scholarly journals Falling through the cracks: The plight of "over-aged" children in the public education system

De Jure ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorette Arendse
Keyword(s):  
Adult Education ◽  
South African ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Compulsory Education ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Formal Schooling ◽  
Policy Structure ◽  
Education Centre ◽  
Access And Quality

The legislative and policy framework regulating compulsory education in South Africa requires that learners beyond the age of fifteen enrol in an adult education centre to meet their educational needs. Adult education which has been called the "dysfunctional stepchild" of South African education, is poorly regulated in terms of access and quality control. Therefore, learners who are forced to leave the formal schooling sector are not necessarily guaranteed a placement in an adult education facility. This article focuses on a specific cohort of learners between the ages of fifteen and eighteen who are technically children in terms of South African law and therefore in need of special protection. In particular, the article assesses the extent to which the constitutional rights of these learners are violated by the current compulsory education legislative and policy structure. These rights include the rights to basic education, equality as well as the bests interests of the child.

scholarly journals A critical analysis of the learners’ constitutional rights to basic education in South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Raj Mestry
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Public Schools ◽  
South African ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Religious Discrimination ◽  
Steady Growth ◽  
Admission Policies ◽  
Past Injustices

Globally, several countries have been proposing to make primary education compulsory and freely available to all. Although there has been steady growth in learner enrolment in South African public schools since 1994, the socio-economic status of parents, racial and religious discrimination, high cost of school fees and schools’ language policies have prevented poor learners from accessing basic education, especially in public schools located within affluent areas. This paper critically examines legislation and policies relating to children’s constitutional rights to basic education. The government’s mandate to redress past injustices and concentrate on social justice and equity in public education is hampered by the failure of many schools tocorrectly interpret or consistently apply legislation and regulations relating to learner admissions. It has been found that the admission policies drawn up by school governing bodies (SGB) covertly prevent poor learners from enrolling at affluent schools. Although school admissions have been contested in various court cases, governing bodies of some affluent public schools continue to practise unfairness in opening its doors to all children. To ensure that social justice and equity prevail in school education, the Department of Education should revise policies or amend existing legislation encouraging SGBs to provide learner access without any prejudice.

scholarly journals Four years following South Africa's declaration upon the ratification of the ICESCR and jurisprudence on the right to basic education: A step in the right direction?

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Doya Nanima ◽  
Ebenezer Durojaye
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Right To Education ◽  
National Education ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
The One ◽  
The Right

ABSTRACT Education empowers individuals to develop the skills needed for economic success in order to contribute to nation-building and reconciliation. Following South Africa's ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, there were mixed reactions on account of the much-anticipated ratification, on the one hand, and the declaration that subjected the right to basic education to the National Education Policy Framework and the available resources, on the other. This article interrogates the efficacy of this declaration in the realisation of the right to basic education in South Africa. It utilises a three-step approach. First, it contextualises the right to education and evaluates the declaration. Secondly, it evaluates selected decisions of the South African courts to establish the trend on the right to basic education. The third step juxtaposes the executive's and the courts' approaches from the ratification to date. A conclusion and recommendations inform the way forward. Keywords: Best interests principle, Eviction of schools, Immediate realisation, National policy, Provision of textbooks, Right to basic education, Staffing.

scholarly journals Editorial. Yes, Please - Both Crafts and Digital Tools in Basic Education

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Liv Merete Nielsen ◽  
Janne Beate Reitan
Keyword(s):  
Personal Development ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Compulsory Education ◽  
Arts And Crafts ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Qualified Teachers ◽  
Hands On ◽  
The Future ◽  
Important Challenge ◽  
Near Future

The Ludvigsen Committee (Ludvigsen-utvalget), which aims to assess primary and secondary educational subjects in terms of the competence Norwegian society and its working life will need in the future, has published an interim report entitled Pupils’ Learning in the School of the Future – A Knowledge Foundation (Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research, 2014). The committee wrote the following about arts and crafts: “That subject will contribute to personal development and simultaneously strengthen opportunities to participate in a democratic society, which can be seen as a desire to protect both individual-oriented and community-oriented training. The breadth of the subject can restrict the ability to delve into individual topics” (NOU 2014: 7, 2014, p. 89, our translation from Norwegian). This will be an important challenge for the team in the near future. The committee shall submit their principal report by June 2015.Practical work with materials must not be removed from primary school. It should be required that qualified teachers are employed on the lower grades. Practical/hands-on work can give the trades a boost, encourage students to choose vocations and prevent dropouts in vocational education programmes. We need skilled craftsmen in the future, and good teaching in Arts & Crafts in compulsory education could provide an important basis for both future craftsmen and customers of good craftsmen.

scholarly journals Learner Autonomy as an element in Chinese Education Reform: A Case of English Language Subject

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Jinjin Lu ◽  
Yingliang Liu
Keyword(s):  
Education Reform ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Compulsory Education ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
English Curriculum ◽  
Autonomy Development ◽  
New Guidelines

