Remarks By Mec Siphosezwe Masango, On The Occasion Of The 3rd Triennial Mpumalanga Sadtu Provincial Conference, Greenway Woods

20th October 2005

Programme Director
Hon. Premier, Mpumalanga Province - Cde. Thabang Makwetla President of COSATU - Cde Willie Madisha
Members of the National Executive Committee of SADTU
Members of Mpumalanga Provincial Executive Committee of SADTU
Deputy General Secretary of SADTU - Cde. Solly Mabusela
SADTU Vice-President of Sport, Arts & Culture - Cde. Nosi Mjekula
Colleagues from the Department of Education
The Leadership of COSAS and of SASCO
Progressive Affiliates of COSATU
Fellow Combatants

We are on course to educate the nation!

I feel deeply honoured, proud and priviledged to have been invited to this conference and to address the 3rd Triennial Mpumalanga SADTU Conference.

The education system we are evolving in our country is as young and fragile as the new democratic dispensation we have inaugurated, 11 years ago – without this new political order there would be little space for the evolution of a people’s education.

Noteworthy is the fact that teachers gathered here occupied the front trenches of the struggle for liberation, sothat as a free people we could begin to evolve the kind of education system we wanted, as enunciated in the Freedom Charter.

Since its birth 15 years ago, SADTU has grown into one of the biggest and internationally recognized educator unions, whose enormous contribution to the public service and the education sector remains unparalleled.

SADTU continues to play this vanguardist role, because thus far, there is no any other progressive and revolutionary educators union that would have played this role. Halala SADTU.

Let us make bold the fact that educators have a mammoth task of educating the nation, and they remain central and key in shaping the education of our people, and in refining the human resource base of our country.

15 days ago, on the 05th October, 2005 educators around the globe celebrated the World Teachers’ Day. On behalf of my colleagues in the Department of Education, I want to take this opportunity to once again express my profound appreciation for the work done by the educators.

The Department of Education unreservedly supports this year’s World Teachers’ Day theme which says: “Quality Teachers for Quality Education.” We are determined to make available all necessary resources to empower our educators in order to realize quality education.

In his address on the occasion of the 4th National Congress of the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union held on the 06th September, 1998 in Durban, Cde. Thabo Mbeki said: “The freedom we enjoy today was brought about by the united struggle of our people, who carried out an offensive on all fronts including the front of education of which you form an important component part.”

Amongst the contributions made by SADTU in the ongoing transformation of the country, the following can be singled out:

SADTU has been instrumental in championing and defending the labour rights of educators and has played a pivotal role in the development of new labour laws for educators e.g. the Educators’ Employment Act.
Contributed in the development of the Workers’ Charter.
Some of the Councillors, Mayors, MPLs MPs and Ministers have been drawn from the ranks of SADTU.

This is indicative of the capacity and depth of leadership that the Union is able to provide to the country.

Some comrades from SADTU have been deployed to various state departments in South Africa where they are doing an excellent job.
Some of the cadres of SADTU continue to do excellent work as Principals, HODs, Circuit Managers, members of the SGBs and many other community-based formations.

It is extremely imperative that we should cultivate a transformational and visionary cadre of leadership at all levels of the Department of Education, given the fact that ours remains a changed and changing educational terrain.

For the next few years the performance of the department will be judged by the extent to which it implements its own programmes / cultivates the requisite capacity to carry out its mission.

In a sense during the First Decade of Freedom, we were seized with policy formulation, policy development and refinement, but in this Second Decade of Freedom, the acid test will lie in the crucible of implementation of such policies.

Thus is required a cadreship dedicated to the attainment of the objectives of such a changing educational environment.

In the Policy and Budget Speech I presented to the Legislature on the 29th June 2004, I said: “As we journey from the First Decade of Freedom into the Second Decade of Freedom, it is our considered imperative that our education must deliver a new learner cadre and a new intelligentsia, truly moulded and baptized in our revolutionary ideas.

This has to happen and must happen, because South Africa and Africa have to produce a truly patriotic intelligentsia which will be the unapologetic disciple, adherent and proponent of the African Renaissance and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).”

Quite clearly, in view of the foregoing remarks, as progressive teacher cadres we need to produce progressive learner cadres who will join and be part of the country’s progressive intelligentsia.

This means that the quantitative growth of this Union must, necessarily, entail a continuous encadrement of the membership.

Such a progressive intelligentsia will, obviously, advance the objectives of the African Renaissance, at the intellectual frontier, and assist the NEPAD in the evolution of knowledge.

Remember, the world is a battle of ideas and Africa must make an indelible intellectual mark in that theatre of ideas.

Let me inform Conference that, in 2004/2005 we convened fruitful Education Izindaba for the RCLs, SGBs and community-based stakeholders. For the first time in the Department of Education we created a platform for a variety of stakeholders to dialogue on matters of education.

We request SADTU members to be the apostles and disciples of this mission of making our people, be the solvers of their own problems.

Recently a Consultative Conference on Education was held in Durban, amongst others, the following challenges were identified:

1. Bridging The Digital Divide: Strengthening Our Mathematics, Science And Technology Base

1.1 Building basic numeracy

The first objective is to ensure that by the end of the first three grades, all learners are highly numerate. In essence this means that they are quick and confident users of the number system. This is the basis of all further learning in mathematics and science.

