Question No. 1523
Mrs D Robinson (Democratic Alliance) to ask the Minister of Basic Education:
(1) Whether there are any schools for (a) children with learning difficulties and (b) children with disabilities; if not, why not; if so, (i) how many, (ii) where is it situated, (iii) what is the capacity, (iv) how much funding does each school receive from her department, (v) how long is the waiting list and (vi) how many teachers are employed at each school in each case;
(2) Whether there are minimum standards with regard to the ratio of learners to teachers for each type of school mentioned above; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
1. Yes.
(a) There are 44 special schools that make provision for learners with learning difficulties (including Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and specific learning disabilities).
The total number of learners with specific learning difficulties who attend special schools is 16 884.
(b) In 2009, there were 392 public special schools that accommodated 111 619 learners with disabilities. There were 124 535 learners with disabilities in public ordinary schools. Of the 124 535 learners in ordinary schools, 21 976 were in special classes and 102 559 in mainstream classes. There are special schools in all nine provinces.
Table one: number of public special schools per province (2009)
* Eastern Cape
Number of public special schools: 40
Number of learners with a single disability: 8 741
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 6 512
Number of teachers: 816
* Free State
Number of public special schools: 19
Number of learners with a single disability: 3 409
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 1 471
Number of teachers: 502
* Gauteng
Number of public special schools: 116
Number of learners with a single disability: 24 363
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 12 104
Number of teachers: 3 109
* KwaZulu-Natal
Number of public special schools: 63
Number of learners with a single disability: 11 238
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 8 690
Number of teachers: 979
* Limpopo
Number of public special schools: 10
Number of learners with a single disability: 3 054
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 1 914
Number of teachers: 272
* Mpumalanga
Number of public special schools: 20
Number of learners with a single disability: 3 352
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 3 026
Number of teachers: 317
* Northern Cape
Number of public special schools: 10
Number of learners with a single disability: 1 559
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 66
Number of teachers: 139
* North West
Number of public special schools: 33
Number of learners with a single disability: 4 518
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 375
Number of teachers: 426
* Western Cape
Number of public special schools: 81
Number of learners with a single disability: 15 698
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 1 529
Number of teachers: 1 667
* South Africa
Number of public special schools: 392
Number of learners with a single disability: 75 932
Number of learners with multiple disabilities: 35 687
Number of teachers: 8 227
* Combined: 111 619
It must also be taken into account that the Department of Education is in the process of implementing the policy on inclusive education. Funding is made available to provide support to learners with disabilities in ordinary schools as well.
Table two: breakdown of learners with disabilities in ordinary schools (2009) per province
Province:
* Eastern Cape
Separate classes: 948 18
Mainstream: 708 19
Total: 656
* Free State
Separate classes: 4 788
Mainstream: 16 667
Total: 21 455
* Gauteng
Separate classes: 3 726
Mainstream: 12 397
Total: 16 123
* KwaZulu-Natal
Separate classes: 6 504
Mainstream: 15 721
Total: 22 225
* Limpopo
Separate classes: 3 043
Mainstream: 3 940
Total: 6 983
* Mpumalanga
Separate classes: 1 482
Mainstream: 12 051
Total: 13 533
* Northern Cape
Separate classes: 34
Mainstream: 3 390
Total: 3 424
* North West
Separate classes: 1 251
Mainstream: 6 581
Total: 7 832
* Western Cape
Separate classes: 200
Mainstream: 13,104
Total: 13,304
* South Africa
Separate classes: 21,976
Mainstream: 102,559
Total: 124,535
(c) Information on funding to schools, capacity of schools and waiting lists is available from provinces.
2. The standards for allocating educator posts to schools are determined by the regulation of 2003. The current model is based on the principle that available posts are distributed among schools, proportionally to their number of weighted learners.
Disabilities of learners
These learners require additional support from various categories of personnel. The weightings that apply to learners for purposes of allocating educator posts in terms of the post distribution model are as follows:
Specifically learning, disabled: 3.0
Severely mentally handicapped: 3.0
Epileptic: 3.0
Cerebral palsied: 4.0
Physically disabled: 4.0
Severe behaviour problems: 5.0
Hard of hearing: 5.0
Partially sighted: 5.0
Blind: 5.0
Deaf: 5.0
Autistic: 6.0
In accordance with specific circumstances in a department, each of the above weightings may be increased, after consultation with trade unions who are members of the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC), by between 0 and 20 percent.
It is important to note that the weightings that apply to learners based on their curriculum, school phase, instruction media or the fact that both primary and senior secondary phases are provided for, do not apply to the learners mentioned above.
Issued by: Department of Basic Education
21 May 2010
Source: Department of Education (http://www.education.gov.za/)
