Date: 22/01/2003
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government
Title: Joemat-Petterson: Opening of Northern Cape schools
PRESS STATEMENT BY MS TINA JOEMAT-PETTERSON ON THE OPENING OF SCHOOLS AND READINESS ON THE NORTHERN CAPE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, Department of Education, Kimberley, 22 January 2003
Media Representatives
Colleagues
Ladies and Gentlemen
Before we could even start to revel with joy and celebrate out excellent results for the grade twelve examinations last year, we had already started to make preparations for the year ahead. Today we are in a position to declare that we are ready for the start of what looks to be a very challenging year ahead. Our department has all the systems and structures in place to deal pro-active with every possible eventuality, more importantly, to ensure that "learning and teaching" starts on the first day of the opening of schools, meaning tomorrow (23 January 2003)
The last count of the delivery of learned support materials, late last week, was at 98% delivery. With the outstanding LSM being books that had run out of print earlier and were in a process of being delivered to our schools. Our assessment is that this cannot affect effective learning and teaching on the first day of school.
Our districts and Circuit Offices have been open since the 13th of January 2003 whilst the Head Office opened a week earlier. The various units of the department at all levels used this time to consolidate and review their plans. We sent out a checklist for the opening of schools this year as early as November last year. This has been monitored by the Circuit Managers to ensure timeous preparations and school readiness for the opening of schools tomorrow. Teachers are expected to promptly and timeously take up their posts and be in a position to teach on the first day of school.
The department will host a Conference for all our Principals early in the year. We will unveil detailed plans for the year at this conference. These include our intervention programme to reduce to zero the number of schools that received a grade twelve-pass rate of less than 60%.
As is customary in our Province, various officials of government will be visiting schools from Wednesday until Friday to further consolidate our preparations and actions. Amongst others our Premier Manne Dipico, the minister of Public service and Administration Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, various MECs, the HOD and Officials of the Department will visit schools to ensure that things go as smoothly as planned, but also t congratulate our teachers for a job well done last year. We depend on them to maintain our good performance.
Our prime focus this year in respect of the grade twelve's is to mainly improve on the quality of the passes, particularly amongst disadvantages learners and schools. This will not only raise the confidence of our people in our public education system but also improve the public opinion particularly of our currently historically disadvantaged schools that have been shedding their student ratios.
School Nutrition Programme
As part of government's drive to broader our social security system we are working around the clock in the department of education to ensure that our school food nutrition programme immediately takes off the ground and gradually spreads to all poor and disadvantaged areas and schools. Hence, we have identified all rural schools and learners beneficiaries of this programme. The school feeding scheme is a major focus of the department this year. No child should miss out on school because of hunger.
I believe that this food nutrition programme is integral to learning as it increases the attentiveness and focus of learners. Many children go to school without any prospects of a meal for the day and this tends to pre-occupy their minds and distract them from their work.
Opening of the Northern Cape Higher Education Institute
We are well on course to open our Higher Education Institute of the Northern Cape. We have been working hard doing advocacy work and making preparations for its opening next month. The effect of this will be broadened focus on tertiary education by the people of our province. We are collaborating with Potchestroom University, University of North West, the University of Free State and UWC on a number of undergraduate programmes.
We are confident that this institute will not only come with new challenges but will succeed in making us add t our successes. We encourage our learners who just graduated with their Senior Certificates to be vigilant and weary of "Fly by night" institutions that prey on their vulnerability.
We also note the fact that the Premier's Bursary Fund meant to assist learners from poor families and academically deserving has been receiving many late applications. Most of these learners have also applied t any tertiary institution as on of the requirements of the bursary, despite the fact that many of them did well. We want to encourage the 2003 grade twelve class to apply for bursaries and to tertiary institutions in time, meaning that you must be in a position to make a career choice as early as possible.
Best wishes
We want to thank the participants in the Letsema Campaign particularly in our schools. Without the volunteers who contributed to our work we would not have achieved the excellent results of the last two years. We call on all our people to continue to participate in the Letsema Campaign.
I want to take this opportunity to wish all the first entrants to school as either learner or educator at all levels the best of times ahead. Whilst I also welcome the rest back to school. Our best wishes particularly go to the grade twelve class of 2003. We thank all stakeholders particularly the parents for their input and support. We look forward to their continued support particularly this year when the SGB elections are due to be held.
