A report which indicates that, despite significant government and private sector spending and commitment over the past ten years, maths and science education in South Africa remains in a dire state, was presented to the Minister of Education, Naledi Pandor, Monday night.
Mike Spicer, executive vice-president, corporate affairs of Anglo American, said the need for this research by the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) came from the private sector, which ?was concerned at the lack of people emerging from our schools with the appropriate level of skills and knowledge to take up the bursaries we had to offer.?
Sizwe Nxasana, chairman of the Zenex Foundation, explained why his organization helped fund the research to the audience of around 200 people, representing the private sector, schools, tertiary institutions, government and nongovernment organizations.
?We realized that, despite the fact that we were building schools, we were not actually changing the ability of candidates to pass their exams. Our programs were not making the difference that we wanted,? Nxasana said.
CDE executive director, Ann Bernstein, summarized the findings of the three-year study, saying ?the failure to improve maths and science education is probably the biggest single obstacle to African advancement in SA. We are facing a national crisis.?
Responding to the CDE report, Naledi Pandor said she felt challenged but not down. ?I refuse to accept the word "crisis?, but I will acknowledge that we face a national challenge,? the minister said.
The minister acknowledged the findings of the report, which highlighted the need for improved participation, more qualified maths and science teachers, and a more unified approach to achieving those common goals.
?We need to improve coordination between private and public sectors. Often our programs compete with, rather than complement, each other,? the minister said.
In relation to the recommendations of the report for the Government?s Dinaledi program to be reconceptualized, restructured and expanded, the minister said she definitely intended to continue and expand the program, but was also looking at implementing a monitoring and review process.
?Monitoring and evaluation are vital. Too often we set up initiatives, but nobody monitors their impact,? Pandor said. She encouraged all stakeholders to "engage critically in the recommendations of the CDE Report."
The CDE Report sets the country an ambitious goal of doubling the number of higher grade maths and science passes, and doubling the number of qualified maths and science educators in the next five years.
?We cannot afford to have another generation lost to maths and science, so our five-year goal aims to impact on learners currently in the system,? Bernstein said.
?It is a vicious circle. There are simply not enough students studying or passing higher-grade maths and science, there are not enough qualified educators to improve the situation, and there is an ever-decreasing number of people willing, and able to enter the teaching profession. This must be changed,? she says.
A key recommendation of the CDE Report is for the appointment of a national Task Force to focus the country?s activities with respect to maths, science and language.
This statutory body could help facilitate the creation of a strategic national framework to better coordinate the allocation of resources from Government, the private sector and nongovernment organizations so as to achieve a systemic improvement in performance rather than just local change.
?We want two plus two to add up to five,? Bernstein said. ?By all pulling together we can make the outcome greater than the sum of its parts.? Fred Phaswana, chairman of Transnet, who also attended the launch of the report, said: ?It is no longer viable for a company to say I will do this social investment project in my own name for my own reasons. I say to my colleagues in the private sector -- yes, it is time to do something -- yes, it is time to do it together.?