Reopen teacher colleges

THE matric results in our Eastern Cape refer. We need to implement the ruling party resolution to reopen colleges of education and have four-year college trained teachers who are holistically trained to meet the current demands of education.

University-trained educators are more contentbased without full exposure to methodology. For example, in the training colleges there were subjects like chalkboard, physical education, library, teaching science and communication skills which are not offered to university educators.

But there are a number of factors that lead to this province remaining last in the matric class despite the efforts that teachers and the education department make.

The Eastern Cape will never move from being ranked last until the department addresses the the language policy as researched by the department of education and piloted at the Cofimvaba district.

Then, the former model C schools in the province combined got more than 85% followed by the urban and peri-urban schools where there are libraries, water, electricity, access to roads and where books arrive on time. Teachers are always willing to teach at such schools. Highly qualified teachers are concentrated at these schools. Teacher unions are under control or under the spotlight.

The bulk of poor performance comes from rural schools – there are still mud schools, books sometimes arrive as late as June, there are no libraries, SGBs are often largely illiterate, teachers are reluctant to teach in these schools, there is no water or proper sanitation, no electricity, no access to roads, poor discipline, interference by teacher unions, principals doing and managing scholar transport and school nutrition, principals unable to supervise teaching and learning in the classroom, and teachers and principals that are not as well qualified as in the urban centres.

Maths and science teachers are often unwilling to teach at these schools and there are drugs in schools and ill-discipline is a common problem.

I’m painting this picture of education in this province based on doctoral research I’m currently engaged in which has revealed multi-pronged challenges in our education system. — Andile Nontso, Andile Nontso Foundation CEO and final year doctoral student at Walter Sisulu University