Date: 08/08/2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Mangena: Launch of Democracy in the Classroom project
ADDRESS BY THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF EDUCATION, MR MOSIBUDI MANGENA, AT THE LAUNCH OF DEMOCRACY IN THE CLASSROOM PROJECT, UNISA Senate Hall, 8 August 2003
Programme Director,
Vice Chancellor, Professor Pityana,
Chairperson of the IEC, Dr Bam,
Ambassadors present,
Mr Sam Sharp and Barbara Payne of the DFID,
Council Members of Unisa,
Representatives of donor agencies present,
Director General of Education,Mr Mseleku,
CEO of the IEC, Adv. Tlakula,
Commissioners of the IEC,
Distinguished Guests,
ABET and School Educators,
Volunteers and ABET and school learners,
Ladies and Gentlemen
This project brings together a number of important strands in our ongoing struggle to liberate this country. One of the key requirements for our freedom is the ability of every individual and community to overcome the barriers that have prevented their economic and social participation in society. Poverty, illiteracy, and the absence of democracy are three of the most critical barriers to social inclusion, and I am pleased to note that this project is attempting to address all of these.
The Democracy in the Classroom Project is the result of a partnership between the United Kingdom Department for International Development, the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa, and the ABET Institute of the University of South Africa, in collaboration with the South African National Literacy Initiative of the Ministry of Education.
SANLI was established with the purpose of engaging with all organisations involved in the development and delivery of literacy, to mobilise resources for these organisations, and to improve and assure the quality of their programmes. SANLI set itself the ambitious target of 1 million people newly able to read and write by 2004, and the recognition was expressed at the launch of the initiative that this could only be achieved through extensive partnerships across the country. An office in Pretoria could never reach that many people, but it can and must play a co-ordination role - directing resources to where they are most needed, aligning outcomes with the requirements of the National Qualifications Framework, and monitoring the impact of all the efforts.
To date, we have utilised the services of a range of organisations, including the big ones like Unisa and Project Literacy, but also many local and community based organisations - some quite formal, others no more that a gathering of people at someone's house. All of these have been oriented towards poverty alleviation - in a bigger sense than just literacy and numeracy. Life skills appropriate to the adult constituency, and practical training in day-to-day issues are also part of these programmes, so that people can fully utilise the most valuable new resources they have developed within themselves. It is in this sense that we characterise programmes like this one, as being initiatives that contribute simultaneously to the building of democracy, the elimination of poverty, and the attainment of literacy.
The partnership with Unisa began in 2001, when the Department partnered with them in the utilisation of a grant from DFID. The simple aim was to develop a database of the 25 000 adult educators which Unisa had trained and qualified through its ABET Institute, and to monitor their take-up in the system. Through their efforts, we targeted a 35% decline in illiteracy in each province, over the four-year period. The project was built around the concept of voluntarism, and these educators were not to be paid for their services.
Notwithstanding the ideological appeal of the "each one, teach one" approach, international experience should have warned us of the dangers of volunteer educators. The truth is that the communities in which literacy programmes are most needed are precisely those where there is no scope for voluntarism, since simple survival is more the issue. The "costs of volunteering", including travel and time, could not be afforded by most of these adult educators. In addition, it was soon evident that issues of accountability were seriously compromised by having only volunteers, and that some form of stipend was necessary to concretise the contract between the project, the learners, and the literacy workers. Again, this is not an exceptional situation to South Africa.
Fortunately, we were able to secure additional commitments from DFID, and we have paid a transport allowance to the volunteers. For many, we have no doubt that this is a primary source of income, and the huge response to the call for these volunteers to come forward has confirmed the value of this. This does not in any way undermine our respect for the commitment of the volunteers; it is simply recognition - and a small one at that - of the circumstances in which they live and work. As a result of this recruitment, we set ourselves the target of 75 000 learners per year, to be taken to an ABET Level 1 Certificate. We have just been appraised by Professor McKay about what happened to those targets - they have been massively exceeded. Thanks to the extraordinary spirit and energy of all involved, and the support of DFID. We are all aware that the literacy classes provided by the project take place in a variety of circumstances, ranging from schools to churches and homes, and even some outdoors as well. The targeted sectors have included farm workers, the informal sector, prisoners, the aged, street children and women.
