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South Africa’s education system is under scrutiny

Education in South Africa is in a crisis, with Matric pass rates plummeting and tertiary institutions in turmoil.

The Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga announced that some 60.7% of Matrics passed the 2009 exams, which was just less than two percentage points down from 2008.

She said that although the shift was marginal, it was very disappointing.

In the 2008 exams, 107 274 achieved a university pass after supplementary exam successes were added, or about 20% of all those who wrote the finals.

In the 2009 exams, 109 697 Matrics achieved a university entrance pass, or about 19.8% of those who wrote, according to her department’s official report on the exam results.

Acknowledging that there was poor teaching in many schools, Motshekga said there was a need to offer more support, particularly in science.

“Management in our schools is often weak and lacks leadership and commitment. Our systems are often inefficient.

“In 2010, we shall strengthen our interventions to ensure that the class of 2010 shows a significant improvement,” said the minister.

Dismal figures in FET colleges

Dismal pass rates were recorded in the further education and training (FET) colleges sector last year, with the lowest rates achieved in maths and science, said the Mail & Guardian.

The results followed the tabling of a document at the ANC National Executive Committee lekgotla that blasted the FETs, saying they had failed South Africa in the country’s efforts to create jobs.

The document complained that too few students had been admitted to FET colleges and even fewer had passed.

Only 37.5% passed physical science, out of a total of 3 376 students, whereas of the 7 841 students who wrote first-year applied accounting, only 34.31% passed.

Ironically, the maths result represents an improvement – in 2007, 24% of 10 404 students passed, whereas in 2008, 28% of 19 000 students made it through.

The 2009 pass rates for final-year students are better: 52.1% in maths (of 1 596 students), 50% in physics (of a mere 76 examinees) and 53.04% in accounting (of 658 students).

The lekgotla document further queries the credibility of the Matric certificate and says that it is not improving the job prospects of South Africa’s young people, considering that the majority of 15- to 24-year olds with Matric are unemployed.

Most jobless South Africans still lack basic skills in communication, numeracy, comprehension, research and information technology.

There are 50 FET colleges in the country, with 400 000 students. They were recapitalised to the tune of nearly R2 billion from 2005 after the merger of 150 technical colleges.

Universities

South Africa’s graduation rate of 15% is one of the lowest in the world, according to the National Plan for Higher Education (NPHE) compiled by the Department of Education in 2001.

The dropout rates at South African universities are hitting highs of up to 35% at certain universities, with the bulk of those leaving being first-year students.

The recent study of about 34 000 students by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) showed that of this number, only 14 000 students graduated, with some 20 000 dropping out of their courses, most of them either in their first year or midway through their second year of study.

Lack of information and poverty

There are many factors that contribute to this phenomenon, with two major factors topping the list, namely lack of information and lack of finance, according to Moneyweb.

Ronen Aires, chief executive officer of Student Village, a social networking and information portal, says: “Yes, teachers first need to be educated as to what options are available to their students, and how to guide students with an aptitude for a particular area of study into the correct course, tertiary institution and career options.

“There’s no doubt that tertiary education is a costly business. Students can expect to pay between R15 000 and R25 000 per year for most undergraduate degrees and even more for specialised or professional degrees such as law and medicine,” she added.

Another study by the HSRC revealed that many students who are enrolled in South African tertiary institutions are from extremely poor homes – with a paltry combined household income of between R400 and R1 600 per month. (Source: Moneyweb, September 2009)

So they end up taking on part-time jobs to try and meet both their educational and daily survival obligations, with their studies invariably being affected and their having to drop out altogether.

It stands to reason that, without proper education, these people will not be able to contribute positively to the future growth of the economy and, in all likelihood, they will become a liability rather than an asset to South Africa.

Some students, who are unable to finance their studies and are unaware of the bursary and subsidy schemes available, try to work full time and study concurrently, which places a great deal of stress on them and detracts from proper focus on their education.

Students also need to be educated about finances and financial management. (Source: Alec Hogg, Moneyweb, September 2009)

Linking schools to FET colleges and universities

Findings on a recent report by the Global Campaign for Education ranked the quality of South African schools at 50 out of 156 developing economies.

Unless the quality and shortfalls in South Africa’s tertiary education system are addressed properly, skills shortages will continue to place a serious strain on economic growth and South Africa will be left behind by other developing economies, said the report.

