic human right children are entitled to. You cannot blame teachers for being absent while their working conditions are abnormal.

The current situation is a perfect recipe for pupils to drop out very soon. Township school teachers should get double the salary than their counterparts in normal” schools. This will be a fair distribution if: (1) they are punctual at school, (2) are more committed to uplift township communities, (3) get involved in extramural activities of schools, (4) spend lesser time with their own children’s activities at Model C schools and (5) are productive and make a positive contribution to uplift the education of the poor. This will be the only solution to save a sinking boat.

Township communities lost faith in how schools operate since we became a democracy. Is it not a reality that the wonderful rainbow nation is divided on the grounds of economics?