Chairperson
Honourable Premier, Dr ZL Mkhize
Honourable members of the Legislature
Distinguished guests
Members of the media
Superintendent-general, senior officials of the Department of Education
Ladies and gentlemen
The department has set for itself an ambitious overarching vision and invariably a sturdy mission for the next five years. Government has prioritised education and given it a place of prominence in its five year program to improve the lives of all of us. The president of the republic's demonstrable interest in education and the choice of KwaZulu-Natal for his address to 1 500 principals of schools in 2009 gave us the magnitude and the measure of our call as the Department of Education.
We are priority number ONE out of the five in the country. We owe it to ourselves to produce a well educated, skilled and highly developed citizenry in our lifetime. We therefore are unified in setting and achieving milestone after milestone to provide equitable access to quality education for all the people of KwaZulu-Natal. Aligned to our new vision and mission our primary goal is to ensure that educational outcomes in all grades are significantly improved.
The ANC, during struggle days had always contended that: "The struggle for political freedom in South Africa is closely linked to struggles for and around formal education". (Education in Exile: Solomon Mahlangu Freedom College (SOMAFCO), the African National Congress School: p.5).
We have attained political freedom but the reality that confronts us today is that the struggle for quality education continues. Unless we set priorities right in education, then the ideals of becoming a developed country are a pipedream. We have to carry the momentum of excellence and many milestones that I shall be highlighting below.
The budget allocation for vote five in 2010/11 is R29.034 billion. We commit to consolidate existing successful interventions and programmes to ensure that our focus is fixated on improving educational outcomes in all grades.
Results oriented government
It is important to note that quality basic education is ranked as the first outcome among the twelve outcomes. In this regard, the department will focus on achieving the following outputs by 2014, namely: at least 43 000 bachelors' level passes in grade 12, 60 percent pass rate in numeracy and literacy in grade three and 60 percent pass rate in mathematics and language in both grades six and nine. When grades three, six and nine commence to write externally set assessments the trajectory towards achievement of these targets is on course from this year onwards.
These outputs put an enormous task on our shoulders to make the system work. We must improve infrastructure, we need to develop capacity of our teachers, and we need to manage the system better. We want above all to assert that nothing substitutes a working competent teacher in the classroom.
Teaching and learning
A social contract has been reached with teacher unions to ensure that teachers are in class on time and teaching and that the requisite support is provided by the department particularly at district level and at schools. Fundamental to our approach is that teachers must come to school self motivated and prepared to teach, learners must come ready to learn, and parents must take an interest in the education of their children.
I register my appreciation for the work done by the task team formed by the Combined Trade Unions South African Democratic Teachers' Union (CTUSADTU) and Combined Trade Unions Inpendent Teachers Union (CTUITU), and officials of the department in January 2010 with end of April 2010 as deadline. They have made progress with regard to:
* conversion of posts from temporary to permanent
* redeployment of surplus teachers
* filling of all vacant school posts in the department
* placement of displaced teachers and
* up and downgrading of schools.
Children from rural and poor homes must have the same opportunity as children from urban homes of realising their full potential at school and of subsequently playing a meaningful role in all facets of our society. Poor quality education worsens not only the marginalised, but undermines the aspirations of our entire society. Schools are vigorously monitored to ensure that curriculum coverage matches the time spent in class and that assessment is of a high standard. Teaching, learning, time on task and testing must be pervasive in all our schools.
The involvement of Members of the Legislature and councillors augured well for the oversight role and for demonstrating that there is space for collaboration. Honourable members are once again invited to play a similar role in July of this year, when schools re-open after the long winter vacation. School management teams (SMTs) are critical in the delivery of quality teaching and learning or they will be seen to be critical.
Early Childhood Development (ECD)
Early Childhood Development should be a focus area if educational outcomes are to improve to reach respectable literacy and numeracy levels. Universal access to grade R will be inclined from the current 93 percent to 95 percent in the province by 2014. The department's target of 85 percent set for universal access to grade R in White Paper number five has been exceeded. A further 60 classes are scheduled to be established in 2010/11 and this would increase learner numbers in grade R to 180 992.
This year we will provide norms and standards subsidy based on the poverty ranking of schools to 100 percent of grade R classes in quintiles one to five. The current stipend for grade R practitioners will be increased from R2 500 to R3 000 per month.
