Quality Education in South Africa: A brief assessment of the implementation of the ‘Basic Education Laws Amendment’ (BELA) Bill
Introduction
Education has for a long time been regarded as the formal process by which society conveys its accumulated knowledge, skills, customs and values from one generation to another. UNESCO ( 2012) asserts that the right to quality education should include having a school where learners are safe to learn and have the adequate infrastructure and facilities to do so, but our research has found that this is not the reality for many learners in the country. Today, education has been regarded as a human right ( UNHCR, 1948), and the right to education and specifically the right to basic education is acknowledged and emphasized globally. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that education is a fundamental human right for everyone and this right was further detailed in the Convention against Discrimination in Education. In South Africa the right to a basic education is entrenched in the 1996 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, regarded as one of the most crucial constitutional rights, especially because of its advantages of promoting economic and social well-being to citizens.
Moreover, in South Africa, basic education is one of the key focus areas identified by the South African Human Rights Commission as a way to effectively fulfill its mandate of promoting, protecting, and monitoring the realization of Human Rights in the country. Section 29 of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution guarantees the right to a basic education. It is the responsibility of the state to protect, respect, promote and fulfill the right to education as stipulated in the constitution. However, for the effective right of basic education to be exercised, this requires that nations adopt laws and regulations which are usually passed by the government, the development of sound policies, and relevant programmes being established. The right to education is justiciable and the state can therefore be confronted and challenged in court if it does not succeed with its constitutional obligations regarding education.
Mapping responsibilities in the education portfolio in South Africa
Education in South Africa is managed and regulated by two national departments which includes:
Department of Basic Education (DBE): This department is in charge of basic education that encompasses primary as well as secondary education.
Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET): This department is in charge of higher education and vocational training institutions, adult basic education and training (ABET), and further education and training (FET) colleges.
South Africa possesses a single national education system that is administered by the national Department of Education and the nine provincial departments. The focus of this paper is the basic education of South Africa.The Department of Basic Education categorizes basic education into two namely: General Education and Training (GET) and Further Education Training ( FET). The basic education system consists of primary and secondary. The Primary Schools run from Grade 1 to Grade 7, and Secondary Schools or High Schools run from Grade 8 to Grade 12. According to the South African Schools Act 1996, Compulsory Education in South Africa starts at the age of 6 years and continues until 15 years of age.
Moreover, the General Education and Training, or Primary Education includes mandatory education years, i.e. from grade 0 to grade 9. This includes pre-school often offered by some of the provincial departments of education. Children up to the age of 7 may attend preschools in South Africa. Preschools are divided into two grades namely Pre-Grade R (for children up to the age of 4 years) and Grade R (for children up to the age of 5-6 years). In both grades learn language and life skills, arts, mathematics, technology, and cultural classes.The General Education and Training also comprises the Adult Basic Education and Training ( Government of South Africa, 2018).
Issues in Basic Education in South Africa
Although there has been progress made on widening access to education as well as other aspects, it has identified weaknesses by the Department of Basic Education, such as repeatedly failing to reach its own targets with respect to infrastructure and facilities. According to Amnesty (2020), the South African education system, characterized by crumbling infrastructure, overcrowded classrooms and relatively poor educational outcomes, is perpetuating inequality and as a result failing too many of its children, with the poor hardest hit according to a new report published by Amnesty International today.
Education system continues to be dogged by stark inequalities and chronic underperformance that have deep roots in the legacy of apartheid, but which are also not being effectively tackled by the current government ( Amnesty, 2020). In these circumstances it is not surprising that educational outcomes remain relatively poor. A recent international survey found that more than three quarters of children aged nine cannot read for meaning. In some provinces this is as high as 91% in Limpopo and 85% in the Eastern Cape. 100 learners that start school, 50-60 will make it to matric, 40-50 will pass matric, and only 14 will go to university. Further, South Africa has one of the most unequal school systems in the world. Children in the top 200 schools achieve more distinctions in mathematics than children in the next 6,600 schools combined. The playing field must be leveled. According to Pendlebury (2009) some of the challenges also being experienced in schools include low enrolment rates due to different factors such as poverty and lack of resources; alcohol and substance abuse; violence usually as a result of the former. These have had ripple effects of low pass rates, dropping out of students inter alia.
The South African government has made efforts in order to try and tackle these issues that are being faced as challenges in its country’s basic education. The introduction of the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) bill as early as 2017 is a notable example of these efforts. The bill brings laws dealing with schools, namely the South African Schools Act (SASA) and the Employment of Educators Act (EEA), in line with the significant developments in the law over the last decade related to the right to basic education.
The South African Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill (BELA)
The purpose of the BELA bill in South Africa is to bring laws dealing with schools, including the South African Schools Act (SASA) and the Employment of Educators Act (EEA), in line with the significant developments in the law over the last decade related to the right to basic education. According to the parliament of South Africa, this bill proposes changes to the South African Schools Act which seeks to hand control to the Education Department in determining a school’s language policy and curriculums, compulsory schooling from Grade R, and the prohibition of corporal punishment and initiation practices.
