Basic education still not delivering on freedom ideals

• Published date: 26 April 2024
• Publication title: Sowetan (Johannesburg, South Africa)

The correlation between Freedom Day and education in SA holds great significance because of the pivotal role education has historically affected and continues to affect the nation’s pursuit of freedom and equality

Under apartheid, the education system was vastly divided, with access to quality education severely influenced by race. Education was utilised to maintain racial disparities and stifle the rights and ambitions of the majority of South Africans.

There is no doubt that children in SA have improved access to schooling since 1994, however, quality education for disadvantaged learners in public schools remains a challenge.

According to the World Bank, of the 13-million learners who attend public schools in SA, over 95% do so in poorly performing school, and Unesco confirms that 723,879 children are out of school, thus illustrating extensive ripples of disadvantage.

Schools that students attend, teaching and learning environments experienced, results attained and opportunities that arise after school are distinctly unequal.

The Soweto uprising in 1976, when school children took up arms against the apartheid state’s racially biased education policy, reflects the historical nature of the struggles in SA’s education sector.

The consequences of apartheid include that school leadership is a challenge in many of the South African public schools.

Despite the high levels of public spending on education, SA is confronted with a recurrent education problem that manifests in several ways, such as leadership incompetence among school principals, regardless of the huge budget...