The number of bursaries for practitioners dealing with zero to four year olds has increased from 604 in 2009/10 to 1 000 in 2010 to undertake ECD level four qualifications. The allocation for Early Childhood Development is R598.6 million this financial year. Our hearts go to all women and men in our communities who are making a contribution in this regard.
Further Education and Training (FET) colleges
Chairperson, you will recall that a separate Ministry for Higher Education and Training was created to give focused attention to skills development in the country. The institutions of higher learning, further education and training colleges, Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET)and Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) will reside under that ministry. The provincial department will manage FET colleges and ABET on an agency basis until enabling legislation is passed to make them national competencies.
There are a number of challenges currently in our FET colleges, we need to work together to overcome them. These include addressing outstanding personnel matters and budgetary constraints. They are challenges requiring innovative leadership and cooperation more than tension and violence.
FET colleges will be allocated grants which will be managed by the department. As part of our department's social upliftment strategy, we offer school leavers the opportunity of furthering their studies through skills development programs offered in our FET colleges. The allocation for FET colleges is R470.1 million.
Chairperson, here we had hoped for much more. By 2014 it is envisaged that 101 651 students will be trained in engineering programmes at Further Education and Training colleges. A further 13 626 students will be trained in marketing programmes. Training would be extended to 2 899 in management programmes and 35 683 in office administration programmes. In the next five years, the department intends to place a total of 13 100 learners in learnerships in public FET colleges.
ABET, Masifundisane and Kha Ri Gude
The department continues with its programme of eradicating adult illiteracy in the province. This year we will increase the number of educators employed in public ABET learning centres to 6 000 to teach 51 420 registered learners. The number of public adult centres has been increased to 1 106. The budget for ABET has improved substantially to R138.8 million.
The hall mark of our literacy campaign in the province, Masifundisane, where basic literacy, numeracy and financial skills are provided to adult learners without leading to any formal qualifications will be extended provincially to reach 87 000 of the illiterate adult population. 3 000 of these learners have indicated their intention to enrol for ABET level one this year. The budget allocated for the Masifundisane campaign is R46.8 million.
The nationally co coordinated adult literacy programme called Kha Ri Gude has also increased the number of literate adults in the province. The two programmes are being consolidated and synergised to provide a poignant focus in dealing with adult illiteracy.
Infrastructure
The department recognises that a massive injection of capital over a sustained period of time is a reasonable expectation if infrastructural backlogs are to be reversed. The department continues on a multi prong approach to address backlogs in the provision of classrooms, administration offices, toilets, computer and science laboratories, and media centres. This financial year an amount of R2.031 billion has been set aside for infrastructural developments.
The department targets, not exclusively, the following projects:
* twenty new schools, this is includes the nine schools that could not be constructed last year
* two thousand ordinary classrooms and 60 multi-purpose classrooms
* sixty each of laboratories, libraries, computer centres and nutrition centres
* three thousand administration centres with offices, storerooms and staffrooms.
Water will be provided to 200 schools and an additional 3 200 toilets will be built and 200 more schools will be electrified. 100 schools will have their fences upgraded.
R26 million has been ring fenced for recapitalisation of four historically disadvantaged boarding schools namely: Mlokothwa, Siyamukela, Vryheid Comprehensive and Escourt high schools. This amount is in addition to the infrastructure budget that may also be used to address some of the urgent repairs at these schools. One dilapidated school obliterates the fact that there are others in a better or excellent condition.
As part of the national skills development effort, 32 technical high schools have been selected for recapitalisation in KwaZulu-Natal. The schools prioritised for the recapitalisation project currently offer manufacturing, engineering and technology, agriculture and culture and arts.
These schools will be the beneficiaries of new equipment and or infrastructure through the newly introduced technical secondary schools recapitalisation grant. An amount of R15 million will be spent on recapitalisation this would increment to R40 million by 2012/13 financial year.
Owing to increased access to grade R in the province a strain has been placed on the infrastructure capacity. The infrastructure grant allocated to provinces will ensure that a further 200 classes. Grade R classes will be established in 2010/11 and this, together with existing classes, would cater for 95 percent of the population of five year olds in the province. Our sister Department of Public Works has to assist us and our image with regard to appointment of competent contractors and supervision thereof. We will play our part by monitoring all Public Works and Education projects all over the province.
