Social workers plan has merit
THE Eastern Cape government has devised a plan that will not only address the problem of thousands of unemployed social workers, but also help pupils at poor and under-resourced state schools.
The province has more than 2 000 unemployed social workers, all of whom were the recipients of state bursaries in the province. The number is the third highest in the country.
Despite the promise of a job after completing their studies, many of these graduates have instead found themselves languishing at home without prospects and an income.
Social development MEC Nancy Sihlwayi on Tuesday announced a new project, which will not only open up much-needed jobs for these social workers, but will also help Eastern Cape schools battling social ills such as drug abuse, among others.
With the new plan, social workers have now been seconded to schools where they will provide social services to pupils in need. The department’s ultimate goal is to have a full-time social worker at each of the province’s more than 6 000 public primary and high schools. The first phase of the rollout will focus on 150 schools, with more being included with time.
These schools were chosen based on a report by Equal Education, which according to its website “is a movement of learners, parents, and teachers striving for quality and equality in South African education through analysis and activism”.
One of the schools earmarked for the first rollout is an East London school where 74 pupils fell pregnant in 2015.
Social development’s plan to deploy unemployed social workers to these troubled schools is a positive steps towards recognising and dealing with challenges faced by thousands of children in the education system.
Schools have become much more than just a place where children are simply taught the fundamentals to one day matriculate and, if fortunate enough, go on to study further and enter the job market.
These days, principals and teachers have to deal with an array of issues in the classroom that may go beyond the scope of their responsibilities or expertise.
The mental and emotional well-being of pupils is an important aspect of the development of a child.
Where in the past it may have been easy to simply dismiss a child’s behaviour as that of someone who was “naughty”, today acting out could be symptomatic of a much bigger problem faced in the child’s life, which teachers may not necessarily be equipped to deal with.
Peer pressure, sexual relationships, unplanned pregnancies, drug and alcohol abuse, physical and cyberbullying, poverty and complicated family dynamics are just some of the issues the youth are forced to grapple with on a daily basis.
All these issues ultimately impact on not only their school attendance, but their actual performance in the classroom.
By having easy access to a professional such a social worker, teachers can focus on their core responsibility of teaching.