Date: 07/11/2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Asmal: Inaugural Ceremony of Grade R Classes
SPEECH BY THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION, PROFESSOR KADER ASMAL, MP, AT THE INAUGURAL CEREMONY OF GRADE R CLASSES, Fochville Primary School, Friday, 7 November 2003
Director of Ceremonies
MEC for Education, Mr Zacharia Tolo
Members of Parliament
Members of the School Governing Body
Distinguished Guests
Parents and Children
It is a great honour for me to have been invited to be part of this inauguration of your Grade R classes, because our Grade R pupils are probably the most important ones in the school. Everywhere I go, I always emphasise the importance of joining hands to ensure that we provide early childhood education for all our children, and as the Constitution says, to "free the potential" of our people. Your school has responded to this challenge, and that is why we are here for this joyous occasion, to celebrate.
In 2000 I commissioned an audit on early childhood provision in our country. This audit revealed to us that the provision of early childhood education across the different provinces is uneven. The challenge then is how to make early childhood development (ECD) more accessible to young children, and how to ensure that it is available whether you live in a wealthy suburb of Johannesburg or in a small town like Fochville in the North West Province. If one child is not at school, the whole nation shares his or her pain, and should therefore take corrective action to help that child.
My department is developing a plan for improving the quality of learning programmes in early childhood classes in the period leading up to 2010. This plan looks at the development of curriculum and of teachers who must deliver the curriculum, and also at how we can subsidise ECD programmes for children from poor and rural communities. By 2010 at the latest, but hopefully much sooner, we should have Grade R as part of compulsory schooling for all children aged 5.
My department has advised me that we can provide for Grade R using two possible ways. The first of these is the most obvious, where the Grade R class is attached to a primary school, as in the case here at Fochville Primary School. Establishing a Grade R class within the public school system is informed by a number of lessons learnt in a pilot project we undertook, including the need for schools to ensure that they have the human resources and the physical infrastructure to establish a high quality Grade R programme. These children have specific needs, and they should not be expected to simply fit into a normal primary school arrangement. Smaller chairs and desks are obvious, but what about playground equipment, and toilets? So we need to think carefully about what the needs of these children are. This is important because it is at this stage that we can make or break a child's enthusiasm for school.
The second way of providing early childhood education is through community-based ECD centres, which certainly have the potential to provide a programme of similar quality. Indeed we have seen some of them offering wonderful programmes, provided by committed and caring teachers, in some of our poorest rural and urban communities. We have identified 4 500 such sites which we are supporting through a grant, and our target is that eventually all public primary schools, and these community-based ECD centres, will between them provide Grade R opportunities for all children.
I am very proud of the staff and the parents of Fochville Primary School for recognising and responding to this challenge, and for creating additional classes to cater for children of below compulsory school going age. This is in keeping with the spirit of Tirisano, and with the President's call for us to take our future into our own hands, and not wait for someone else to deliver the goods and services. A school community like this, mobilised by the School Governing Body, has the leadership capacity to take charge of its own affairs, and this launching of the Grade R class is a good example.
Your initiative has already put the school at a great advantage, because although Grade R is not yet compulsory, your school will be in the forefront of implementing the Revised National Curriculum Statement for Grade R children. The provincial and district office should indeed be proud of the teachers, and the leadership of the school, in taking up the challenge, and making such a success of it. To all who have been involved, by giving of your time, your money, or anything else, we thank and applaud your efforts.
My department has produced and distributed to all schools and teachers a Guide to the National Curriculum Statement, and this also covers the programme for Grade R. We are confident that this will assist teachers in implementing the curriculum, although the final quality of teaching will depend entirely on your dedication and effort. This is an exciting new curriculum, which has as its foundations the principles and practices of democracy, and which encapsulates the multi-faceted and sensitive environmental issues that confront our country, and we are confident that all teachers will rise to the challenge of making it work in their classrooms.
