Background
We reaffirm that we have to build people’s education for people’s power. This is not a neutral question – it is a class question.
We must educate so that society can benefit as a whole.
We don’t want knowledge production that just furthers the interests of the property class who own the means of production.
Unless our analysis starts from this class position, we can do all manner of things, but the majority will continue to be marginalized.
We are advancing a radical national democratic revolution as the shortest route to socialism; our education system must support this.
Has the ANC/government achieved what it set out to do on education?
Department’s plans contain the majority of what are in Polokwane resolutions
We should review legislation to see if it is getting in the way
Cosatu growth path proposals begin to address the kind of education outcomes that we want to see (see box below)
Specific proposals from Numsa political school:
1 Make schools community service orientated centres to empower the community and move beyond the school hours including extra-mural activities
2 There are job creation possibilities in schools eg employing sports coaches, arts and culture, safety and security, music etc
3 Try and halt the migration of students from rural to urban areas and from townships to suburbs – must be dedicated budget for laboratories, libraries etc in those unresourced areas to stop this happening.
This must also look at the issues of incentives for teachers that are employed there.
4 Annual national assessment measures must be effective
5 School Governing Boards’ capacity must be built and review legislation to give more authority to them
6 Vocational and career guidance needs to be intensified at school level
7 Re-opening of teacher colleges and technical schools
8 More boarding schools so that children do not have to travel so far to school on a daily basis
9 Better link between provinces and national education departments
10 Education must play a role in addressing the problems of crime eg children who have very little schooling end up in jail as criminals
11 Deal with the problem that some children are just pushed through school and end up uneducated.
12 Review SA Schools Act
13 Review issue of powers of section 20 schools because of inability of these schools to fund-raise
14 More support for teacher upgrading and training
15 Address proper discipline of teachers with regard to their pupils – eg teachers impregnating students
16 Sectoral training authorities (Setas) and private sector to assist with infrastructure funding of schools
17 Taverns should not be close to schools
18 There needs to be a law passed that says that if a teacher is teaching in a public school, his/her children must also go there
19 Some of these proposals could also form the basis of discussion in Numsa/Sadtu bilateral eg adoption of schools etc.
20 Schools without laboratories, without libraries, without computers should be declared non-conducive for learning and targeted so that resources can be speedily supplied
21 More schools for the blind and special schools for slow learners, disabled children.
22 Sign language should be provided in tertiary institutions
23 Proper research needs to be done before outcomes-based education is abandoned.
Source
Numsa Bulletin No 21 2010