2014 Country Progress Report Published by the Department of Basic Education
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South Africa Education for All 2015 National Review This report was prepared by the relevant national authorities in view of the World Education Forum (Incheon, Republic of Korea, 19‐22 May 2015). It was submitted in response to UNESCO’s invitation to its Member States to assess progress made since 2000 towards achieving Education for All (EFA). The views and opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not commit UNESCO. The designations employed and the presentation of material do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The paper can be cited with the following reference: “Education for All 2015 National Review Report: South Africa”. For further information, please contact: [email protected] Department of Basic Education Education for All (EFA) 2014 Country Progress Report Published by the Department of Basic Education 222 Struben Street, Pretoria Private Bag X895, Pretoria, 0001 Telephone: 012 357 3000 Fax: 012 323 0601 Website: http://www.education.gov.za ISBN: © Department of Basic Education, 2014 Table of Contents 1. BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION. .7 1.1 EDUCATION FOR ALL GOALS . 7 1.2 EDUCATION LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK . 8 1.3 THE NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN (NDP) . 9 1.4 ACTION PLAN TO 2019: TOWARDS THE REALISATION OF SCHOOLING 2030 . 9 1.5 EXPENDITURE IN EDUCATION. 10 2. ACCESS TO EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT (ECD) PROGRAMMES . .11 2.1 PARTICIPATION IN EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT (ECD) PROGRAMMES . 11 2.2 PARTICIPATION OF 0 TO 4-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN IN ECD PROGRAMMES . 12 2.3 PARTICIPATION OF 5-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN IN EDUCATION . 12 2.4 ENROLMENT IN GRADE R CLASSES. 13 3. ACCESS TO PRIMARY AND COMPULSORY EDUCATION . 14 3.1 PARTICIPATION IN PRIMARY EDUCATION. 14 3.2 PARTICIPATION IN COMPULSORY EDUCATION . 15 3.3 OUT-OF-SCHOOL CHILDREN. 16 4. LEARNING NEEDS OF YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULTS . .18 4.1 PARTICIPATION OF 14 TO 18-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN IN EDUCATION . 18 4.2 PARTICIPATION OF 16 TO 18-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS . 19 4.3 POST-SCHOOL EDUCATION AND TRAINING . 21 5. ADULT LITERACY . .23 5.1 PUBLIC POLICIES IN SUPPORT OF ADULT LEARNING AND TRAINING . 23 5.2 KHA RI GUDE MASS LITERACY CAMPAIGN . 23 5.3 ADULT EDUCATION AND TRAINING . 23 5.4 ADULT LITERACY: FINDINGS FROM THE GENERAL HOUSEHOLD SURVEY, 2002 – 2013 . 24 6. ELIMINATING GENDER DISPARITIES IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION . .26 6.1 DEFINITIONS OF EDUCATIONAL EQUITY . 26 6.2 INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT . 26 6.3 LEGISLATIVE MANDATE ON GENDER EQUITY . 27 6.4 CURRENT STATUS OF GENDER EQUITY IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN SCHOOLS . 27 6.6 LITERACY BY GENDER . 31 6.7 INITIATIVES FOR MAINSTREAMING GENDER EQUITY IN EDUCATION . 32 7. PROVISION OF QUALITY EDUCATION . .33 7.1 ANNUAL NATIONAL ASSESSMENTS RESULTS, 2012 – 2013 . 33 7.2 LEARNER PERFORMANCE IN THE NATIONAL SENIOR CERTIFICATE (NSC) . 34 7.3 MATHEMATICS OUTCOMES IN THE NSC SINCE 2008 . 35 7.4 LEARNER PERFORMANCE IN INTERNATIONAL TESTS . 37 7.5 TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS. 37 8. INITIATIVES TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF BASIC EDUCATION . 38 9. CONCLUSION. .39 BIBLIOGRAPHY. .40 3 2013 COUNTRY PROGRESS REPORT: SOUTH AFRICA List of Tables Table 1: Percentage of 0 to 4-year-old children attending ECD facilities, 2002 – 2013 12 Table 2: Percentage of 5-year-old children attending educational institutions, 2002 – 2013 12 Table 3: Number of learners enrolled in Grade R in public ordinary schools, 2003 – 2013 13 Table 4: Participation of 7 to 13-year-olds in educational institutions by gender, 2002 – 2013 15 Table 5: Percentage of 7 to 15-year-old children attending educational institutions, 2002 – 2013 16 Table 6: Percentage of 7 to 15-year-old children attending an educational institution by gender, 2002 – 2013 16 Table 7: Percentage of 14 to 18-year-old children attending educational institutions by gender, 2002 – 2013 19 Table 8: Percentage of 16 to 18-year-old children attending educational institutions, 2002 – 2013 19 Table 9: Percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds completing Grade 12 and above 19 Table 10: Number of students, lecturers and institutions in public TVET colleges, 2005 – 2013 21 Table 11: Percentage of 0 to 4-year-old children attending ECD facilities by gender, 2002 – 2013 27 Table 12: Percentage of 5-year-old children attending an educational institution by gender, 2002 – 2013 28 Table 13: Percentage of 7 to 15-year-old children attending an educational institution by gender, 2002 – 2013 28 Table 14: Percentage of 7 to 15-year-old children out of school by gender, 2002 – 2013 29 Table 15: Percentage of 16 to 18-year-old youth not attending educational institutions by gender, 2002 – 2013 29 Table 16: Trends in NSC mathematics