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SA state-run schooling is stunting our children’s future – IRR </h1>
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<time><span>May 22, 2018</span></time> |
<span class="gmail-author">by <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/author/south-african-institute-of-race-relations-irr">South African Institute of Race Relations - IRR</a></span>
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<h3>ABOUT THE AUTHOR</h3>
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<h4>South African Institute of Race Relations - IRR</h4>
<p class="gmail-AuthorBio">The IRR produces, disseminates, and promotes the new ideas that South African policy makers need in order to ...</p>
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<p><a href="http://irr.org.za/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration:none">More by South African Institute of Race Relations - IRR ></a></p>
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<h3>‘<a href="https://u01.spsend.com/SpeClicks.aspx?X=5P1LSL72IW54LD1G01Y1WY" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Parents, not politicians, must run South Africa’s schools</a>’
is the title of the first edition of FreeFACTS from the Institute of
Race Relations (IRR), a report that exposes the extent to which the
state-run school system is stunting the development of South Africa’s
children, especially black pupils</h3>
<p>The report argues that the bulk of our state schools “are not in the
main inferior because of a shortage of money. Many emerging markets
spend less on education than South Africa, but produce much better
results”.</p>
<p>In South Africa’s case, however, “corruption, destructive trade
unions, ideological dogma, and incompetent bureaucrats and politicians
are responsible for the fact that only a small [minority] of children
will be well educated”.</p>
<p>Citing IRR research showing that “when communities control schools,
results improve”, the report makes the case for a constructive
alternative, suggesting that “a shortcut to much better education is to
get bureaucrats out and let parents take over”.</p>
<h2>As things stand, the outlook is grim:</h2>
<p>Author of the report, IRR Campaign Manager Marius Roodt writes: “The
data in this report show, among other things, that only 33% of matric
candidates ‘passed’ maths with a grade of 40% or higher, that just 29,2%
of schools have a library, that only 18,3% of government schools have a
science laboratory, and that only 13% of the 2006 grade 1 class managed
a university entry qualification when they wrote matric in 2017.</p><div id="gmail-inarticle_wrapper_div"></div><div id="gmail-MoreArticlesStrip" class="gmail-row"> <div class="gmail-hidden-xs gmail-hidden-sm gmail-col-md-12 gmail-col-lg-12 gmail-LargeFormatFullWidth"> <small>(article continues below)</small> <h2 class="gmail-sectionheading gmail-news gmail-contentbox"> Other <span class="gmail-newsFeatured">All4Women</span> readers liked...</h2> <div class="gmail-row"> <div class="gmail-col-md-4 gmail-col-lg-4 gmail-LargeFormatFiftyPerc"> <div class="gmail-row gmail-thumb-list-small gmail-noborder"> <div class="gmail-col-xs-4 gmail-col-sm-4 gmail-col-md-4 gmail-col-lg-4" style="padding:0px 0px 0px 8px"> <div class="gmail-innerborderthumb" style="background:rgba(0,0,0,0) url("https://www.all4women.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/28/57541c24.png") repeat scroll 0% 0%"> <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/1495548/entertainment/royals/samantha-markle-slams-the-royal-family-and-meghans-mom-in-epic-rant"> <img src="https://www.all4women.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/22/Samantha-slams-royals-120x120.jpg?x21828" class="gmail-img-responsive gmail-wp-post-image gmail-lazy-loaded"> </a> </div> </div> <div class="gmail-col-xs-8 gmail-col-sm-8 gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-lg-8"> <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/1495548/entertainment/royals/samantha-markle-slams-the-royal-family-and-meghans-mom-in-epic-rant"> <h5>Samantha Markle slams the royal family and Meghan’s mom in embarrassing rant</h5> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="gmail-col-md-4 gmail-col-lg-4 gmail-LargeFormatFiftyPerc"> <div class="gmail-row gmail-thumb-list-small gmail-noborder"> <div class="gmail-col-xs-4 gmail-col-sm-4 gmail-col-md-4 gmail-col-lg-4" style="padding:0px 0px 0px 8px"> <div class="gmail-innerborderthumb" style="background:rgba(0,0,0,0) url("https://www.all4women.