Infrastructure challenges
The majority of schools that sustain extensive storm damages are in rural areas and had been constructed by communities themselves, some without any subsidies. Since 2008, 555 have been damaged and this will cost approximately R234 million to repair. This is over and above the infrastructure backlog of 7 550 standard classrooms (excluding special classrooms), 9 936 toilet seats and 3 435 administration blocks.
The department has embarked on a programme to attend to the information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure needs of schools. 100 ICT laboratories will be built.
The department plans to install e-mail facilities at 1 000 schools this year. Emanating from the installation of e-mails it is anticipated that schools will use these facilities extensively as a management and administrative resource and as a teaching and learning resource. We are happy with our engagement with our national Minister of Basic Education and her determination to speed tangible efforts on infrastructure, come 2011.
Teacher development
Developing content knowledge of educators is identified as a critical ingredient for systematic improvement of quality of education in the province. The national curriculum statement puts a lot of emphasis on curriculum development, lesson and assessment planning and classroom management strategies. Professional development of teachers must of necessity target these areas amongst others.
There is correlation between the percentage improvement in a given instance and the support given by subject advisors to provide support to teachers. The department has ongoing teacher development and upgrading programmes through bursaries for initial teacher development. The department will provide bursaries to 221 students at a cost of R9.2 million in scarce skills subjects such as mathematics and physical science for pre-service teacher education programmes, Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) to 100 educators who are professionally unqualified at a cost of R2 million, National Professional Diploma in Education (NPDE) to 619 unqualified educators at a cost of R4.9 million. The challenge is to find opportunities for the training and upgrading of unqualified educators with technical college qualifications in technical fields.
In this financial year, 480 will enrol for an ACE in School Leadership and Management at a cost of R9.6 million. We will increase the number of ACE bursary holders by 400. The training for an ACE programme in mathematics and physical science is offered by the University of KwaZulu-Natal to 300 educators at R6 million.
The department is currently piloting a Teaching Assistant programme (TAP) at the foundation phase to improve literacy and numeracy in rural schools. Six hundred (600) teaching assistants have been employed in schools in rural areas. It is envisaged that the teacher assistant programme would eventually provide the teaching assistant with accreditation to enrol for a teacher qualification at a higher education institution, discussions between the department and the higher education institutions are underway to finalise this matter before the end of this academic year.
In line with the president's commitment to improve the quality of school management of school management and in support of the Minister of Basic Education's view that "a school stands or falls on its leadership", the department embarked on a pilot programme of 50 and six ward managers on a Principals Management Development programme (PMDP).
The aim of the programme is to develop the skills of school principals to manage their schools and ward managers to provide mentorship. The pilot which was a public private partnership with a consortium comprising of J and J Projects Foundation, Professional Solutions Africa (PSA) and the University of KwaZulu-Natal at a cost of R400 000 from the department and R500 000 from J and J Projects Foundation was completed in November 2009.
In 2010, the department will strengthen the 50 schools through a mentorship programme at a cost of R500 000 and roll out a three year programme to target 1710 school principals and 190 ward managers. In 2010 570 school principals and 63 ward managers will take part in the programme at a cost of R10 million including R1 million from private donors.
Two hundred and forty educators will be enrolled for a Diploma in School Librarianship at the Universities of KwaZulu-Natal and Zululand at a cost of R3 million.
Teacher supply and demand
The department is experiencing a critical shortage of teachers, especially, in gateway subjects such as mathematics, sciences, and accounting, home language in the foundation phase in particular. We lose approximately 3 000 teachers annually through attrition due to deaths, retirement and resignation.
The supply of teachers from the higher education sector for the province is under a 1 000 teachers per year. Through a nationally driven teacher education bursary scheme, the department has managed to employ 347 newly qualified educators in rural schools and in the scarce subject areas.
A serious conversation has started with the Ministry of Higher Education to find urgent solutions to this problem. A national Teacher Development Summit was held in June 2009 and as part of the ongoing discussions at a national level, four working groups are working towards finalising a national teacher development strategy. Whilst appreciating a need for a national teacher development strategy, the department has however developed a draft four year provincial teacher development strategy which encompasses initial teacher training, continuous professional development and recruitment of teachers.
This strategy will ultimately form part of a comprehensive national strategy. In the mean time there is a drive to recruit foreign teachers and to encourage those with tertiary qualifications to take up teaching as a career. Nine percent of our teachers work in Obonjeni district and 35 percent of these are unqualified, rural districts are the most affected by shortages of qualified teachers.
