As “Born-frees” conclude their Matric: Do they enjoy equal freedom? Yanga Sithethe and Lukhanyo Mangona In 1994 South Africa got her freedom and for the first time all people in the country despite their race achieved universal suffrage. Subsequent to this on 1st May 1994 Mr. Nelson Mandela was crowned a first democratic President of our land. In Long Walk To Freedom published a year later after his becoming the president Nelson Mandela states that “Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farmworkers can become the president of a great nation.” This would have given many parents and children then serious hope that the state of education will be given critical attention by the new government as opposed to the unjust Apartheid regime. Leading up to the start of exams last month was a serious media fan-fare about first and historic matriculation exams of the first children that were born under democracy-“born-frees”. As we draw to a close today-27 November 2012- of these historic matric exams one is compelled to look critically at the life and the meaning of these so-called born frees. Indeed the South Africa is justified to take pride at her “born-frees” and hope that they will chart a new future for the country which is minimally affected by demons of the colonial and apartheid regime. As these noble hopes settle in many hearts and minds of parents and children in our country the unfortunate reality remain opposite for the vast majority of working class township and rural “born-free”. It is well documented that during the apartheid era black people were deliberately offered an inferior education that by the words of Verwoerd would ensure that they will be garden boy or domestic workers. We have read in our Equal Education youth groups that the apartheid government also deliberately spent very little amount on black African(R146) child compared to their White(R1211), Indian(R771) and Coloured(R498) counterparts. We have taken time to read a study done by Dr. Tshepo Moloi an academic with Wits University on how education was for children in our township Tembisa, in Gauteng. In his study he shares some stories from people and this one from Mongezi Maphuthi is telling: “Well in Tembisa high when we arrived we were rather too many. In our class we were about 70 or 80. And there was a shortage of classes and schools in 1974. And what happened was that we were taken to Mvelaphanda Primary School at Sthama section. That [school became] a branch of the high school. I mean teachers would have a period at the high school and move down to Sthama to attend our period. I remember teacher Molala who was teaching us Agriculture would move from there and come to Sthama”. We cite this history because when our mothers and fathers fought against the evil Apartheid system they knew that their children deserve better and should receive better quality of life. The problem we have with the whole concept of “born-frees” is that it is sold as if this a homogenous group of young people. An example of this when etv aired a show called Born-Frees Show in 2009. As noble as the show intentions are but we are saddned by its continued exclusive featuring of the haves children and leaving the marginalized working class born-frees out. Let us forget for a little the “born-frees” Nosipho and Tom in Houghton and hone in on the working class “born-frees”. Many “born-frees” that we encounter in our work in Tembisa and other townships and rural areas where Equal Education tell of a different story. Their parents are really desperate to ensure that they receive quality education which is equal to those of haves. The realities in the schools they attend in the past 12yrs are horrifying and have been demonstrated many times by Equal Education. Also we feel that this whole “born-free” attention doesn’t mirror the reality of the journey of these born-frees. In a month’s time Minister Motshekga will parade a handful of “born-frees” that have achieved whilst thousands of our children remain hopeless. Sithethe is a “born free” in matric and member of Equal Education and Mangona is head of Equal Education Tembisa Branch

GET, what's going on over there????

As the debate rages around the issue for Grade 9 certificate I would like to add my voice on this. Listening to expert opinion on AM live and following the education news report in the past week made me interested to the machinations of the General Education and Training(GET) band. Part of what transpired this week on education is the question of whether we should certify Grade 9 or not. However my interest is beyond the issue of whether we should certify the band or not. Mine is the interest on the appraisal of the band itself. Some might ask what do I mean about the appraisal of the band. As a person who spends a lot of time with the learners in FET band there are a number of things that I see on a daily basis that make me want to question whether the GET machinery is well oiled or not. The question in your mind is what are these things I would like to mention. Ok maybe my observation is little bit one sided and unfair since my interaction is mostly with science learners than with non-science learners. Also you may say that my criticism is blanket generalisation of GET using some small observations from science learners.