<p>Enhancing students’ learning autonomy has been emphasized in the current round of English curriculum reforms by the Ministry of Education (MOE) in China. The initial aim of the new guidelines was developed to enhance students’ English proficiency to better fulfil their basic education (Nine-year compulsory education). However, up until now, very little is known about the quality of students’ basic education and their learner autonomy development. This paper uses the English language subject as a case to examine the relationship between the different locations of students’ attendance of their basic education and their learner autonomy development at university level. The result shows that secondary schools’ locations play a more important role in students’ learner autonomy development at university. A ‘Have A Go’ model is proposed to improve students’ transition between high schools and universities in the English language learning process.</p>

scholarly journals A case study of two teacher learning communities in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Free-Queen Bongiwe Zulu ◽  
Tabitha Grace Mukeredzi
Keyword(s):  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Teacher Learning ◽  
South African ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Education And Development ◽  
Teacher Learning Communities

In the Integrated Strategic Planning Framework for Teacher Education and Development, a South African policy, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the Department of Higher Education (DHET) call for the formation of professional learning communities and envisage support for teachers and access to enhanced professional development opportunities at the local level. However, the formation and operation of professional learning communities in a South African context is still unclear. In this article we use the concept of professional learning communities to examine the extent to which 2 teacher learning communities operate as professional learning communities. We used interviews, observations, survey questionnaires and document analysis to generate data. The findings of the study reveal that the 2 teacher learning communities were initiated by the DBE and not by teachers. However, the size of 1 teacher learning community and the nature of its functioning seemed to adhere to the characteristics of a professional learning community while the other did not. The findings indicate that professional learning communities that operate in developing contexts might be functional when all the stakeholders play a meaningful role in supporting professional learning communities.

scholarly journals EL CURRÍCULO DE LA EDUCACIÓN BÁSICA ECUATORIANA: UNA MIRADA DESDE LA ACTUALIDAD

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Jonathan Javier Delgado Cedeño ◽  
María Gabriela Vera Vera ◽  
Juan Carlos Cruz Mendoza ◽  
Jose Grismaldo Pico Mieles
Keyword(s):  
Educational System ◽  
Educational Level ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Compulsory Education ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Current Approach ◽  
Education Curriculum ◽  
Daily Work ◽  
Curricular Elements ◽  
Definition Of

El presente trabajo tiene como objetivo analizar el currículo de la educación básica ecuatoriana considerando sus innovaciones, desde el punto de vista actual, con el fin de distinguir sus características, para ello, se examinaron los precedentes que han generado cambios al currículo, se contrastaron documentos curriculares: Actualización y Fortalecimiento Curricular de la Educación General Básica (Currículo 2010) y el Currículo de los Niveles de Educación Obligatoria (Currículo 2016) y se identificaron los puntos esenciales que han sido mejorados en el último currículo de este nivel educativo. La investigación se realizó mediante revisión bibliográfica de documentos informativos, legales y curriculares. Se han abordado temáticas como: la definición del currículo, el porqué de la denominación de Educación Básica, la evaluación y ajustes al currículo y los principales sustentos legales de este nivel educativo. Con base en el Currículo 2016 se determinaron sus principales cambios y características, así también la forma en que ha sido percibido desde la experiencia docente en el quehacer educativo. Se concluye que los cambios y ajustes que se apliquen al currículo en todo tiempo, deben responder a los intereses sociales de la población y el país, de esta forma la educación cumplirá su rol aportando a la solución de problemas y el mejoramiento del sistema educativo ecuatoriano. PALABRAS CLAVE: Currículo; Educación Básica; Sistema educativo; Ajustes curriculares; Elementos curriculares. THE CURRICULUM OF ECUADORIAN BASIC EDUCATION: LOOK FROM THE PRESENT ABSTRACT The present paper is aimed to analyze the curriculum of Ecuadorian Basic Education considering its innovations from a current approach, in order to distinguish their characteristics. For it, precedents that generated changes to curriculum were examined, curricular documents were contrasted: Update and Curricular Strengthening of General Basic Education (Curriculum 2010), and Currículum of Levels of Compulsory Education (Currículum 2016), and the essential aspects that have been improved in the last curriculum of this educational level were identified. The investigation was conducted through bibliographic review of informative, legal and curricular documents. Thematics as: definition of curriculum, the reason of denomination of Basic Education, evaluation and adjustments to the curriculum, and the main legal underpinnings of this educational level. Based on the 2016 Curriculum, its main changes and characteristics were determined, as well the way it has been perceived from the teaching experience in the education daily work. It is concluded that the changes and adjustments that are applied to the curriculum at all times, must respond to the social interests of the population and the country, in this way education will fulfill its role contributing to the solution of problems and the improvement of the Ecuadorian educational system. KEYWORDS: Curriculum; Basic Education; Educational system; Curricular adjustments; Curricular elements.

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