Senior Managers of the Department, journalists present here this morning, we welcome the intervention by President Zuma over the weekend to instruct parties at the negotiation chamber to find an amicable solution and bring the strike to an end as soon as possible.
Last night a high level bargaining session was underway with a view to find a settlement.
We are excited by the commitment of government and labor negotiators to find a solution that is acceptable to all.
We urge unions to accept the government revised wage offer on the table.
We share the public concern about the crippling teachers' strike and the negative impact it has on the delivery of quality schooling services.
This labour dispute which has close schools, prevented treatment at hospital and harmed investor sentiment to South Africa’s economy has inflicted an untold pain to all us, ladies and gentlemen.
The strike action by teachers is protected in terms of the labor relations laws and the Departments respect the right of teachers and other workers to engage in collective action.
Following these positive recent developments we are optimistic that in few days time our teachers will be in class and teaching.
Teachers remain the lifeblood of our basic education system. The strike has demonstrated that they are indispensable pillar of our schooling system.
We therefore call on the educators to join the department in our Fifty days to go! support the Class of 2010 campaign. This campaign is line with our contingency plan which seeks to mitigate the adverse impact of the strike.
Together with teachers and other stakeholders what is needed in this critical time of year is the social compact that will ensure that learners, especially those who will be writing their final Grade 12 exams in less than 50 days are able to continue with their studies and receive as much support as possible, even under these precarious conditions. What we require is the provincial effort to support the Class of 2010. We need to mobilise communities at all levels to raise awareness and participation in education issues.
The contingency plan will not succeed without the support of teachers’ unions in particular and educators in general.
While the majority of historically black schools in the province have experienced a total shutdown during this striking period, we remain determined to ensure that the rights of the learners are protected and at least some form of learning continues over this period.
We acknowledge that the current industrial action takes places shortly after the longer than usual winter holidays due to the World Cup and we are at the final phase of implementing our revised Provincial Strategy for Learner Attainment (PSLA) which was adopted by top management of the department at the beginning of the year. The PSLA is an initiative that seeks to bring about continuous improvement not only in grade 12 results but also in lower grades as well.
Ladies and gentlemen, our objective during the strike period is to ensure that teaching and learning take place where possible.
Accordingly, our contingency plan addresses the provision of curriculum, teaching and learning support materials.
As part of the plan we have engaged School Governing bodies (SGBs) and parents to assist with the supervision of learners, especially in primary schools.
Learners are also urged to be ready to do everything possible to ensure that they are prepared for their exams. Under these conditions the best way to learn is to establish voluntary study group where learners can help each other – go through past papers and study notes.
To support the study groups, the Department will be distributing revision packs to grade 12 learners from previously disadvantage schools.
We will also distribute 15 000 Z-pamphlets on Tips for Exams to Grade 12 learners. However, for this contingency plan to have a positive impact, we are appealing to parents, educators, school governing bodies (SGBs) and community members to join hands and support us in giving our Grade 12 learners support under these circumstances.
In addition we will set up Matric Study Centres in all districts to encourage learners to engage in group discussion as well as peer teaching during and after the striking period.
We highly appreciate the willingness of the provincial Cosas leadership to contribute towards the department’s contingency programme that seeks to help the class of 2010.
We also salute those educators who have put the interest of the learners first before theirs. They have said to us in the midst of the crippling industrial action we are willing to help our learners. ‘We will support our pupils who are eager to learn. Simunye in this crusade of Fifty days to Go! We Support the Class of 2010’.
We reiterate the call by the Minister of Basic Education Mrs Angie Motshegka that all South Africans should support the Class of 2010.
We invite volunteers to lend a helping hands to support learning and teaching during this period of disruption of schooling and beyond. Retired and student teachers, parents, community leaders, and NGOs involved in education are humbly requested to heed our clarion call to keep our children occupied and involved in meaningful education activities.
Our contingency plans, ladies and gentlemen are in addition to the national Department of Basic Education’s Grade 12 uploaded programme, which includes lessons broadcast through SABC radio and Television. These programmes are in all official languages and we encourage learners to take advantage of these platforms.
In addition, provincially we are intending to have a partnership with SABC Education for another catch-up programme that will focus mainly on languages.
Our objective is to have these lessons commencing from September until October at Lesedi’s Seikokotlelo programme. We take this opportunity to express our gratitude to public broadcaster for lending a helping to the class of 2010 We will also approach Community Radio Stations to allow us to deploy our subject experts to provide lessons through their medium.
With regard to preparatory examinations we have postponed these exams until 6 September. The revised time table for Grade 12 preparatory exams is attached in the statement. We strongly believe that under the circumstances the decision to delay these exams is in the best interest of the learners.
In exercising their rights, we hope teachers as role models in their communities will give respect to the constitutional and legal rights to the education of learners and to the rights of those workers who do not choose to join the industrial action.
We sincerely hope that leaders at the bargaining council will find a speedy and amicable solution to the current impasse. A protracted national teachers’ strike is not in anyone’s interest.
In the aftermath of the strike we call on trade unions leaders and their constituencies to join us in various catch-up programmes to ensure that we mitigate the adverse effect of the strike.
Together with educators, learners and parents we can do more to achieve the objective we have set at the beginning of the year to obtain 75% matric pass rate.
I thank you all for responding positively to our invitation.
Enquiries:
Howard Ndaba
Cell: 079 503 5485