1.2 Access to Mathematics

The second objective is to ensure that all learners up to Grade 12 offer either Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy.

The proposed compulsory requirement of Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy from 2006 aims to ensure that all learners are prepared for life and work in an increasingly technological, numerical and data-driven world.

1.3 Improved Performance

The third objective is to double the number of learners offering Mathematics HG by 2008. In 2004 the number of HG passes was 24 000. The target for 2008 is 50 000 with a race and gender profile that better represents the population than the current cohort.

This will primarily be done by focusing on support to 400 dedicated science and mathematics school. These schools will receive additional teachers and resources.

1.4 Computer Literacy

The fourth objective is to ensure that by 2008 all learners leave the school system at the end of grade 12 with some level computer literacy. For this reason, the Department of Education aims to have a computer facility at every high school by the beginning of 2008.

Revised National Curriculum Statement/ National Curriculum Statement

The introduction of the Revised National Curriculum Statement (RNCS) to Grade 10 in the year 2006 is indeed a challenge that requires a great deal of commitment from all of us. SADTU has in no doubt demonstrated its commitment to the successful implementation of the RNCS.

In June this year, training was conducted on the RNCS throughout the province, where educators selflessly sacrificed their winter vacation.

We take this opportunity to thank our educators for a job well done.

Disciplined Workforce

As Conference know, I have called for a disciplined workforce among our school-based and office-based educators. This is not necessarily a call for more punitive measures but a call for a conscientious and patriotic execution of duties.

We can regard ourselves as truly disciplined if we respect time for work, work extra hours, work honestly, have team work, respect our illiterate community members and can avoid being charged and dismissed for drunkenness, sexual harassment, embezzlement of school funds, allow learners to cheat during exams and so forth.

We should not defile the nobility of this profession by allowing ourselves to be consumed by these unacceptable acts and tendencies. Surely, those who allow themselves to be consumed by these avoidable weaknesses, define themselves outside the interests of their own communities.

Ayihlome Ifunde Campaign

Programme Director, in our ongoing effort to rekindle the spirit of learning and teaching, the Department has established a detachment aptly named: Ayihlome Ifunde.

The Unit has done excellent work, however, it needs to be properly staffed and Conference is requested to further advise how we can maximize the dynamic utilization of this detachment.

Special Education Indaba

The Provincial Education Indaba held in TUT, Witbank Campus 2004, recommended that a Special Education Indaba be convened in the KwaNdebele enclave in view of the fact that matriculants from the schools in that area under-perform.

We are happy to report that, that Special Indaba has been held on the 07th – 08th October, 2005 at Zithabiseni Holiday Resort. Arising from the discussions and recommendations of that Indaba, the following wayforward was proposed:

1. As a wayforward, we propose that, some of the findings and some of the solutions proposed by this Indaba be applied anywhere in the province where similar circumstances obtain.

2. That between February and March, 2006, an Education Indaba of all schools whose matric results will be under 40% downwards be convened in the province, such an Indaba must be attended by the representatives of the SGBs, RCLs and SMTs of such schools.

The SGBs and SMTs of schools that have shown phenomenal improvement over the last three or five years should be invited to cross-pollinate their successes with such schools.

3. That the Nkangala Region focus its attention to all schools that will perform below 50% throughout the 2006 /2007 academic years.

4. That extra Curriculum Implementers be employed in this area, to close the gap identified by this Indaba. That the CIs will have to do their work diligently in the learning areas where the 2005 results will reveal poor performance (Grade 10, 11 and 12)

5. That the Region must explore the possibility of cluster-based examination papers for Grade 10 and 11 in preparation for Grade 12. That feeder schools should plan together for common assessment.

6. Principals must convene stakeholder meetings, annually, to discuss the progress of their schools, i.e. Political, Civic, Church, Labour, Traditional Leadership, Business, Youth and any other structure that may have interest in education in that community.

7. Explore the advisability of establishing Circuit-based Associations of School Governing Bodies, amongst others to:

share governance experience
management experience
school achievements
challenges and solutions thereof
increased involvement of parents, etc.

8. That the leadership of the RCLs in all the schools be continuously engaged to encourage learners to make our schools work, i.e. rekindle interest in learning, discipline, punctuality, respect, etc.

9. Conduct extra lessons for the learners affected by Ingoma / Koma in that year; to make up for the lost time and to minimize the impact of ukuthutha ithunga to the affected learners.
Where possible, align Ingoma / Koma to the school holidays and that the practitioners of amaqude be advised to conduct same during summer school holidays.

10. That where managerial and capacity shortcomings exist amongst some SMT members, the Nkangala Region and the HRD provide appropriate training.

11. In view of the fact that this area / enclave has a high volume of commuter-educators and commuter-parents, the Parent-Teacher contact is minimal or almost non-existent. This gives lame excuses to some educators to come to school late in the morning, and to leave as soon as the bell rings in the afternoon hurrying for a bus.

All educators commuting or not, must attend to school activities such as:

parent – teacher contact
parent evenings
sporting activities
parents meetings
workshops, etc.

We also encourage educators to visit the homes of under-achieving or troublesome learners to cultivate a good relationship with their parents.

Our country needs transformative educators who ar