Our discussions at Council of Education Ministers, on finding solutions to teacher supply and demand challenges, are taking shape and are quite advanced, for instance the Department of Basic Education is creating a branch focusing mainly on teacher development, an initiative we must all support. In my department we are also looking at increasing our capacity for teacher professional development through the review of the organogram. Part of the discussion is for the department to consider the creation of an institute for continuous professional development of educators.
Learning and teaching support materials
An important milestone in the provision of education is reaching the 99.7 percent mark for the timely delivery of Learning and teaching support materials to all non-section 21 schools. Where this was not possible it was because suppliers had run out of stock. The department will continue with provision of the Learning and teaching support materials until such time that each learner has a copy of a textbook for each subject offered and that educators have suitable reference material to use in teaching. With regards to Learning and teaching support materials as a whole the future lies in maximising value for money and a number of options are being explored at national level.
Partnerships
The department acknowledges both the lack of capacity or requisite resources to address all the challenges that it currently faces. Municipalities have been identified as crucial partners in education with regard improved service delivery within their scope of competence. The memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed between the department and Ethekwini and Ntambanana municipalities. It is expected that the majority of the 63 municipalities will sign agreements with the department too. We now need to operate the partnerships with service level agreements.
Business has played a crucial role in supporting education in the province through various initiatives. I want to thank business large and small for the role they have played by supporting in innumerate ways. The department hopes to meet with the private sector soon to strengthen the cordial relations. Currently the high pressure points for us are school functionality, effective teaching and learning and the provision of Learning and teaching support materials s for science subjects in the classroom. Our drive for partnerships focuses on these high pressure points.
National senior certificate results
Honourable chairperson, you would recall that the department has consistently maintained that the ship will turn. It has commenced the turn through the intervention programs. We launched a ten point plan strategy to assist weaker schools.
In the 2009 national senior certificate examination results, KwaZulu-Natal improved the pass rate from 58.8 percent in 2008 to 61.1 percent in 2009. Rural schools which had performed poorly in the past also registered discernible improvement in the examinations. Schools in Obonjeni district, one of the poorest and most rural districts registered a pass rate of 48.8 percent in 2009 improving from 39.3 percent in 2008, while schools in Umzinyathi district improved from 48.9 percent to 55.9 percent.
To maintain this momentum we as a province have set ourselves a minimum target of 65 percent for 2010 academic year, ideally we would like to reach more than 80 percent by 2014. An impassioned plea is made to every employee, organised labour and all sectors of society to help us realise our stated targets.
Matriculation intervention
In an endeavour to achieve our target of not less than 65 percent in 2010 in the national senior certificate examinations, we are implementing a ten point intervention strategy. This year we will target 903 national strategy for learner attainment schools for focused implementation of this strategy. These schools obtained less than 60 percent in the national senior certificate examination results in 2009. Ward managers and subject advisors are visiting these schools to support and monitor availability, retrieval and use of Learning and teaching support materials.
Teacher support will be increased. Ward managers will ensure that provision is made for all aspects of schooling to be factored into timetabling and that curriculum coverage is congruent with the time spent in class. School functionality and the functioning of school governing bodies will be monitored on an ongoing basis by departmental officials as well as other oversight authorities. The management of National Strategy for Learner Attainment (NSLA) schools will be strictly monitored.
Our greatest concern is the pool of schools that obtained less than 20 percent. We seek to stop seasonal performance or yoyo behaviour by these schools in terms of performance. In order to make up for the 2010 FIFA World Cup period, all high schools should hold discussions with Teachers and Learners and design a month long class program for this period.
Organisational review and staffing
The department intends revisiting its organogram with a vision to effect incisive functional and structural changes to improve efficiency, effectiveness and the department's capacity to respond to service delivery needs. It is expected that this will be done with the least of disruption to service delivery currently provided. In the main we want to revitalise our schooling system and deliver quality education. Our organisational structure must be shaped such that it serves our objectives.
In our analysis as the department we agree that services we provide can still be brought closer to our schools and communities. There is currently a sense that systems can function, and relate better with a reconfigured structure than with the current one.