I also want to thank the press for your contribution and support. We invite you to tour our schools with us tomorrow
Thank you
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government (http://www.northern-cape.gov.za)
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government
Title: Joemat-Petterson: Opening of Northern Cape schools
PRESS STATEMENT BY MS TINA JOEMAT-PETTERSON ON THE OPENING OF SCHOOLS AND READINESS ON THE NORTHERN CAPE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, Department of Education, Kimberley, 22 January 2003
Media Representatives
Colleagues
Ladies and Gentlemen
Before we could even start to revel with joy and celebrate out excellent results for the grade twelve examinations last year, we had already started to make preparations for the year ahead. Today we are in a position to declare that we are ready for the start of what looks to be a very challenging year ahead. Our department has all the systems and structures in place to deal pro-active with every possible eventuality, more importantly, to ensure that "learning and teaching" starts on the first day of the opening of schools, meaning tomorrow (23 January 2003)
The last count of the delivery of learned support materials, late last week, was at 98% delivery. With the outstanding LSM being books that had run out of print earlier and were in a process of being delivered to our schools. Our assessment is that this cannot affect effective learning and teaching on the first day of school.
Our districts and Circuit Offices have been open since the 13th of January 2003 whilst the Head Office opened a week earlier. The various units of the department at all levels used this time to consolidate and review their plans. We sent out a checklist for the opening of schools this year as early as November last year. This has been monitored by the Circuit Managers to ensure timeous preparations and school readiness for the opening of schools tomorrow. Teachers are expected to promptly and timeously take up their posts and be in a position to teach on the first day of school.
The department will host a Conference for all our Principals early in the year. We will unveil detailed plans for the year at this conference. These include our intervention programme to reduce to zero the number of schools that received a grade twelve-pass rate of less than 60%.
As is customary in our Province, various officials of government will be visiting schools from Wednesday until Friday to further consolidate our preparations and actions. Amongst others our Premier Manne Dipico, the minister of Public service and Administration Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, various MECs, the HOD and Officials of the Department will visit schools to ensure that things go as smoothly as planned, but also t congratulate our teachers for a job well done last year. We depend on them to maintain our good performance.
Our prime focus this year in respect of the grade twelve's is to mainly improve on the quality of the passes, particularly amongst disadvantages learners and schools. This will not only raise the confidence of our people in our public education system but also improve the public opinion particularly of our currently historically disadvantaged schools that have been shedding their student ratios.
School Nutrition Programme
As part of government's drive to broader our social security system we are working around the clock in the department of education to ensure that our school food nutrition programme immediately takes off the ground and gradually spreads to all poor and disadvantaged areas and schools. Hence, we have identified all rural schools and learners beneficiaries of this programme. The school feeding scheme is a major focus of the department this year. No child should miss out on school because of hunger.
I believe that this food nutrition programme is integral to learning as it increases the attentiveness and focus of learners. Many children go to school without any prospects of a meal for the day and this tends to pre-occupy their minds and distract them from their work.
Opening of the Northern Cape Higher Education Institute
We are well on course to open our Higher Education Institute of the Northern Cape. We have been working hard doing advocacy work and making preparations for its opening next month. The effect of this will be broadened focus on tertiary education by the people of our province. We are collaborating with Potchestroom University, University of North West, the University of Free State and UWC on a number of undergraduate programmes.
We are confident that this institute will not only come with new challenges but will succeed in making us add t our successes. We encourage our learners who just graduated with their Senior Certificates to be vigilant and weary of "Fly by night" institutions that prey on their vulnerability.
We also note the fact that the Premier's Bursary Fund meant to assist learners from poor families and academically deserving has been receiving many late applications. Most of these learners have also applied t any tertiary institution as on of the requirements of the bursary, despite the fact that many of them did well. We want to encourage the 2003 grade twelve class to apply for bursaries and to tertiary institutions in time, meaning that you must be in a position to make a career choice as early as possible.
Best wishes
We want to thank the participants in the Letsema Campaign particularly in our schools. Without the volunteers who contributed to our work we would not have achieved the excellent results of the last two years. We call on all our people to continue to participate in the Letsema Campaign.
I want to take this opportunity to wish all the first entrants to school as either learner or educator at all levels the best of times ahead. Whilst I also welcome the rest back to school. Our best wishes particularly go to the grade twelve class of 2003. We thank all stakeholders particularly the parents for their input and support. We look forward to their continued support particularly this year when the SGB elections are due to be held.
I also want to thank the press for your contribution and support. We invite you to tour our schools with us tomorrow
Thank you
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government (http://www.northern-cape.gov.za)
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