since 2008 35 Table 17: Trends in NSC physical sciences since 2008 35 Table 17: Proportions of all NSC candidates with various mathematics outcomes, 2008 and 2013 36 Table 18: Percentage of qualified teachers, 2008 – 2013 37 4 EDUCATION FOR ALL (EFA) List of Figures Figure 1: Percentage of learners aged 7 to 13 attending educational institutions, 2002 – 2013 14 Figure 2: Percentage of 7 to 15-year-old children attending educational institutions, 2002 – 2013 15 Figure 3: 7 to 18-year-old-children out of school, 2002 – 2013 17 Figure 4: 7 to 15-year-old children out of school, 2002 – 2013 17 Figure 5: Percentage of 14 to 18-year-old children attending educational institutions, 2002 – 2013 18 Figure 6: Number of 16 to 18-year-old children out of school, 2002 – 2013 21 Figure 7: Percentage of 20-year-olds and above who completed Grade 7 and above, 2013 24 Figure 8: Percentage of 20-year-olds and above by highest level of education, 2002 – 2013 24 Figure 9: Percentage of 20-year-olds and above who completed Grade 7 by gender, 1995 – 2013 25 Figure 10: 7 to 18-year-olds’ reasons for non-attendance of educational institutions, 2013 29 Figure 11: Percentage of female learners who fell pregnant, 2009 – 2013 30 Figure 12: Status of learner pregnancy, 2009 – 2013 31 Figure 13: Percentage of the population aged 20 years and above who completed Grade 7 and above by gender, 1995 – 2013 31 Figure 14: National Senior Certificate overall pass rate, 2008 – 2013 34 Figure 15: Density distributions of mathematics marks in 2008 and 2013 36 5 2013 COUNTRY PROGRESS REPORT: SOUTH AFRICA ACRONYMS ABET Adult Basic Education and Training AET Adult Education and Training ANA Annual National Assessments ASER Age-Specific Enrolment Ratio CAPS Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child DBE Department of Basic Education EAC English Across the Curriculum ECD Early Childhood Development EFA Education for All FET Further Education and Training GEM Girls’ Education Movement GET General Education and Training GHS General Household Survey GPI Gender Parity Index HEDCOM Heads of Education Departments Committee IEB Independent Examinations Board LITNUM Literacy and Numeracy LoLT Language of Teaching and Learning MDGs Millennium Development Goals MST Maths, Science and Technology NCF National Curriculum Framework NDP National Development Plan 2030 NEPA National Education Policy Act, 1996 NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NSC National Senior Certificate NSFAS National Student Financial Aid Scheme NSLA National Strategy for Learner Attainment OECD Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development PEDs Provincial Education Departments SACE South African Council for Educators SACMEQ Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality SADC Southern African Development Community SASA The South African Schools Act, 1996 TIMSS Trends in International Maths and Science Study TVET Technical and vocational education and training colleges UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation UNICEF The United Nations Children’s Fund 6 EDUCATION FOR ALL (EFA) 1. BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION Education for All (EFA) is a global initiative, launched at the World Conference on Education for All in Jomtien, Thailand in 1990. It is led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), in partnership with governments, development agencies, civil society, non-governmental organisations and the media. At the 1990 World Conference, a total of 155 countries, as well as representatives from some 150 organisations agreed to universalise primary education and massively reduce illiteracy by the end of that decade. The World Declaration on Education for All, adopted in Jomtien, endorsed education as a fundamental human right and urged countries to strengthen their efforts to ensure that the basic learning needs of all were met. Six goals were later agreed to at the World Education Forum held in 2000 in Dakar, Senegal, that focus on access to early childhood development programmes, access to primary education, gender parity and equality, the learning needs of all young people and adults, adult literacy and quality education. This report assesses the progress made in South Africa towards the achievement of the EFA goals. It also summarises the government’s policies and programmes aimed at realising the EFA goals and targets. This report coincides with the country celebrating 20 years of democracy, as April 2014 marked the end the second decade of democracy in South Africa. The report provides the Department of Basic Education with the opportunity to commemorate the successes achieved in public education in the country in the democratic era and the work of the democratic government in providing quality education for all. 1.1 EDUCATION FOR ALL GOALS The 2000 Dakar Framework for Action sets out six EFA goals. The goals are global in nature. Via a process of consultation with stakeholders, and with the assistance of the wider international community as well as EFA follow-up mechanisms, countries were expected to set their own goals, intermediate targets and timelines within existing or new national education plans (UNESCO, 2000).