Students seem to be fighting a never-ending battle in their quest for knowledge. With universities unable to distribute enough funding, partial bursaries proving insufficient and lack of pertinent advice and guidance regarding courses and subjects, it is no wonder that many students drop out in their first year of study.

Professor Theuns Eloff, vice chancellor of the North-West University and former chairperson of Higher Education South Africa, says there is a direct correlation between bad results at school and poor performance at colleges and universities.

“It is all about competence. If you are not schooled well, your chances of performing well at FET colleges and universities are not great,” he said.

“Many universities in South Africa have introduced academic literacy courses for first- and second-year students.

Normally, students who commence their first-year studies are given a literacy test to do.

If they fail, they are enlisted as students for a year course in academic literacy on improving reading, writing, accounting and mathematics.

“At North-West University, we have detected a dramatic increase in first-year performance, as first-year mathematical students have increased their pass rate from 60% to 70% within one year,” he adds.

Improving teaching skills

Prof. Ruksana Osman, professor in Education at Wits University, told Achiever that the weaknesses culminating in bad performance at school level – and even tertiary level – relate to a combination of factors. Most important of these is the subject knowledge, or rather the poor subject
knowledge, of teachers.

A second area of weakness is poor teaching in numeracy and literacy, particularly in the early stages of schooling and in primary school.

One strong strategy could be the teacher development strategy of the Education ministry. “We should guard against quick fixes and aim for solutions that are long term, carefully planned and executed. A strategy for teacher development could take us nearer to a solution regarding one of the weaknesses mentioned,” she said.

Historical, mental and quality problems

South Africa has a historical, mental and quality problem within education, says Dr Muavia Gallie, senior lecturer in Education at the University of Pretoria.

“There are at least four different historical understandings of education,” he says. “These groups are located in our racial demarcation of the past, which is quite relevant in solving our problems.

“Historically, our black African education system used to produce a Matric pass in the region between 30% and 40%, the Coloured system produced between 65% and 75%, the Indian system between 85% and 95%, and white system between 90% and 100%,” he added.

These levels of expectations and output became part of the organisational (school) culture of “what we as teachers and principals needed to do” to adhere to the expectations of the broader education system, says Dr Gallie.

Secondly, these percentages of the past have become mentally part of what is regarded now as acceptable, since it was fine in the past – why should it not be acceptable now, he says. If a teacher produces a 20% pass rate in Matric and still has job security, why would he want to change the output, behaviour and effort?

“A recent school which I worked with only focused deeply on this aspect of ‘teacher and learner expectations’, and their results went up from 40% in 2008 to 94% in 2009.

It therefore can be done, if there is a commitment from all,” says Dr Gallie.

Numeracy skills

President Jacob Zuma said during his State of the Nation Address that the 27 000 schools would be assessed against the target of raising the dismal numeracy and literacy rates from round 40% to 60% in 2014.

Osman said that exposure to reading, and reading for recreation, is important for students and teachers. “Incidentally, many parents want their children to be exposed to English because it is seen as the language of power.”

National forum

Graeme Bloch, educational specialist at the Development Bank of South Africa, says a national forum or debate is required to address the crisis in education.

“We need a national conversation to agree on strategies and to get everyone on board. We need to combine the national concern, government leadership and the range of expertise that is deep and extensive.

“Government is making all the right noises, they are coming up with a clear plan and the priorities and targets are helpful. Now everyone must walk the talk.

“And government needs to lead a clear multistakeholder alliance, and build partnerships so all can participate and contribute,” adds Bloch.

Higher expectations and action

Dr Gallie says the country needs to have higher expectations, and then put together an action plan as to what must be done to achieve these expectations.

Based on a project done in Gauteng over the last six months, educational specialists introduced planning tools (school readiness components) within the poorly performing schools of 2008, in order to better prepare these schools to begin the year 2010 on a better footing.

The culture and atmosphere that was built up during this project resulted in the average increase of the Matric results of 10.9% at 30 schools.

It should therefore not be impossible to improve the Matric results from 60% to 80% over the next five years, but it will require a clear strategy, dedicated personnel to drive it, and limited funds to support it.

“If we could achieve this in schools which were regarded as dysfunctional schools for many years, it should be easier to do it in schools which are low or high functioning schools,” says Dr Gallie.

Fanie Heyns

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