Similarly, Section 27(2022 ) asserts that the Bill proposes to amend the South African Schools Act, 1996 (Act No. 84 of 1996), and the Employment of Educators Act, 1998 (Act No. 76 of 1898) (the SASA and the EEA, respectively), so as to align them with developments in the education landscape and to ensure that systems of learning are put in place in a manner which gives effect to the right to basic education enshrined in section 29(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.
Moreover, the bill has amended certain definitions; making the attendance of Grade R to be compulsory, providing for system improvements in the admission of learners to public schools. The bill also importantly provides financial and public accountability frameworks for governing bodies and provincial departments; provides additional regulatory powers to the Minister of Basic Education, Ms Angie Motshekga, and enhanced decision-making and oversight powers of Heads of Departments and Members of the Executive Councils. The bill also proposes technical and substantive adjustments, clarifies certain existing provisions, insert provisions which are not provided for in existing legislation and strengthen enforcement mechanisms for offenses and penalties. The stipulations of the bill are summarized below:
Incorporating the latest court judgments that protect and give effect to the Bill of Rights, including issues related to languages and school admissions
Providing financial and public accountability frameworks for school governing bodies (SGBs) and provincial departments to ensure the principles of good governance and the prevention of financial mismanagement
Systems improvements in terms of admissions for undocumented learners. This included the introduction of the national Intergovernmental Committee and provincial Intergovernmental Committee. The provincial Intergovernmental Committee functions to assist public schools that refer cases of learners with outstanding required documents. The committee would be responsible for acquiring these documents in respect of these learners.
The national Intergovernmental Committee monitors and evaluates the progress of the provincial intergovernmental documents for learners, and provides the systems where necessary. It was expected that this mechanism would fast-track the obtaining of documents for undocumented learners. It would comprise various key departments.
Providing additional regulatory powers of the Minister and enhancing the decision making and oversight powers of Heads of Departments (HODs) and Members of the Executive Council (MECs)
Addressing provincial contextual needs, including central procurement, home education and dispute resolution
Clarifying certain existing positions for technical and substantive adjustments, and inserting provisions that were not provided for in existing legislation, as well as strengthening enforcing mechanisms for offenses and penalties.
To South Africans this bill means a step towards quality education as envisioned in the SDG 4 and the constitution of South Africa. This will also fulfill education for all as a basic human right which the government of South Africa have taken a positive step in order that education is for all citizens. With basic education becoming compulsory for every student this sets a standard requiring all students to be registered students, even those at home-schooling. This is a long-term goal that has been set by South Africa which will also contribute to the socio-economic development of the country and sustainable communities. As the Minister of Basic Education stated, the only remaining effort and responsibility rests with parents to ensure that the education choices for their children are legally compliant. With also the prohibition of corporal punishment made it clear that it was now abolished.
Moreover, the criminalisation of anyone, including parents/caregivers, who prevent their children from attending school or participating in the interruption of school activities according to Section 27 (2018) will not help tackle the real reasons why children will be staying out of school such as poverty and lack of finances for the school fees. He furthers that this amendment, will instead make the parents vulnerable to the criminal charges against them, and will in turn perpetuate circumstances which will prevent learners from attending school. This will also predominantly impact women being the primary caregivers in South Africa.
The introduction of the limited sale of alcohol at school functions will also reduce the high prevalence of alcohol consumption and drug abuse that have been evidenced in South African schools hence impacting positively. The BELA Bill and its forbidding of the possession, sale and consumption of alcohol during school hours will tackle alcohol abuse which has been a big problem in many communities across the country and hence protecting the learners from interactions with those under the influence, as well as from consuming alcohol themselves. This will tackle the crimes and school violence that has bedeviled South African schools.
Pertaining the admissions in schools, the Bill has clarified that the HOD of the provincial education department has the final authority to admit a learner to a public school. Thus, it has welcomed an amendment which requires the HOD to consult with the SGB before making such a decision, as well as giving the SGB the right to appeal. This has also shown a positive move to the decentralization of power and concerted efforts to make sure fair and quality education is provided to the citizens of South Africa.
Conclusions & Recommendations
Conclusively the BELA Bill of 2022 has brought positive changes in South Africa towards quality education as it has introduced laws to deal with schools, namely the South African Schools Act (SASA) and the Employment of Educators Act (EEA), in line with the significant developments in the law over the last decade related to the right to basic education. Although with notable areas which will need improvement like encompassing issues to tackle poverty, lack of finances that may occur thus restricting other students from attending school, the Bill sets a positive roadmap towards achieving quality education in South Africa. This is so because it has managed to tackle the issues that were barriers to quality education as mentioned in the paper. However, the success of these sets of laws will be determined by commitment and will from the government, CSOs, NGOs, students and also the parents as this can not only be achieved by one group.
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