A set of priorities have been identified which require a shift in the organisational form, culture and practices. The outcome of the exercise is integrated service delivery for a more responsive departmental structure. The department will implement the reviewed organogram, prioritising critical areas, particularly those with minimum or no financial implications. Major changes will have to occur in the way district offices are managed and administrated as support agents of the needs of schools. Many functions are expected to devolve down to the districts as they are the closest to schools.
Chairperson, priority will also be given to the urgent filling of certain critical posts particularly those that relate directly to the functioning and efficacy of schools so that the overall performance of the department can be improved. From where we stand the department has talent, capacity and will to take education management to a high level.
Good governance and discipline
Our government led by Treasury is committed in fighting and preventing corruption in all forms. The department of education takes good governance seriously. We want to establish systems that demonstrate our zero tolerance on corruption, whether it occurs at schools or head office. Chairperson, I must indicate that the investigation on allegations of corruption against senior management made in the main by SADTU, has been completed and the report is receiving due consideration.
The Auditor-General granted the department a clean audit for the 2009/10 financial year and we will continue with this good work. Thanks to the top management team particularly the chief financial officer. We will ensure that public funds are used only for the benefit of the intended public.
Discipline cannot be expected only from schools, learners, or teachers alone, or the poor. It must be a value that permeates throughout the system from the school to head office. The disciplined manner we manage our financial and human resources should lead to the complete eradication of fraud and corruption, efficiencies in our supply chain systems and getting value for money in service contracts we enter into.
Presently we are dealing with a backlog of disciplinary cases of employees charged with various forms of misconduct. We need to intensify the act of holding employees accountable for their actions. That is discipline chairperson.
South African School Administration Management System (SASAMS) and Learner Unit Record Information and Tracking System (LURITS)
To improve the Education Management and Information System (EMIS) in the country, the national Department of Education has developed the national South African Schools Administration and Management System and Learner Unit Record Information and Tracking System. SASAMS is a robust computer application specifically designed to meet the management, administrative and governance needs of public schools. The strengthening of the Learner Unit Record Information and Tracking System through improved Education Management Information System in the province will enable the department to collect better quality data thus enhancing planning and management decisions.
LURITS will collect the data of each learner in ordinary and special schools nationally from grade R to grade 12 and will track the movement of learners from school to school throughout their school careers. In 2010/11 we will install SASAMS and LURITS to a total of 4 344 schools. An amount of R38.6 million has been set aside for this purpose.
National curriculum statement
All educators will receive training on content gaps and assessment measures to ensure successful implementation and support for the national curriculum statement in grades 10 to 12. As a priority, 1 600 educators will receive training in new content knowledge for mathematics.
Honourable chairperson, in order to address the shortcomings regarding learner performance which manifest in secondary schools, we need to improve the ability of our children to read, write and count in the foundation years. The imminent roll out of workbooks by the Department of Basic Education in all 11 official languages and the provision of lesson plans and other support material to educators will systematically help raise Literacy and numeracy levels.
It is envisaged that testing programmes of learners in grades three, six and nine will help with early identification of problems and effective remediation on a system wide scale. We aim to increase the pass rate from the current average of between 35 percent and 40 percent to at least 60 percent by 2014.
In the process of grappling with these matters, we need to bring greater clarity to the role of the English language in our school system and the status of indigenous languages.
Mathematics, science and technology
Quality educational outputs in mathematics, physical science and technology demand that provision of technical support to 88 Dinaledi schools be augmented. We intend supplying scientific calculators, supplying additional science equipment and increasing support to the feeder schools through training of their educators in mathematics, physical science and technology. This support will be needs based and on an ongoing basis mainly in the key areas of mathematics, mathematical literacy and science in grades 10 to 12.
School safety
Chairperson, it is essential that schools be safe, secure and caring where positive attitudes and values such as integrity are respected. We want to ensure that all our schools are free of all crime, violence and sexual harassment. Crime is among the top five issues that must be addressed in the next five years.
Discipline in schools is critical to creating a conducive teaching and learning environment. We will ensure that all 6 000 schools have safety and security committees linked to local police stations and that schools participate in community policing fora in their areas. Since the employment of state paid security guards in especially quintile one and two schools the incidents of crime in schools has dropped.
Crime in schools is symptomatic of the level of criminality in the community and until this societal issue is addressed collectively our schools will still be plagued by criminal activities. Vandalism for whatever reason undermines the financial resources poured into schools, and must not be tolerated.
