The Budget is dictated to Mboweni
LISTENING to Tito Mboweni presenting this year’s Budget speech in an environment of low economic growth, a huge and rising budget deficit and debt to GDP approaching 100%, was hard.
Record unemployment, uncertain economic growth policy (just promises), social instability, tens of thousands of companies that have shut for good, over-regulation of industries and unemployment reaching a new record, as well as all indices pointing down and taxes having a shortfall in revenue projected at over R200 billion are included.
I won’t even mention corruption with no consequences, crime in all categories on the up with almost 24 000 killed in a year, like we have a civil war, and the pandemic still in full swing.
Regardless of all this, our esteemed finance minister plodded along and tried to do his best with his hand tied behind his back and keeping a straight face after laying bare the dire state of the economy. I was impressed.
He has no money or space to manoeuvre as his party dictates what he can or cannot do. Remember they forced him to allocate R10 billion to SAA against his will.
He is forced to allocate more money to the zombies of state-owned enterprises like SAA, Eskom and all the other moribund ones that have turned into black holes – sucking money through sheer incompetence and looting by unqualified cadres. I cannot understand how the government expects different results by doing the same thing over again.
My question is, how is he going to find and pay all the money that he has allocated when the fiscus does not have any more money?
There are no increases in personal taxes and practically no other taxes to recoup the money he is splashing around, except minuscule increases like a 22c increases on petrol and sin taxes when the lockdown times hampers even this, and when you think that we pay daily over R2.5bn on interest alone just to service our debt.
All his projections and numbers on his “wish-to-do-list” will depend on if he manages to bring the unions on board with the freeze on their threeyear agreement, which I doubt, as well as to cut the wage bill that has doubled in less than a decade.
BRESCIA House School has been recognised as a Microsoft Showcase school since 2013, but little did the staff, parents and pupils know that they were laying the foundation for remote learning during a nationwide lockdown at the end of March 2020.
When the lockdown was announced, it took only three days to move from integrating technology into the classroom, to teaching and learning completely online. Pupils from Grade 4 to 12 have their own laptops as part of the school’s one-to-one device programme, so this enabled most of the girls to already be familiar with using Microsoft Teams to access and submit their work online for assessment.
Microsoft Teams also provided a secure platform for pupils, parents and teachers to interact. Girls from Grade R to Matric used this to engage with their learning.
The Head of Innovation and ICT, Lyneth Crighton said that regular IT training enabled staff to develop their skills and understanding of a wide range of applications and tools for use in the classroom.
The school’s Innovation Committee brought together a range of teachers who have an interest in IT and its application in the classroom, with their role being to take the use of technology to the next level.
“I am in awe of what our teachers and our students have achieved in such a short space of time,” said Loredana Borello, Head of the High School.
From the moment lockdown commenced until the physical reopening of schools, no academic time was lost.
The IT Department also provided remote support for pupils, parents and teachers during this time. They also set up a programme for parents without devices, for their daughters to borrow these from the school during this time.
During the lockdown period, the school operations team led by the School Covid-19 Manager Paul Matthews, worked continuously to prepare the school for a return to onsite learning. A monitoring and information-gathering system was put in place and an internal Covid-19 education programme was launched.
The school implemented a conservative and staggered approach to the physical return of pupils, phasing in the grades over the course of a few weeks. While the school’s smooth transition to remote learning was a resounding success, the benefit of in-class learning must not be underestimated. Numerous studies have shown that face-to-face contact has far-reaching benefits, not only for the students, but also for their teachers.
Being together in the same physical space encourages team spirit, helps shape listening skills and facilitates other important communication skills such as conflict resolution. Pupils are more likely to engage in lively discussions when in a physical classroom with their classmates and are also able to engage in collaborative learning.
“Non-verbal cues are an important tool that helps teachers to respond to the needs of their pupils,” said Wendy Sauthoff, Head of English in the Primary School.
“It’s a lot easier to spot a furrowed brow or a confused look when you are in the same physical space. Equally, we can see when the light bulbs of understanding come on.”
In this “new normal”, Brescia House School has achieved the balance of faceto-face contact and blended learning, using technology. The school’s integrated approach offers the best of both educational paradigms.