Our job, and that of district and provincial officials, is to support teachers in the implementation of the curriculum. One of our successes in this regard is the partnership with the SABC, Sanlam and the Sesame Workshop, in the production of Takalani Sesame, which I am sure you all enjoy. This home-grown, multi-media production, which uses TV, radio, print and other outreach strategies to educate children (and apparently adults, many of whom now watch the programme as well), has recently been judged to be the best children's television programme in the entire world. Once again, South Africa leads the world. I am sure that the school and parents will agree with me in saying that this is really a worthwhile programme, and as a token of appreciation to the school I would like to donate some Takalani Sesame materials to be used in your Grade R classrooms.
Just yesterday I sent a senior manager from my Department to represent me at the launch of the third series of Takalani Sesame at the Zoo Lake in Johannesburg. The new series of the show will continue where the second series left off. It will continue its message aimed at assisting parents and caregivers in communicating HIV/AIDS issues to children, which is a hallmark of the production. We must take care of our future leaders, and cannot allow them to be infected with the disease through ignorance. At the same time, we are all affected by HIV and AIDS, and we need to be aware of our responsibilities to those who carry the disease.
Let me also emphasise the importance of the relationship between the governing body, teachers and parents in determining the effectiveness of schools. We see every day the positive effects of good governance and leadership. We also see those schools where there is no co-operation, and the disastrous effect this has on teaching and learning. It is only through the leadership of a competent team, and the full co-operation of all members of that team, that developments like these can be sustained in schools.
We want to increase the role of education in supporting community development, and to enhance school effectiveness. Your school has demonstrated the ability to respond to community needs, and you need to be supported in this initiative. Other schools might learn from you, or even be assisted by you, in building the foundation for these future citizens.
In closing, I must thank the parents of Fochville Primary for the support they are giving to the school. It is through your support that the school is able to achieve what it has achieved, and what it will achieve in future. It is a great achievement to provide Grade R through your own efforts. We want our children to enjoy their school, develop positive attitudes to learning and reading, and to go on to achieve great things. We know they can if they are given the right start, as you have done.
I also express my sincere appreciation to the school governing body, the principal and teachers of Fochville Primary, for their acts of true professionalism. May your dedication and commitment continue to be an example to all.
I now declare the Grade R classes officially open, and unveil the plaque to remember this proud occasion.
Dankie
Thank you
Ke a leboga
Issued by: Ministry of Education
7 November 2003
Source: Ministry of Education
Title: Asmal: Inaugural Ceremony of Grade R Classes
SPEECH BY THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION, PROFESSOR KADER ASMAL, MP, AT THE INAUGURAL CEREMONY OF GRADE R CLASSES, Fochville Primary School, Friday, 7 November 2003
Director of Ceremonies
MEC for Education, Mr Zacharia Tolo
Members of Parliament
Members of the School Governing Body
Distinguished Guests
Parents and Children
It is a great honour for me to have been invited to be part of this inauguration of your Grade R classes, because our Grade R pupils are probably the most important ones in the school. Everywhere I go, I always emphasise the importance of joining hands to ensure that we provide early childhood education for all our children, and as the Constitution says, to "free the potential" of our people. Your school has responded to this challenge, and that is why we are here for this joyous occasion, to celebrate.
In 2000 I commissioned an audit on early childhood provision in our country. This audit revealed to us that the provision of early childhood education across the different provinces is uneven. The challenge then is how to make early childhood development (ECD) more accessible to young children, and how to ensure that it is available whether you live in a wealthy suburb of Johannesburg or in a small town like Fochville in the North West Province. If one child is not at school, the whole nation shares his or her pain, and should therefore take corrective action to help that child.
My department is developing a plan for improving the quality of learning programmes in early childhood classes in the period leading up to 2010. This plan looks at the development of curriculum and of teachers who must deliver the curriculum, and also at how we can subsidise ECD programmes for children from poor and rural communities. By 2010 at the latest, but hopefully much sooner, we should have Grade R as part of compulsory schooling for all children aged 5.
My department has advised me that we can provide for Grade R using two possible ways. The first of these is the most obvious, where the Grade R class is attached to a primary school, as in the case here at Fochville Primary School. Establishing a Grade R class within the public school system is informed by a number of lessons learnt in a pilot project we undertook, including the need for schools to ensure that they have the human resources and the physical infrastructure to establish a high quality Grade R programme. These children have specific needs, and they should not be expected to simply fit into a normal primary school arrangement. Smaller chairs and desks are obvious, but what about playground equipment, and toilets? So we need to think carefully about what the needs of these children are. This is important because it is at this stage that we can make or break a child's enthusiasm for school.