Communities must take ownership of schools. We must systematically reduce and ultimately eliminate the conditions of physical degradation in our schools. Vandalism and arson erodes efforts to provide decent and adequate infrastructure. Funds which could be utilised to enhance the quality of public education have to be redirected towards endless repairs and renovations.
Learner transport
Increasing access to schooling particularly for the poor necessitates the provision of learner transport to children who experience difficulties in getting to the nearest school. We are preparing a memorandum of understanding with the Department of Transport, as we will soon be handing over this service over to them this financial year.
The Department of Transport has the mandate for providing and regulating public transport in the province. Currently, 2 340 learners from 26 schools are benefiting from the provision of learner transport. The service is provided by a minibus, 18 buses and 50 combis and plans are afoot to increase this number to 9 000 in the financial year 2010/11.
National nutrition programme
The department supports the premier's call for One School One Garden campaign. The department will ensure that unused land in schools is utilised to establish school vegetable gardens to further supplement the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP). The aim will be to establish vegetable gardens in at least 2 819 NSNP schools.
The department, in partnership with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the business sector is in the process of strengthening these initiatives through research and the development of training materials to build capacity of educators, parents and learners towards sustaining the school nutrition programme.
This financial year will usher in an expanded National School Nutrition Programme to reach quintile three schools and we envisage feeding 1 817 817 learners. There will also be an increase in the cost of feeding per learner per day to ensure sustained nutritional value and meals will be provided on 195 school days. The budget for the National School Nutrition programme is R855.285 million
No-fee schools
With the "no-fee school" policy of this government, the distribution of financial resources for operational expenditure has been skewed in favour of schools from poor communities. In an attempt to relieve the financial burden of impoverished communities the department will extend the "no-fee school" policy to cover quintile three schools. Furthermore, funding has been made available to compensate schools in quintiles three to five that enrol learners from poor background. In this financial year, 1 746 651 learners will benefit from the "no-fee school" policy.
HIV and AIDS
Chairperson, in respect of HIV and AIDS, the department advocates for behavioural change particularly amongst the youth to mitigate its spread in the province. An amount of R42.6 million has been set aside to provide additional material support to orphans and vulnerable children, to supply age appropriate teaching and learning materials to all schools so that HIV and AIDS prevention messages could be embedded into the curriculum and to train 180 educators in lay counselling skills. Training will also be provided to 4 000 educators in the integration of HIV and AIDS into life skills programmes.
Schools as centres of care and support
The prevalence of orphans and vulnerable children in this province is 19.5 percent, with some districts, such as Ugu, being much higher at 33 percent. In the province, 1 311 schools with the highest prevalence of orphans and vulnerable children will receive a budget of R12 000 per school, for care and support of orphans and vulnerable children. Learners will be provided with services such life skills programmes, psycho-social support, uniforms and other services depending on their particular needs.
The department will embark on a campaign to increase the number of schools with programmes for orphans to 2 064. Further to this, the department aims to increase the number of health promoting schools to 175, increase the number of schools as centres of care to 539 and conduct visits to 2 319 primary schools at least once a month for health screening. We welcome initiatives and partnerships with NGOs and business as it increases the province's capacity to care for needy children.
Special needs education
White Paper six on Inclusive Education promotes social inclusion in our schools. The intention is to open education opportunities equally for all learners in spite of their special needs. The department has embarked on a phased approach to introduce full service schools. 50 ordinary schools were converted to full service schools, and 13 special schools as resource centres.
Support devices and transport will be provided to full service and special schools which are utilised as resource centres. The focus over the 2010/11 financial year will be on providing resources and infrastructure that will enable the designated full service and special schools to deliver on care and support programmes to all learners, particularly learners experiencing barriers.
One hundred posts of counsellors and 100 posts of support assistants will be filled in 24 support centres which will be established in full service schools. In addition, support devices and transport will be provided to all 50 full service and special schools operating as resource centres.
Social cohesion and sports, arts and culture
We have to encourage the singing of the national anthem, the flying of the national flag and abidance for our national symbols to sow the seeds of national reconciliation and social cohesion so that in time patriotism and the creation of a non-racial, non-sexist society can take root and our schools become the model for the society we envisage. Patriotism and a national identity must be inculcated in our children at every opportunity.
