Report of the Public Hearing on the Right to Basic Education, October 2005

1. Report of the Public Hearing on the Right to Basic Education, October 2005

2. Terms of reference • Content of the right to basic education • Context within which the right is implemented in the country • Legislative and policy provisions • Hearing limited to compulsory education

3. Human rights framework • Constitution, Section 29, “Every one has the right to a basic education” • The right is not subject to progressive realization • The right depends on the prevailing conditions in a country

4. Mandate of the SAHRC • Section 184 of the constitution • Promote respect for human rights and a culture of human rights • Promote the protection, development and attainment of human rights, and • Monitor and assess the observance of human rights in South Africa

5. SAHRC Public Hearings • Deal with systemic complaints • Share ideas from all role-players • Public accountability mechanism

6. Rights Framework - the 4A’s • Framework developed by the late K Tomasevski, former UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education • Available • Accessible • Acceptable • Adaptable

7. available • Legislative provisions ensuring compulsory education • Physical infrastructure of schools • Provisioning of teachers • Supply of teaching materials and aids

8. Accessible • Non discrimination • Physical accessibility • Economic accessibility

9. Acceptability • This refers to the form and substance of education which includes curricula and teaching methods • E.g. the prohibition of corporal punishment • Responding to teenage pregnancy • Respect for religious convictions • The language of instruction • Teaching of and teaching in indigenous minorities • Curriculum • Safe environment

10. Adaptability • Flexibility to respond to the ever-changing needs of our society e.g. • child headed households • Migrants • Disability

11. 9 Key issues • Poverty • Children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS • Violence and Abuse • Inclusivity • Infrastructure • Teachers • Language of Learning • Governance and community participation • Service delivery and participation

12. Quality education • Quality education is not taking place in South Africa • Within context of: • Addressing the legacy of Apartheid • People grapping with change

13. 1. Poverty • Poverty impacts on the quality of education • Education is unaffordable due to school fees and other hidden costs • Transport costs can be a far greater financial burden than school fees • School uniforms are another burden for poor parents • Many learners are hungry at school • The drop out rate of learners is concerning • SA is unusual as more girls than boys remain in the system

14. 2. Children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS • Inconclusive empirical evidence • Lack of research • Lack of awareness

15. 3. Violence and abuse • There is too much violence and abuse in our schools • Sexual abuse • Not spoken about but concealed • Gangsterism and drugs • Vandalism • Corporal punishment

16. 4. Inclusivity • To be dealt with later

17. 5. Infrastructure • Basic resources e.g. buildings; sanitation; water; electricity; telephones etc. … • Stark inequalities of the past are still being addressed • Pro poor policy of the department

18. 6. Teachers • Teachers lie at the heart of many of the challenges • Teachers lack passion and a culture of learning and teaching • Teachers are not in the classroom enough • Teachers are unqualified and under qualified • Teachers have not been trained to implement the new curriculum • Teachers use old teaching methods • Teachers have too many children in their classes • Teacher are disconnected from the community in which they teach

19. 7. Language of learning • Mother-tongue language is needed as a medium of instruction • Learners in rural poor schools do not understand their teachers • Many parents want their children to be taught in English

20. 8. Governance and community participation • Many schools do not have adequately functioning school governing bodies • School participation is a necessary component for education

21. 9. Service delivery and monitoring • Districts need to be prioritized as the service delivery vehicle of education • District offices not viewed as being supportive • There is a lack of monitoring and accessible information • The need for empirical evidence on which to base decisions • E.g. matric results

22. Findings and Recommendations • Rights that inform the content of the right to basic education • Dignity and equality • The best interests of the child principle

23. Findings • The lived daily reality at school for many children in SA is incongruous with the legislation and the policies of the department • Those children who are most disadvantaged in enjoying the right to basic education lack the means and social power to speak out and claim their rights. Poverty reinforces exclusion within education • Whilst much has been done to improve the enjoyment of the right to basic education, not all of these interventions have resulted in the outputs that were anticipated

24. Poverty findings • Poverty and dysfunctionality impact greatly on the right to basic education • The state should be more active in ensuring compulsory attendance at school • Access to quality education should not be dependent on race, social class or geographic location • Poor learners who live far from their nearest school should receive State transport assistance in order to access education • No school fees • Drop out rate is cause for concern

25. Poverty recommendations • Amend SASA • Urgent measures are needed to address geographical differences in the provision of basic education • a comprehensive transport assistance programme for poor learners is needed urgently • Fee free schools must be introduced rapidly • The school dropout rate needs to be comprehensively understood and addressed

26. HIV/AIDS Findings • The impact of HIV/AIDS on education must be directly addressed within schools • Children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS have specific needs and challenges

27. HIV/Aids Recommendations • The education system needs to be more acceptable in responding to the challenges of children who are infected and affected by HIV/AIDS

28. Violence and Abuse Findings • Violence and abuse findings relate to accessibility and acceptability

29. Violence and abuse recommendations • Inter departmental initiatives • Dialogue between role-players • Support of alternatives to corporal punishment

30. Inclusivity • To be dealt with later

31. Infrastructure findings • A cut off date must be set for the provision of basic infrastructure and redressing the infrastructure imbalances of the past • Provinces spend different amounts of money on education with poorer provinces spending less than wealthier provinces

32. Infrastructure recommendations • Minimum level of infrastructure provisioning be determined and implemented • Libraries be provided • Equitable provisioning between provinces

33. Teachers findings • Teachers are central to ensuring the right to basic education is enjoyed • OBE cannot be successfully implemented whilst teachers are stating that they have received insufficient training to implement the new curriculum • Teachers spend too little time in the classroom

34. Teacher recommendations • Deadline for under or unqualified teachers • OBE teaching concerns to be addressed • Teacher morale to be addressed by all parties

35. 7. Language of Learning • Language of learning issues need urgent attention and addressing • There is a disturbing silence about language issues in poor and rural schools

36. Language of learning recommendations • Re-evaluate power of SGB’s to determine language policy of schools • Language of instruction challenges to be addressed urgently

37. 8. Governance and community participation findings • Democratic participation by communities in education is necessary in order to ensure that the social context is appreciated and given the necessary space to influence the fulfillment of the right to basic education

38. Governance and community participation recommendations • Alternatives to the current models of SGB’s be explored • The 5th A active participation

39. 9. Service delivery and monitoring findings • Many district offices and officials are not rendering adequate support at local level • Adequate monitoring systems do not currently exists that are sufficiently capable in informing the Department accurately about what is happening in schools and whether quality educating is being delivered

40. Service delivery and monitoring recommendations • Adequate support, evaluation and monitoring • Reliable monitoring systems

41. Conclusion • No rewind button • Education is necessary to develop and free the potential of each child in this country • Not acceptable that the potential of some is met and the potential of others is neglected • Children are our future!