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/28/57541c24.png") repeat scroll 0% 0%"> <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/1493502/entertainment/celebrity-photo-galleries/introducing-the-duke-duchess-of-sussex-inside-meghan-harrys-royal-wedding"> <img src="https://www.all4women.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/19/GettyImages-960088314-120x120.jpg?x21828" class="gmail-img-responsive gmail-wp-post-image gmail-lazy-loaded"> </a> </div> </div> <div class="gmail-col-xs-8 gmail-col-sm-8 gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-lg-8"> <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/1493502/entertainment/celebrity-photo-galleries/introducing-the-duke-duchess-of-sussex-inside-meghan-harrys-royal-wedding"> <h5>Introducing the Duke & Duchess of Sussex: Inside Meghan & Harry’s royal wedding</h5> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="gmail-col-md-4 gmail-col-lg-4 gmail-HideLargeFormat"> <div class="gmail-row gmail-thumb-list-small gmail-noborder"> <div class="gmail-col-xs-4 gmail-col-sm-4 gmail-col-md-4 gmail-col-lg-4" style="padding:0px 0px 0px 8px"> <div class="gmail-innerborderthumb" style="background:rgba(0,0,0,0) url("https://www.all4women.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/28/57541c24.png") repeat scroll 0% 0%"> <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/1494822/entertainment/celebrity-photo-galleries/hilarious-memes-from-the-royalwedding"> <img src="https://www.all4women.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/21/royal-wedding-meme-120x120.jpg?x21828" class="gmail-img-responsive gmail-wp-post-image gmail-lazy-loaded"> </a> </div> </div> <div class="gmail-col-xs-8 gmail-col-sm-8 gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-lg-8"> <a href="https://www.all4women.co.za/1494822/entertainment/celebrity-photo-galleries/hilarious-memes-from-the-royalwedding"> <h5>A salty ex, an eager pageboy and Disney wedding dress – Hilarious #royalwedding memes</h5> </a> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div></div><div id="gmail-InnerSub" class="gmail-testingPostType_post" style="display:block"> <div class="gmail-center-block"> <form id="gmail-InnerSubForm" action="#"> <h1>WIN a R 2,000 Woolworths Voucher</h1> <p>Subscribe to our Free Daily <strong>All4Women Newsletter</strong> to enter</p> <div class="gmail-input-group"> <input class="gmail-btn gmail-btn-lg" name="CompEmail" id="gmail-CompEmail" type="email"> </div></form></div></div></div></div></div>
<p>“This may be the future of your child if you don’t find an
alternative outside of the government school system – but few people can
afford private schools.”</p>
<h2>How to achieve better education outcomes:</h2>
<p>The report notes, however, that alternative approaches capable of
achieving the ‘shortcut’ to better education outcomes are feasible.</p>
<p>One is to sell some schools to community groups, churches, non-profit
organisations, and private education providers for a nominal fee of,
say, R1, and let them run such schools within agreed guidelines.</p>
<p>This would go hand in hand with channelling the national education budget into smart-card vouchers to be given to all parents.</p>
<p>Writes Roodt: “We estimate that these vouchers will be sufficient to
finance high-quality education for every child in the country. Parents
can redeem these vouchers at any school of their choosing and top up the
voucher with their own funds in the event that the school charges
higher fees. By giving parents the choice and buying power to decide on
the education of their children they then have the power to control the
curriculum, language policy, and ethos of the school they send their
children to.</p>
<p>“It is not for the government and politicians to decide how to raise your child. That is for you to decide.”</p>
- <br><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone: (215) 898-7475<br>Fax: (215) 573-2138 <br><br>Email: <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a> <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div>
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