The second way of providing early childhood education is through community-based ECD centres, which certainly have the potential to provide a programme of similar quality. Indeed we have seen some of them offering wonderful programmes, provided by committed and caring teachers, in some of our poorest rural and urban communities. We have identified 4 500 such sites which we are supporting through a grant, and our target is that eventually all public primary schools, and these community-based ECD centres, will between them provide Grade R opportunities for all children.
I am very proud of the staff and the parents of Fochville Primary School for recognising and responding to this challenge, and for creating additional classes to cater for children of below compulsory school going age. This is in keeping with the spirit of Tirisano, and with the President's call for us to take our future into our own hands, and not wait for someone else to deliver the goods and services. A school community like this, mobilised by the School Governing Body, has the leadership capacity to take charge of its own affairs, and this launching of the Grade R class is a good example.
Your initiative has already put the school at a great advantage, because although Grade R is not yet compulsory, your school will be in the forefront of implementing the Revised National Curriculum Statement for Grade R children. The provincial and district office should indeed be proud of the teachers, and the leadership of the school, in taking up the challenge, and making such a success of it. To all who have been involved, by giving of your time, your money, or anything else, we thank and applaud your efforts.
My department has produced and distributed to all schools and teachers a Guide to the National Curriculum Statement, and this also covers the programme for Grade R. We are confident that this will assist teachers in implementing the curriculum, although the final quality of teaching will depend entirely on your dedication and effort. This is an exciting new curriculum, which has as its foundations the principles and practices of democracy, and which encapsulates the multi-faceted and sensitive environmental issues that confront our country, and we are confident that all teachers will rise to the challenge of making it work in their classrooms.
Our job, and that of district and provincial officials, is to support teachers in the implementation of the curriculum. One of our successes in this regard is the partnership with the SABC, Sanlam and the Sesame Workshop, in the production of Takalani Sesame, which I am sure you all enjoy. This home-grown, multi-media production, which uses TV, radio, print and other outreach strategies to educate children (and apparently adults, many of whom now watch the programme as well), has recently been judged to be the best children's television programme in the entire world. Once again, South Africa leads the world. I am sure that the school and parents will agree with me in saying that this is really a worthwhile programme, and as a token of appreciation to the school I would like to donate some Takalani Sesame materials to be used in your Grade R classrooms.
Just yesterday I sent a senior manager from my Department to represent me at the launch of the third series of Takalani Sesame at the Zoo Lake in Johannesburg. The new series of the show will continue where the second series left off. It will continue its message aimed at assisting parents and caregivers in communicating HIV/AIDS issues to children, which is a hallmark of the production. We must take care of our future leaders, and cannot allow them to be infected with the disease through ignorance. At the same time, we are all affected by HIV and AIDS, and we need to be aware of our responsibilities to those who carry the disease.
Let me also emphasise the importance of the relationship between the governing body, teachers and parents in determining the effectiveness of schools. We see every day the positive effects of good governance and leadership. We also see those schools where there is no co-operation, and the disastrous effect this has on teaching and learning. It is only through the leadership of a competent team, and the full co-operation of all members of that team, that developments like these can be sustained in schools.
We want to increase the role of education in supporting community development, and to enhance school effectiveness. Your school has demonstrated the ability to respond to community needs, and you need to be supported in this initiative. Other schools might learn from you, or even be assisted by you, in building the foundation for these future citizens.
In closing, I must thank the parents of Fochville Primary for the support they are giving to the school. It is through your support that the school is able to achieve what it has achieved, and what it will achieve in future. It is a great achievement to provide Grade R through your own efforts. We want our children to enjoy their school, develop positive attitudes to learning and reading, and to go on to achieve great things. We know they can if they are given the right start, as you have done.
I also express my sincere appreciation to the school governing body, the principal and teachers of Fochville Primary, for their acts of true professionalism. May your dedication and commitment continue to be an example to all.
I now declare the Grade R classes officially open, and unveil the plaque to remember this proud occasion.
Dankie
Thank you
Ke a leboga
Issued by: Ministry of Education
7 November 2003
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