Zingiswa Losi
A great deal has been said about the Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Bill signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Tragically, much of it has been false, clouding a necessary debate about how we improve education outcomes for learners and enhance their employment opportunities when they enter the economy.
Cosatu and our teachers’ trade unions engaged extensively on the Bill at Nedlac and Parliament. It has been an inclusive and genuine process of public participation.
Some have speculated that it will collapse the government, it won’t. Many of the Bill’s critics are not speaking to its common sense and progressive provisions, which will benefit learners, parents and teachers.
The Act seeks to correct challenges experienced by many in our schools.
Cosatu has supported the Act and is looking forward to its implementation for the following reasons:
* It establishes Grade R as a required part of schooling for all learners.
This will lay a stronger foundation for learners entering Grade 1, to ensure they are ready and not simply those who were able to attend Grade R. Ultimately it seeks to ensure more learners reach Grade 12 and pass matric.
* It strengthens provisions requiring learners to attend school and holding parents accountable for their children’s attendance.
Absenteeism is a major problem. While children may not always appreciate the importance of attending class and doing well at school, society has a vested interest in this. A well-educated workforce is key to provide workplaces with the skilled workforce we need to grow the economy. This is critical to avoid creating a permanent class of unemployed.
* Clear guidelines for school admission and diversity and inclusivity policies to prevent unfair discrimination and exclusion of learners.
This is one of the major points of contestation. Time and again society has been shocked by the humiliating removal of a young African girl from school because of her hairstyle. All too often Black parents have been told there is no space for their children at a predominantly White school, while White learners are quietly admitted.
Surely, we must all embrace the values of a non-racial education system as envisioned by the Freedom Charter drafted many years ago by the ANC and as prescribed by the Constitution.
If we genuinely seek to overcome the still prevalent apartheid economic and social divides, then we need to actively create that non-racial society in our schools. Two worlds in one country is not a sustainable economic model.
* Clear guidelines and checks and balances for school language of instruction policies to ensure that learners’ needs, diversity and all South Africans’ linguistic rights are accommodated.
This is the second major area of contestation. As with their admissions and dress code policies, schools will draft their language policies, but these will be subject to the guidelines and approval of the Education Department.
No one is banning Afrikaans. That would be unconstitutional. Afrikaans is a South African language, the majority of its speakers are Coloured compatriots.
All the Act is saying is that if a school has a single language of instruction and there is a need for an additional language of instruction, then a discussion will need to be had, and resources made available to enable this.
This is important as we have seen some rural schools where the language of instruction is Afrikaans, but many African learners would prefer and do better if an additional language was included, e.g. English or Sepedi.
Surely that will not cause the sky to fall. It will give those learners a stronger chance of doing well. And one can be sure that when those children are playing during break, they will not pick up Afrikaans, XiTsonga etc from each other.
We should not be blind to the reality that African learners have been forced for centuries to learn in English and Afrikaans. Is it unreasonable that a genuine effort be made to include African languages or even just English as a language of instruction when the need arises?
* Recognition of South African Sign Language as a language of instruction and learning.
This will open up learning opportunities for thousands of learners with hearing impairments and compel the state to do more to ensure all learners with disabilities have access to education.
* Strengthening rules prohibiting drugs, alcohol and weapons from schools and empowering schools to search for and confiscate such items as needed.
Schools have a legal obligation to ensure all learners and staff are safe and thus must be fully empowered to provide a safe learning space.
* Banning corporal punishment and initiation practices from schools.
The recent scandals at Stellenbosch University are a reminder that common sense is not always guaranteed, and laws must be set to stop unacceptable behaviour.
* Centralised procurement of key materials, e.g. textbooks, which can help save costs and reduce corruption.
The textbook scandal in Limpopo a few years ago where learners had to wait for months to receive their books, is a reminder of the need to centralise procurement of key items to ensure all learners have the materials they need and to help save the fiscus money.
* Making it easier for single parents to register their children at school when their ex-partners are absent.
* Measures to ensure financial accountability and prohibiting officials from doing business with schools to ensure we uproot the cancer of corruption so prevalent in society.
We note the President’s delaying of the admissions and language provisions for three months to allow for further engagements. It is critical that if any further amendments are made, that they strengthen, not weaken, this progressive law.
Reconciliation is an ongoing journey. It requires all parties to participate and even to compromise.
Despite heated emotions, we must bear in mind the objective of education is to ensure all learners, not simply the better off, receive the best possible education and when they enter the labour market, they are ready to work, their career and earning potential is maximised, the economy has the skilled workforce it needs and ultimately society is better off.
Cosatu President Zingiswa Losi
BUSINESS REPORT