In 2003, again with DFID support, Unisa and SANLI have taken on the challenge of making nearly 210 000 more people newly literate. In doing so, there was a recognition that we needed to link the programmes more firmly to the development of our society, and the promotion of our Constitutional values. Literate people must be aware of their rights in order to use their literacy to protect and advance these rights. Literacy programmes, therefore, comprise mother tongue and second language instruction and numeracy, and includes modules related to money matters and aspects on HIV and AIDS.
More recently, Unisa and the Ministry have joined forces with the IEC to include a democracy education component in these programmes. The IEC already has a Democracy Development Department that offers voter education programmes in some schools, but this programme provides an ideal opportunity to reach out to the most marginalised of our people.
The IEC has developed and provided learner support materials for 100 000 learners and 6 000 volunteer educators. DFID has provided resources to ensure that the other 100 000 learners and 10 000 volunteers also receive this material - all neatly packaged in an impressive bag. We express our appreciation to the IEC, and the DFID, for these contributions, which will mean so much to the worthy recipients, who are developing themselves and others, for the sake of our nation. As has already been alluded to, there are more registered learners that still need to be catered for. And we appeal to more organisations join this partnership.
I think that we can now claim to be winning the battle against illiteracy. The most recent Household Survey placed us at a 93% level - up from 86% in 1994. The Eastern Cape alone has 93 000 registered learners, who, once they graduate, will undoubtedly start to make a contribution to the economy of the province, beginning with their own towns and communities. In our collection of information over the past two months, we have found that between 1999 and 2002 over 1 million learners attended and successfully completed literacy and ABET programmes. And importantly, we are now building the expertise and the systems to "go to scale" - to massively extend the programme, using trained facilitators and technology.
In line with this expansion we have recently signed an agreement with the International Literacy Initiative, the ILI, based in the United States, to provide computer based literacy facilities. This "Bridges to the Future" Initiative will commence in Limpopo later this year, with software written in Sepedi. Similar programmes are running in India, also using local languages, and some other developing countries.
But in the end numbers are not the thing that drives literacy workers, and perhaps not what counts in the end. For me, the pride and joy in the face of one elderly woman, when she demonstrates how she can now read from the hymnbook at church, is surely a sufficient reward for any work done in the literacy field. Like the adverts say - you make a difference!
And that is where I should end - thanking and congratulating all involved. Unisa, 130 years old this year, perhaps has some sympathy with the aged, but thank you anyway for your support of the initiative. Not many universities have picked up ABET in the way you have; some do a lot of research and writing, but very little action. We thank you for the Unisa ABET Institute, which has taken its responsibilities seriously.
To the IEC, we will see the fruits of your contribution next year. Not in the results of the election, but in the very elections themselves, and the way in which we as South Africans participate. You have set high standards for our conduct in elections, which we should rightly be setting for others as well. But the most critical element is participation, for once we lose interest in democracy, we will lose democracy. Your material will ensure we participate in 2004, as we did in the past, and as we will in the future.
To the Department of Education, I can only urge the officials to continue their efforts to promote the interests of adult education, including literacy, and also thank them for what they have brought about to date.
And to the people of the United Kingdom, who have provided support to all of us through their agency, the Department for International Development, we express our deepest appreciation. Not only have you funded all of this, but you have done so in a way which demonstrates a genuine concern in the plight of our people, and a deep commitment to helping them to improve their lives. Thank you.
In the spirit of Tirisano, I thank also the learners, for whom this has not been an easy path. We must never forget the deep humility that is required for a grown man to say: "I cannot read or write". We must feel it so that we can truly share the joy when the same man says: "At last, I can read".
I thank you, and wish this project every success.
