Spare pupils the madness

IN A country where for many children and their families, education is the only path out of poverty and the only hope for ascending to the higher rungs of social status, the right to education should be treated as sacrosanct.

Of course we can argue about the quality of the education our children receive in the basic education system as it currently stands, however that does not negate that education is imperative especially for learners in disadvantaged communities.

Preventing children from going to school should be treated in the most serious light. Given that the right to education is entrenched in the Bill of Rights within the constitution – the highest law in the land – blocking children’s access to schooling is a crime.

Learners are increasingly being used as pawns by parents and community members in their battles against the department of education itself and government at various levels.

Children are held to ransom, they are hostages in circumstances where neither the state nor communities place their interests at the fore.

Class time and contact time with teachers is invaluable to the success of learners, especially in the foundation phases where the basis is laid for the grasping of concepts in scientific subjects such as mathematics and physical science and in language subjects.

Protesting communities like those that are currently on the streets in Limpopo have good reason to be frustrated with the level of service they are receiving from the state.

They are also justified to question why the department of education in the province has once again let their children down by failing to deliver stationery that is indispensable to their learning.

While the basic education department places a lot of emphasis on the matric pass rate that is rising annually, it must begin to address the glaring deficiencies of the system across all grades.

In 2016 Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga herself admitted that the system is in crisis. But many experts and civil society organisations had been flagging problems in the system way before then.

In the last two decades, subsequent governments have undertaken a difficult experiment in integrating the many disparate systems of education that existed under apartheid.

It has engaged in curriculum reform and various forms of teacher training and re-skilling.

A lion’s share of national budgets have been spent on the system. But the results tell us that the experiment is not working.

It is imperative that the department and communities begin to put the interests of children first.

Instead of keeping children out of class, parents and communities need to work with government and use the correct channels to compel the department to provide a quality service to their children.