The transformation of education begins with teachers. A shortage of quality teachers and the consequent ongoing delivery of poor educational outcomes are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the challenges facing basic education in South Africa.
The crisis looks set to worsen in the years ahead given that more than half of the current teacher population is over the age of 55 and will soon be heading for retirement, notes School-Days, a fundraising programme.
Of particular concern is the dire shortage of specialist maths, science, technology and African language teachers and an over-supply of teachers in other areas. The shortage of specialist teachers is widely felt, said School-Days. “Recent reports indicate that only one-fifth of Bachelor of Education students achieved more than 50% for maths in matric. Another, albeit older, study found that most grade 3 teachers struggled to achieve 50% in literacy and mathematics assessments designed for grade 6 learners.
“As a country, we need to be making an urgent and concerted effort to improve education delivery standards because this impacts us all. Poor educational outcomes are a contributing factor to lacklustre GDP growth, which in turn exacerbates unemployment, poverty and inequality.” The School-Days CEO believes it’s time to draw the business sector in to partner with schools and fund whole school development, attract more student teachers as interns at schools and do this on a platform that enables sustainability.
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