SUPPORT BY DISTRICT OFFICES
INDICATORS AND TARGETS
fundamental change in the outputs of FET, both schools and colleges, in terms of both the quantity and quality of graduates. Cur- rent efforts to make Grades 10 to 12 more accessible to learners, for instance the no- fee schools policy, and to improve the qual- ity learning at this level must continue, but there is a need for a fundamental review of how FET as a whole should move forward in the medium to long term.
Key questions include how to attain univer- sal completion of twelve years of education (thirteen if Grade R is counted) and how to facilitate the transition between schools and postschool education and training. The Department will work closely with the De- partment of Higher Education and Train- ing (DoHET) and other stakeholders inside and outside government in order to arrive at a long-term strategy that will begin to inform annual planning for Grades 10 to 12 in the 2011/12 financial year.
SUPPORT BY DISTRICT OFFICES
District offices are a vital link between the education departments and schools. They are central to the process of gathering information and diagnosing problems in schools, and they perform a vital support and intervention function. This latter func- tion includes organising training for per- sonnel, dealing with funding and resourc- ing bottlenecks, resolving labour relations disputes and a host of other matters. They are key to ensuring that school principals remain accountable to the provincial de- partment, and that accountability lines within the school to the principal and to the school governing body are maintained.
The Department’s responsibility is partly to ensure that the various national policies are translated into clear and implementable functions for districts. In this regard, cur- riculum imperatives, new systemic assess- ment and teacher development policies are expected to change the role of districts
somewhat, and existing district functions will have to be amended and cost impli- cations made clear. Non-government or- ganisations (NGOs) play a valuable role in supporting schools and complementing the efforts of district offices.
There is a need to strengthen the policy framework within which this occurs so that it becomes clearer to both government and non-government partners what their rights and responsibilities are. Any policy change should be aimed at making it easier for ac- credited non-government partners to work with schools and to contribute towards the attainment of better quality schooling.
Districts are of course the provincial de- partment’s
main interface with schools.
The functionality of districts depends on the overall functionality of the provincial department. In this regard the Department continues to view the building of capacity in provincial departments as a priority. In concrete terms, support in this area from the Department takes the form of training workshops for provincial officials and visits to individual provinces by national depart- ment officials to assist in resolving specific planning problems and crises.
The Department will improve the effec- tiveness of such support through better re- sponse systems and better internal capacity in this area in order to ensure improved school functionality. To this end, the De- partment will ensure that policy and legisla- tion are enabling so that provinces appoint principals who have the necessary skills and ability to successfully manage schools.
ADULT BASIC LITERACY
The Department’s Kha Ri Gude mass lit- eracy programme is the largest service de- livery programme over which the Depart- ment has full operational responsibility. The success of this programme, which began in 2008, has been recognised internationally by the Commonwealth of Learning and
nationally by PANSALB. The priority in the coming years will be to have at least 480 000 adults successfully complete the Kha Ri Gude course each year in order to realise the programme’s target of halving adult literacy by 2015, relative to the situ- ation when the programme commenced.
During 2009 UNICEF conducted an assess- ment of Kha Ri Gude, the recommendations of which will inform the way forward for the programme. Moreover, UNESCO’s In- stitute for Lifelong Learning is expected to undertake an additional assessment of the programme during 2010. In addition to the provision of basic literacy, the Kha Ri Gude campaign plays an important role in the na- tional drive for poverty alleviation and job creation. The campaign offers short term EPWP-type job opportunities for volun- teers to earn a stipend.
It is estimated that between 2010 and 2012, approximately 120 000 short term jobs will be created by the campaign, and that approximately 75% of the campaign al- location will be paid out to volunteers in the form of stipends over this period.
KEY STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE 6: THE ‘SCHOOLING 2025’ ACTION PLAN
To establish a long-term plan for the ba- sic education sector that will allow for the monitoring of progress against a set of mea- sureable indicators covering enrolments, teachers, facilities and educational quality.
Indicators and targets for the above
The first version of the plan will be re- leased during 2010, and the years 2010 and 2011 will see major public involvement in sharpening the plan and ensuring that it speaks to the long-term concerns of all key stakeholders. The Department has seen an increase in the volume and quality of na- tional monitoring of the schooling system in recent years, with a number of key re- ports being released. Yet monitoring and evaluation continues to be an area in which
improvement is needed. A new monitor- ing and evaluation element that is to be introduced in 2010 is an annual report on the state of the basic education sector. This should not be confused with the organisa- tional annual report that the Department has been producing for many years but which focuses mainly on the performance of the Department as an organisation.
The annual sector report will to a large degree be an instrument for gauging prog- ress against the targets set out in School- ing 2025. It will thus place considerable emphasis on a rigorous analysis of system performance according to key indicators, at the same time as it will incorporate more qualitative research findings. For the annual sector report to be credible, it will need to compiled in a professional and rigorous manner. It is envisaged that the National Education Evaluation and Development Unit, NEEDU, to be operationalised in 2010, will play a pivotal role in develop- ing the annual sector report. NEEDU is also expected to play a number of other evaluative and accountability functions in the Department so as to monitor, inform and improve practice. The roles of NEEDU will be clarified during 2010.
KEY STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE 7: BETTER REPORTING ON THE STATE OF BASIC EDUCATION
To publish more frequent reports flowing from the monitoring and research work of the Department, and in particular to re- lease an annual report on the state of the
basic education sector. This will
assist
in
bringing about more informed education policy debates in the country, and will al- low for progress against the Schooling 2025 action plan to be properly monitored.
Indicators and targets for the above
The first of the annual reports will be pub- lished in 2010. However, given that it will take time to develop the right approach, a more fully-fledged annual report will be pro- duced in 2011 (and in subsequent years).
The Department’s e-Education policy for the sector and a 2009 information and communication technologies (ICT) feasi- bility study point to the need for a more pro-active presence of the Department in the e-Education area. One critical role of the Department is to make education poli- cies, data and analyses of the sector, and learning and teaching materials available to the whole range of stakeholders through the Internet in a manner that makes access easy to users.
Although access to the Internet is still lim- ited in the more remote and disadvantaged parts of the country, this access is improv- ing rapidly and even in remote areas key decision-makers and implementers, such as school principals and SGB chairpersons, will often access the Internet regularly. A key advantage with materials distributed in this manner is obviously that they can be up- dated and corrected in a way that printed materials cannot.
The Department is convinced that good In- ternet access to education information can significantly contribute towards a more effi- cient and informed schooling sector. Whilst the availability of information through the Department’s website and the Thutong portal have improved in recent years, there are still critical gaps that must be filled and the information needs to be organised in a more user-friendly way.
KEY STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE 8: PROMOTION OF THE E-EDUCATION STRATEGY THROUGH WEB- BASED ACCESS TO EDUCATION INFORMATION
Taking the web presence of the Depart- ment of Basic Education to a new level, rec- ognising that the internet is an increasingly important information tool in society.
Indicators and targets for the above
A new Department of Basic Education website will be established during 2010. By the end of 2011 the website will have been expanded and, together with the Thutong portal, will cater for most infor- mation needs of districts, school principals, teachers, parents and learners. In particu- lar, the dissemination of electronic versions of workbooks and other learning materials will be emphasised. The availability of in- formation to the education research com- munity will also be improved. During 2012 an external evaluation of the Department’s web presence will occur and findings will inform further improvements.
22 CHAPTER 1 | INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
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