Issued by Ministry of Education
8 August 2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Mangena: Launch of Democracy in the Classroom project
ADDRESS BY THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF EDUCATION, MR MOSIBUDI MANGENA, AT THE LAUNCH OF DEMOCRACY IN THE CLASSROOM PROJECT, UNISA Senate Hall, 8 August 2003
Programme Director,
Vice Chancellor, Professor Pityana,
Chairperson of the IEC, Dr Bam,
Ambassadors present,
Mr Sam Sharp and Barbara Payne of the DFID,
Council Members of Unisa,
Representatives of donor agencies present,
Director General of Education,Mr Mseleku,
CEO of the IEC, Adv. Tlakula,
Commissioners of the IEC,
Distinguished Guests,
ABET and School Educators,
Volunteers and ABET and school learners,
Ladies and Gentlemen
This project brings together a number of important strands in our ongoing struggle to liberate this country. One of the key requirements for our freedom is the ability of every individual and community to overcome the barriers that have prevented their economic and social participation in society. Poverty, illiteracy, and the absence of democracy are three of the most critical barriers to social inclusion, and I am pleased to note that this project is attempting to address all of these.
The Democracy in the Classroom Project is the result of a partnership between the United Kingdom Department for International Development, the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa, and the ABET Institute of the University of South Africa, in collaboration with the South African National Literacy Initiative of the Ministry of Education.
SANLI was established with the purpose of engaging with all organisations involved in the development and delivery of literacy, to mobilise resources for these organisations, and to improve and assure the quality of their programmes. SANLI set itself the ambitious target of 1 million people newly able to read and write by 2004, and the recognition was expressed at the launch of the initiative that this could only be achieved through extensive partnerships across the country. An office in Pretoria could never reach that many people, but it can and must play a co-ordination role - directing resources to where they are most needed, aligning outcomes with the requirements of the National Qualifications Framework, and monitoring the impact of all the efforts.
To date, we have utilised the services of a range of organisations, including the big ones like Unisa and Project Literacy, but also many local and community based organisations - some quite formal, others no more that a gathering of people at someone's house. All of these have been oriented towards poverty alleviation - in a bigger sense than just literacy and numeracy. Life skills appropriate to the adult constituency, and practical training in day-to-day issues are also part of these programmes, so that people can fully utilise the most valuable new resources they have developed within themselves. It is in this sense that we characterise programmes like this one, as being initiatives that contribute simultaneously to the building of democracy, the elimination of poverty, and the attainment of literacy.
The partnership with Unisa began in 2001, when the Department partnered with them in the utilisation of a grant from DFID. The simple aim was to develop a database of the 25 000 adult educators which Unisa had trained and qualified through its ABET Institute, and to monitor their take-up in the system. Through their efforts, we targeted a 35% decline in illiteracy in each province, over the four-year period. The project was built around the concept of voluntarism, and these educators were not to be paid for their services.
Notwithstanding the ideological appeal of the "each one, teach one" approach, international experience should have warned us of the dangers of volunteer educators. The truth is that the communities in which literacy programmes are most needed are precisely those where there is no scope for voluntarism, since simple survival is more the issue. The "costs of volunteering", including travel and time, could not be afforded by most of these adult educators. In addition, it was soon evident that issues of accountability were seriously compromised by having only volunteers, and that some form of stipend was necessary to concretise the contract between the project, the learners, and the literacy workers. Again, this is not an exceptional situation to South Africa.
Fortunately, we were able to secure additional commitments from DFID, and we have paid a transport allowance to the volunteers. For many, we have no doubt that this is a primary source of income, and the huge response to the call for these volunteers to come forward has confirmed the value of this. This does not in any way undermine our respect for the commitment of the volunteers; it is simply recognition - and a small one at that - of the circumstances in which they live and work. As a result of this recruitment, we set ourselves the target of 75 000 learners per year, to be taken to an ABET Level 1 Certificate. We have just been appraised by Professor McKay about what happened to those targets - they have been massively exceeded. Thanks to the extraordinary spirit and energy of all involved, and the support of DFID. We are all aware that the literacy classes provided by the project take place in a variety of circumstances, ranging from schools to churches and homes, and even some outdoors as well. The targeted sectors have included farm workers, the informal sector, prisoners, the aged, street children and women.
