Source: Western Cape Provincial Government
Title: Van Schalkwyk: Education Imbizo in Atlantis
EXTRACT FROM SPEECH BY THE WESTERN CAPE PREMIER, MARTHINUS VAN SCHALKWYK, ADDRESSING AN EDUCATION IMBIZO, Atlantis, 2 September 2003
One of the most valuable aspects of our recent Provincial Imbizo Focus Week and the Presidential Imbizo this past weekend was the insight, which it provided our Government into the priorities and concerns of the Western Cape communities. What was especially important for us was the emphasis, which our people placed on education as the key to almost every other challenge. From crime to poverty, from health to the environment, the message was clear: that the key to lasting change is the best possible education of our children.
This is a message, which our Provincial Government has taken to heart. There is much about Western Cape education achievements of which to be proud: the fact that almost 100% of learners eligible for primary schooling are now attending school in our province; the fact that our Senior Certificate pass rate rose again last year from 82,7% to 86,5%; and the fact that the number of schools with less than 60% pass rates dropped from 47 in 2001/2 to 28 in 2002/3. We are also particularly pleased that our education budget rose from R4, 5 billion to R5 billion, with more than R70 million extra allocated to textbooks and general school expenses this year.
The message from our Izimbizo, though, was that this is not enough. Many communities have complained about the number of learners who do not complete their studies - or who take much longer than the normal 12 years to do so. Our research has shown that only 48% of learners who begin Grade One in the province complete their education in the normal 12-year period. While some learners move on to Further Education and Training (FET) colleges and other forms of training, most appear to have dropped out. Another worrying study has shown that only 36% of Grade 3 learners in the Western Cape are reading and calculating at the level required for Grade 3.
Our Education Department, under the leadership of our MEC for Education, Minister Andr
EMAIL THIS ARTICLE SAVE THIS ARTICLE FEEDBACK
To subscribe email subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za or click here
To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here
