PRETORIA, 13 JANUARY 2000
Director of Ceremonies, Professor Kader Asmal, Minister of Education, other Ministers here, Deputy Minister Father Mkhatshwa, MECs, Representatives of countries, Honoured Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Thank you for according me the opportunity of closing this historic gathering of the launching of Tirisano. I do so on the understanding that we are in fact neither opening nor closing anything, but rather launching a process of rebuilding a country which was devastated by apartheid.
The priority of ending adult illiteracy as outlined in the nine priorities of Tirisano, is at the center of our desire as a Nation to change the quality of lives of our people. It is when we succeed in fighting illiteracy that we can face the fast globalizing world.
I am happy that in the nine-point programme of Tirisano, the issue of adult illiteracy is given a fitting priority. To me this recognises the major problem that our country faces and a challenge that we have to address as we grapple with the massive problem of education in our country. Added to the huge percentage of illiteracy in our country is a huge backlog in education generally caused by the manner in which it was structured in the previous dispensation.
I am also greatly encouraged by the fact that the programme would like to encourage learning centres to be areas that will promote a vibrant community and cultural life. Our understanding is that institutions of learning should be people-centred. They should be the first institutions to be vigorously used in advancing the quality of life of our people.
It follows therefore that all educators must reflect this approach. It is in this context that we see the Tirisano programme as a key and central instrument to achieve this objective.
The issue of teachers' professionalism cannot be overemphasised. It is teachers who must, through their actions and behaviour, once more reclaim the esteem in which the communities once held them.
Historically, teachers have always served as a good example to those who are being educated. Teachers need to revisit their attitudes towards education. We actually need to see the profession as a national service given the history of where we come from. The professionalism which Tirisano refers to should therefore be seen in a holistic manner, which has its ultimate aim the production of generations that will want to better their lives, their communities, their country and their continent.
In the same context, the role of school principals becomes the key in ensuring that the culture of teaching and learning is regenerated. It is in this regard that President Thabo Mbeki, addressing a meeting in January 8 in the Northern Province, singled out school principals as the people who must play their expected role as managers in order to ensure that things are done accordingly so that we get the desired results.
Communities also have their role to play in ensuring that the process of teaching and learning is carried out as expected. They certainly have to play a role in the form of governing bodies. They should assist teachers to carry out their duties by attending to issues that enhance the environment of learning and teaching.
Learners also have their own role to play. Theirs is to learn and work hard and behave as any learner is expected to behave. Discipline and good behaviour is part of the lessons that learners should know they have to learn. If they carry out all of these they make the work of their teachers easier and therefore the environment of learning and teaching becomes conducive for good results. This is what, among others, Tirisano means. We are all stakeholders in this important task of our society.
If we do all these, we will all be participating in the transformation of our country and our lives. We would be making appropriate use of education as an important vehicle and instrument. It is important for us to know that in order to suceed in our task of transformation, we inevitably need education as a tool and instrument for this task to be accelerated but in our situation education itself needs its own transformation given the manner in which it was structured in the past dispensation. This again is an enormous task facing institutions of learning and educators. It certainly needs a new patriotism and an unprecedented commitment from all of us.
The role of education in both the African Century and the African Renaissance is of particular importance to all of us. In fact the African Renaissance, among other things, challenges more specifically the intellectuals. It is educational institutions and our intelligentsia that must lead in articulating the direction, the nature of what needs to be done and indeed, educate all of us so that we are able to play our roles.
Needless to say, as we get to work on transforming education, we cannot help but mention that the poor Matric results are a source of concern. Our understanding of the enormity of the task forces us to make two relevant observations. The first one is that in spite of all the negative reporting about the exam results, there are schools, teachers and learners who have done better. It would therefore be amiss of us to club all the schools, teachers and learners in one basket. Whilst expressing our concerns, we should also highlight the successes of those schools, teachers and learners that have improved their results as shining examples worth to be emulated and encouraged. Some of these schools were also under-resourced. To me their performance indicates that there was a sense of commitment, dedication and purpose that overcame all the difficulties. The second observation is that the growing emphasis of the single exit point of Matric results needs to be complemented with a system that will focus on all levels of the educational system. This will of necessity create as many exit points so that for once, generations to come will not be judged by measurements of their forefathers but by those which will answer the educational requirements of the 21st century.
We shall always continue to call on all stakeholders to assist us to come to terms with these distortions. In the light of the backlogs, it is important for all of us as teachers, parents and students, that as we deal with matters of education from whatever angle, we bear in mind that the problems we face today are not of our making and that they need extra-ordinary measures to be resolved.
We would like to commend the Minister and the Department for the launching of this important campaign, Tirisano. This gives hope to the country, its people and the next generations.
Having identified problems, we must now become part of the solution. It is mainly through education that we could adequately address the problems of the past, deal with the present and create a better future.
I thank you all.