When tutoring these learners it is sometimes frustrating to find that they lack basic mathematical knowledge that they are supposed to have from the band. One other thing that I note from these learners is inability to read and understand. This lack of understanding becomes a problem for learning outcome 1 and 3 of their Physical and Life Sciences. I wasn't part of the planning of the ''new curriculum'' but what I see is that learners are required to do a lot of ''research''on various topics. It is frustrating not only for me but also for librarians because these learners lack what I state above and thereby expecting that you do the reading for them. This is difficult to do because it amounts to time wasting as many kids are having the same problem. I don't want to dwell much on this as media have been reporting on these horrifying things for quite some time now. I guess your interest is now on what this appraisal is about.

Ok GET has 9 years with the learners whilst FET has 3 years. We need to look at why GET is producing the kind of learners that are unable to show even these basic qaulities .I understand the confessions that Naledi made recently. I think we need to zoom in to the problems that Sol Plaatjie House confessed to and try and address them. We need to stop ridiculous things like the Western Cape Education Department's literacy target of 35%. We need to look at things like what Max Dupreez sights on his opion piece about striving for bringing quality Education. GET should be forced ( just in a lack for a better word) to produce learners that have quality Education other than the current ''pushing through the numbers”. Contrary to the popular belief that the Department of Education(DoE) should take the stick for this I happen to believe otherwise. I believe that it should be hands on the deck for all the education stakeholders to deal with issues at the GET band.

DoE should live up to its promises for bringing quality education in South Africa. This should not be only on paper as the way things are at present. They should make sure that they hold GET accountable on proper implementation of quality education. DoE also needs to monitor this process to ensure that we get quality than just quantity. DoE must know that they need to get their house in order and understand that we are sick and tired of confessions. DoE also must know that it is the future of our kids that we entrust them with and they must stop toying around with it. Those that are teaching prospective teachers in academic institutions should make sure that they produce teachers that are able to perform competently at GET. Mass mobilisation of parents to wake-up to the realisation that education is a vital part of raising up a child should also be done. Parents need to be given a heads-up that their involvement during GET is crucial. This is what I believe the debate should be about at this stage and when we get that right only we can start looking at whether we should give certification for the band.

Is our society fit to produce the goods?

A couple of weeks back I was lucky to be part of an education seminar that was attended by some fine minds in the education sector in this country. As the proceedings got underway with people discussing issues, something in me occurred. As people were discussing what the problems were in township schools I began asking myself one question: What kind of problem are we having in the township schools? I even went as far as asking one University lecturer whether he thinks we are having a societal problem. These questions came about when I started to realise that it is a jungle out there for our learners.

Some honest questions that we need to ask ourselves as a community are becoming unavoidable. Some of these questions might be yawn generating ones because I had been banging on about them for weeks. One question I would like to bring to the fore today is whether our society is capable to deliver the skilled professionals that our economy is in dire need of. I know you might be thinking “Mara what's wrong with him, there are a lot of skilled individuals that are coming from our community”. This is right but is our society capable of producing the mass that our economy needs. One might ask what society is capable enough to be the machine that will run the production of these skilled individuals. That is a fair question because we need to ask especially under current socio-economic situation in the township.

But it is also important to note though the economic status is part of the problem but is not the not entirely the problem. The way we are doing things can contribute extensively in creating a generation that values and respects education. I think central to this creation of a proper society is making sure that this society cultivates a culture of learning. Such a society will be able to value and have respect for education. Children born in this society will pass on to their kids idea of valuing and respecting education and they themselves will benefit from this. Question that comes to then is how do we then start to build that kind of society? Also what should be everyone’s responsibility in creating such a society? As we ponder these questions as the community we need to also think about how have we been doing things, how are doing things? Ok two many questions and that’s probably complicating things even more than they are now.

Let’s start with this we get 6yrs with the children before they start conventional schooling system. Does our society cultivate a culture of learning even at this six year block. Ja I know many will say “but we can’t afford educational toys for our kids”. What do we then do in this case? Surely we can find not costly ways to ensure that kids are mentally stimulated at this stage. Remember if we can try and get the basics right at this stage we would be laying the much needed foundation on the culture of learning. As kids enter the mainstream schooling they would be able to adapt easily to the environment. I believe that this should continue through out the schooling system. Things might get a little more complicated especially since we all understand the education background of this country, but I believe if we show the care and support to kids then they will continue to develop further the culture of learning that we want them to have. Building such a society is not only vital for delivering the skills needed by our economy but also it is important for community development because such a societal mindset is central to the development of our community. This is the way I see it, how do you see it:proedparent@gmail.com