Free teachers from fear on Teachers’ Day
WORLD Teachers’ Day tomorrow is meant to be an important day for teachers and all involved in education.
Many countries, including South Africa, have identified education as a basic human right. If it is, even those who have the responsibility to provide it must be taken care of; they must be treasured, because a threat to them is a threat to the provision of education.
World Teachers’ Day, as declared by Unesco, is meant to be the day when teachers and their role in the development of societies are celebrated.
However, today teachers have nothing to celebrate because of the conditions they work under. The status of teachers has deteriorated. Teachers cannot celebrate when on an almost daily basis they are assaulted and killed on duty. They teach with fear.
Teachers have become hopeless because even the Education Department is not taking steps to curb the violence. Our fear is that the country is running the risk of losing committed and experienced teachers who are increasingly deciding to leave teaching or go overseas to work.
Besides the life-threatening situations, teachers are generally not happy with how they are paid. They are not convinced that the salary they get is commensurate with the work they do.
Most teachers are stressed and suffer from work-related depression, which the department does not help them to deal with, and wellness programmes are not easily accessible.
Teachers are overloaded as the department sometimes does not fill vacancies.
Most teachers are members of the Government Employees Medical Scheme and complain of its inefficiencies. Contributions keep increasing while benefits shrink. More frustrating is that teachers cannot move out of the scheme as the department will not contribute if they do.
Many teachers resign to access their pension to cover the education of their children or buy a house as they do not qualify for government social housing and their children do not qualify for the funding scheme.
Teachers feel that even the South African Council of Educators has abandoned them. They feel it only acts when allegations are made against teachers. The implication of being de-registered from the council is that the teacher will never practise again.
Teachers feel helpless; they cannot fight back when attacked by pupils whose rights appear to be prioritised over those of teachers.
There must be radical change with regard to teachers’ status.
On this World Teachers’ Day, society must mourn. It is time to mourn for all the attacks on and murders of teachers. Society must reclaim its position and be instrumental in changing the status quo. Teachers must be protected by the communities where they work.
We still believe it is through education that our societies can be developed. Even the transformation agenda that many talk about needs education. And there can be no education if teachers work under fear, and if teachers are demoralised and demotivated.
On World Teachers’ Day tomorrow, society should celebrate teachers. During this day, society must be reminded about the importance of teachers. It must start to take ownership of teachers and responsibility for their safety in schools. This day must be used as a platform to remind parents about their role in the education of their children. Parents must leave teachers alone in the education of their children.
The SA Democratic Teachers Union wishes teachers a happy World Teachers’ Day, with our prayer being to see a changed environment where teachers can do their work freely, without fear. Caluza is KwaZulu-Natal secretary of the SA Democtratic Teachers Union.