Restricting choice

IF THE bill was to pass unchanged, the Head of Department (HoD) will decide whether home education (HE) is in the best interest of my child and whether I, the parent am qualified and accepts the responsibility.

This decision is my right and responsibility, not that of the HoD. With HE I facilitate my child’s learning. Home educating parents are concerned about their child’s education and emotional well-being. They choose different approaches/curricula in the child’s best interest. They spend hours researching the options and only then do they accept this responsibility.

The DBE would like to restrict all pupils to the same curriculum and grade levels. In HE pupils learn at their own pace and not in a grid format. They can accelerate learning in one area and move at a slower pace in another. Mastery is key.

The DBE proposes that each parent’s curriculum be assessed. This will be an administrative nightmare and will only result in them enforcing Caps on every child, thus limiting my right to choose the education that is in my child’s best interest.

Furthermore, they state that the pupil’s educational attainment be assessed annually by a competent assessor, approved by the HoD, at the parent’s own expense who will use Caps as the standard and will provide the HoD with the pupil’s assessment report. Yearly assessments will be of little worth. What will the assessment accomplish if a pupil in public school can progress to the next grade with a pass rate of 20%? This will place a financial burden on parents and increase the administrative load of the DBE.

The bill is clearly an effort by the DBE to restrict learning to Caps. It does not promote education and will greatly limit a parent’s rights. Anelle Burger Bellville