GRADE R TARGETS AND ROLL-OUT ACHIEVEMENTS
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
Just as strong
foundations are crucial in a well-built house, the first few years of learning have shown to be fundamental in developing a well- educated and literate nation. Formal learning has often been
perceived as beginning at age 6 or 7, yet recent studies have shown that ECD is essential. South Africa is still in the process of addressing disparities in education for ECD as well as grade R (ages 5-6). Targets have been set and the DBE look forward to a time when Grade R is offered by all government schools.
GRADE R TARGETS AND ROLL-OUT ACHIEVEMENTS
The nationwide phasing-in of grade R has a target of full coverage by 2010, with 85% of provision at public primary school and 15% at community sites. ECD Policy intends grade R to be rolled out at public schools as parents have greater confidence in public schools rather than community sites.
In 2009, more than 78% of 5-year-olds attended an educational institution (see Table 22). Table 22 indicates that there was an increase from 39% in 2002 to ap- proximately 78% in 2009 in the number of 5-yearolds attending an educational institu- tion. This translates into an increase of 39% over the 2002 to 2009 period.
Table 22 also indicates an unusually high in- crease of almost 15% in the proportion of 5-year-olds in the country attending an edu- cational institution between 2008 and 2009. It is interesting to note that, in 2009, “poorer” provinces, such as Limpopo, the Free State and the Eastern Cape, showed higher pro- portions of 5-year-olds attending educational institutions (93%, 86% and 85%, respective- ly), as compared to Gauteng (73%), which is considered a more affluent province.1
Over the past decade, there has been an approximate 40% increase in the propor- tion of 5-year-olds receiving some sort of education in South Africa. However, much more needs to be done to reach the tar- get of 100% enrolment of 5-years-olds for Grade R by 2014.
In a critical analysis of the current nature, context and status of provision of ECD in South Africa, the Presidency (2009b) draws attention to the following challenges that would have to be addressed for ECD tar- gets to be reached:
A fragmented legislative and policy framework for ECD, resulting in uncoordinated service delivery; lim- ited access to ECD services; inequi- ties in existing ECD provision; the variable quality of ECD services; a lack of adequate human and financial resources for the high demand by the ECD sector, at national, provin- cial and local/district level; as well as limited interdepartmental/inter- sectoral collaboration to ensure adequate, efficient and quality ECD provision for children.
No single government department is in a position to provide services to children that cover all aspects of children’s needs. An integrated ECD approach is therefore central to the provision of coherent and coordinated programmes for devel- oping young children in South Af- rica. It is therefore important that government departments work in close collaboration, so as to ensure universal access to, and good quality ECD services for all children (The Presidency, 2009b).
There is sufficient evidence to suggest that, irrespective of the targeting criteria, the best way to give children a good start in life, is by means of an integrated approach to ECD.
It has been proven that focusing on a sin- gle aspect of child development does not yield sustainable results. The integrated ap- proach includes programmes pertaining to health, nutrition, water and sanitation, early learning, as well as psycho-social care.
Furthermore, the evidence also suggests that coordination both between and within the different tiers of government and com- munity organisations is one of the key fac- tors for success in providing ECD services.
TARGETS AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT
FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR ECD PROVISION
R1.3 billion projected 2010 budget spend on ECD.
R9.7 billion investment in ECD roll-out plan.
R686 budget per 5 year old ECD learner in 2006. Public schools are hesitant to include
1 Statistics South Africa, General Household Survey: 2002 – 2009
www.ed.org.za
www.ed.org.za
CHAPTER 9 | EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT AND ADULT BASIC EDUCATION AND TRAINING
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