It is expected that the momentum of the 2010 FIFA World Cup will not be lost by the Department of Education. Schools will continue with sports development programmes, cultural and artistic activities which they have been mastering to show case to the rest of the world during the soccer world cup finals.
The infrastructure built for the soccer world cup must be utilised for the promotion of sports and cultural academies for our children. It therefore becomes imperative for us as a department to ensure strong partnership with local government whereby the infrastructure is also optimally utilised for in-school sports.
We will ensure that our all schools benefit from sports, art and cultural programmes of the province. "Together we must revive the reputation of KwaZulu-Natal as a sporting province, capable of nurturing and polishing its talent for retention or creation of sports professionals capable of competing equally with the best in the world".
Education library information technology services
In this financial year the department will establish 25 new media centres in rural and under resourced areas at a cost of R12 million. We will supply 500 schools with library material as part of the implementation of the KwaZulu-Natal school library policy. At a cost of R18 million we will manage and support 12 mobile libraries as an as an effective outreach programme to ensure that under resourced schools in rural areas are supplied with a relevant, up to date and balanced library collection of resources. We have received and commissioned four mobile libraries from the Japanese government and these will be deployed in under resourced districts.
Quality Improvement Development Support Upliftment programme (QIDSUP)
The department has allocated R154.7 million for QIDSUP. QIDS-UP is a national initiative aimed at improving access to quality teaching and learning resources for learners in schools located in poorer communities. The programme is targeting to provide quintiles one, two and three primary schools with essential basic resource materials as well as renovating and upgrading grade R classrooms in identified schools.
Management development
The department will ensure that there is effective leadership and management at schools. Support to governance and community involvement will be strengthened. Monitoring visits to schools will be undertaken by department officials and members of parliament. We will rise to the challenge of ensuring that our schools do become centres of educational excellence.
Last year 50 school principals and six ward managers benefited from a principals' management and development programme which was driven by a consortium comprising of the University of KwaZulu-Natal, PSA training institution and funded by J and J Projects Foundation. This year the department will invest R5 million in this programme to develop 506 principals and ward managers.
Section 21 functions
It is the intention of the department to grant all schools section 21 functions as per the South African Schools Act of 1996. The requirement is that a school must have capacity to responsibly manage their allocated functions. In a move to achieve this goal non-section 21 schools were invited from September 2009 to apply for section 21 functions.
Applications from 2391 schools were received and training was provided to applying schools. Schools that have capacity to perform the functions effectively will be granted Section 21 status. Schools that did not qualify will be capacitated to meet the criteria before being given the opportunity to re-apply for section 21 functions.
Systemic evaluation
One of the priorities of the department is to improve learner performance, particularly in primary schools. Systemic evaluation and annual national assessments are used to measure how the system is performing. As part of the government programme of action, national assessments are conducted in grade three to grade six and grade nine.
Through this programme, sampled learners in selected schools will be assessed. Emanating from these achievements certain areas will be identified for intervention. An allocation of R23.8 million has been made to address poor learner performance in the General Education and Training band.
Independent schools
In keeping with the constitutional mandate of the country the Department of Education will continue to monitor and support independent schools in the province. In this regard, a budget of R59.7 million has been set aside for subsiding independent schools. The province has a population of 57 462 learners, taught by 4 023 teachers in 221 independent schools (SNAP survey 2010). They have a recognisable role in the quality of educational outputs.
Conclusion
Finally, chairperson, we need to get the basics right and our budget must demonstrate that basics are not necessarily lower, but they are the foundation on which to build higher and higher. We want to echo the United States Secretary of Education, Richard Riley when he said about American education in Atlanta: "But we have much more to do too many of our young people are falling by the wayside. It is not enough to have high expectations or to set challenging standards. We must put standards of excellence into action. This is my agenda". Indeed this should be our agenda too.
Acknowledgements
Chairperson, I want to acknowledge the following people who inspire us, a special word of gratitude to the Premier Dr Zweli Mkhize for his leadership and support of colleagues in the executive. I also would like to thank you honourable members of the house for your passion for education. I thank the chairperson and members of the Education Portfolio Committee for their insightful oversight. I acknowledge the good work done by the superintendent-general and all departmental officials for the children on KwaZulu-Natal.
I would also like to thank all committed officials, teachers, school governing bodies, parents and learners. Let us all dedicate ourselves to service and performance beyond the call of duty.
Together we can do more.
Thank you.
