Deputy President of South Africa, Mr Kgalema Montlanthe
Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Enver Surty
MEC for Education, Mr Mandla Makhupula
Traditional Leaders
Teachers Unions
Students
Sekela Mongameli iqhawe lesizwe, isithwalandwe nesixhiba mxhaga uTata uNelson Mandela nophuma kwesisithili sikuso iOR Tambo District, wakhe waphosa amazwi asoloko enkenteza ezindlebeni nasezinqondweni zethu. Mazwi lawo athi: “Imfundo sisixhobo esinamandla esinokusetyenziselwa ukutshintsha imeko zokuphila ehlabathini.”
Indeed none of us can dispute these words from Madiba as we have seen the positive outcomes of an educated nation through such countries like China who invested heavily on education. China is now reaping the rewards of its investment on education and is leading the world in terms of technological advancement. Not only have they invested in education but they have been investing in mathematics and physical science, the subjects which are very critical in today’s economies.
As a country we have made tremendous strides to elevate education to top priority status simple because we know without it our nation, will not be able to meet its developmental goals and the direct consequences of that would be more poverty, more unemployment and more inequalities.
Education improvement is our number one priority in the province and in the African National Congress (ANC). Given the history of our country, education is a single critical equaliser that we must achieve. This means for us to defeat social ills of poverty, unemployment and inequality, we need a strong education system. So it is imperative that the quality of teaching and learning is improved drastically.
We should put more emphasis on the four fundamental areas which are syllabus coverage, increased contact time with learners, monitoring and support of schools and accountability of officials. This priority of the ANC led government is not something that should be negotiable; we can’t tip- toe around it anymore when learners wonder around in shopping malls during school time. It must equally be a no, no to have teachers coming late to school.
As government we are doing our outmost best to create an enabling environment for teaching and learning in our province. With the assistance of National Government we are delivering on school infrastructure development and this would change the plight of our learners who are suffering from the spatial development disparities of the apartheid government.
Deputy President, the Eastern Cape achieved a pass rate of 61,6% in 2012 from 58,1% in 2011. This represents an improvement of almost 3,5% in the period under review. When these results came out they left us with mixed emotions. There is a lump in our throats because all of us would like to see all the learners in our province do well in their studies. There is also a bit of satisfaction because our interventions are paying off but until we reach the 80% -90% mark that lump will always be in our throats. I don’t believe we are incapable of achieving that milestone.
As we begin this school calendar, we remain motivated by the leadership provided by President Jacob Zuma calling on all to prioritise education and make it a societal issue. I would like to re-iterate President Zuma's non-negotiables in education: “that teachers must be in class, on time teaching with the correct textbooks and no abuse of learners; and those learners must be in class on time learning, being respectful to their teachers and each other, and doing their homework”.
In essence we call on educators and learners to do their work diligently. The parents and the department must perform their part without fail. The time of being passive parents is over, parents should take an active role and keen interest in what is happening in our schools. Parents cannot just go past learners at 10 am wondering about and not ask why they are not at school.
We call on all stakeholders to continue working with us and redouble their efforts in respect of the non-negotiables and to achieve quality.
I thank you!
