Teacher trade unions, education NGOs, academics and former government official squared up at a recent lively public seminar to discuss the country’s education crisis.
Hosted by the Centre for International Teacher Education at the Mowbray Campus, the centre’s director, Prof Yusuf Sayed, said research shows that half of learners who enter the schooling system drop out before they reach matric and that even fewer make it to university.
Sayed added that learners in Grade three lack literacy skills as well as inequality among rich and poor schools were compounding the crisis.
South African Democratic Teachers Union Provincial Secretary Jonavin Rustin took the audience through the purpose of education, promises which were made by the transitional government in the build-up to 1994, the current problems as well as interventions that have since been implemented.
Rustin argued that teachers are not adequately trained and therefore there is a need to focus on teaching practice; mentoring, coaching and induction of student and novice teachers.
He says the poor conditions of service and lack of infrastructure at schools were contributing to the low morale of teachers.
Because learners are being over-tested by the department, this was stealing contact time away from teachers who have to administer the various assessments, says Rustin.