In 2003, again with DFID support, Unisa and SANLI have taken on the challenge of making nearly 210 000 more people newly literate. In doing so, there was a recognition that we needed to link the programmes more firmly to the development of our society, and the promotion of our Constitutional values. Literate people must be aware of their rights in order to use their literacy to protect and advance these rights. Literacy programmes, therefore, comprise mother tongue and second language instruction and numeracy, and includes modules related to money matters and aspects on HIV and AIDS.
More recently, Unisa and the Ministry have joined forces with the IEC to include a democracy education component in these programmes. The IEC already has a Democracy Development Department that offers voter education programmes in some schools, but this programme provides an ideal opportunity to reach out to the most marginalised of our people.
The IEC has developed and provided learner support materials for 100 000 learners and 6 000 volunteer educators. DFID has provided resources to ensure that the other 100 000 learners and 10 000 volunteers also receive this material - all neatly packaged in an impressive bag. We express our appreciation to the IEC, and the DFID, for these contributions, which will mean so much to the worthy recipients, who are developing themselves and others, for the sake of our nation. As has already been alluded to, there are more registered learners that still need to be catered for. And we appeal to more organisations join this partnership.
I think that we can now claim to be winning the battle against illiteracy. The most recent Household Survey placed us at a 93% level - up from 86% in 1994. The Eastern Cape alone has 93 000 registered learners, who, once they graduate, will undoubtedly start to make a contribution to the economy of the province, beginning with their own towns and communities. In our collection of information over the past two months, we have found that between 1999 and 2002 over 1 million learners attended and successfully completed literacy and ABET programmes. And importantly, we are now building the expertise and the systems to "go to scale" - to massively extend the programme, using trained facilitators and technology.
In line with this expansion we have recently signed an agreement with the International Literacy Initiative, the ILI, based in the United States, to provide computer based literacy facilities. This "Bridges to the Future" Initiative will commence in Limpopo later this year, with software written in Sepedi. Similar programmes are running in India, also using local languages, and some other developing countries.
But in the end numbers are not the thing that drives literacy workers, and perhaps not what counts in the end. For me, the pride and joy in the face of one elderly woman, when she demonstrates how she can now read from the hymnbook at church, is surely a sufficient reward for any work done in the literacy field. Like the adverts say - you make a difference!
And that is where I should end - thanking and congratulating all involved. Unisa, 130 years old this year, perhaps has some sympathy with the aged, but thank you anyway for your support of the initiative. Not many universities have picked up ABET in the way you have; some do a lot of research and writing, but very little action. We thank you for the Unisa ABET Institute, which has taken its responsibilities seriously.
To the IEC, we will see the fruits of your contribution next year. Not in the results of the election, but in the very elections themselves, and the way in which we as South Africans participate. You have set high standards for our conduct in elections, which we should rightly be setting for others as well. But the most critical element is participation, for once we lose interest in democracy, we will lose democracy. Your material will ensure we participate in 2004, as we did in the past, and as we will in the future.
To the Department of Education, I can only urge the officials to continue their efforts to promote the interests of adult education, including literacy, and also thank them for what they have brought about to date.
And to the people of the United Kingdom, who have provided support to all of us through their agency, the Department for International Development, we express our deepest appreciation. Not only have you funded all of this, but you have done so in a way which demonstrates a genuine concern in the plight of our people, and a deep commitment to helping them to improve their lives. Thank you.
In the spirit of Tirisano, I thank also the learners, for whom this has not been an easy path. We must never forget the deep humility that is required for a grown man to say: "I cannot read or write". We must feel it so that we can truly share the joy when the same man says: "At last, I can read".
I thank you, and wish this project every success.
Issued by Ministry of Education
8 August 2003
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