I translated his excellent article from today’s RAPPORT

The country’s children are on a joyride to nowhere:

-Jakkals

by CHARMAIN VAN DER WESTHUIZEN

To remain silent about the problems in our schools, teachers and parents are failing our kids

The Educationist and Rector of the Free State University, Prof. Jonathan Jansen, recently wrote in a column that our education system is a “joyride from one grade to the next.”

“During the past two years I experienced how shockingly true this is where I worked as a contractual teacher at a school in the Karoo. At the Beaufort West Secondary School, situated in the poor part of the town, where I taught English and Afrikaans during 2008-2009, literally hundreds of pupils are promoted to a higher standard, despite the fact that in some cases they achieved a mere 20% in Afrikaans, a subject they have to pass to pass their standard. The result of this shocking practise is clear. Last year I calculated that over 50% of the pupils in my Gr. 10 (Std class could be described as being “functionally illiterate.”

This means that they have trouble copying work from the blackboard, and they have no understanding of what they are reading. They cannot read a newspaper article and answer comprehensive questions about what they read, let alone a book. It is heartbreaking to listen how a 16-year old boy admits that he has to concentrate so hard to read the words that he hasn’t any idea what they mean. Here we even have high school children who can hardly write their own names. Writing skills with most of them are so weak they that cannot even write the simplest essay or letter. If such pupils forget to write the question number to their answers, it was virtually impossible to determine which question they were trying to answer.

How did we get to this point? During the end of the first year at the school the answer became clear. To my surprise (and shock!) the grade-co-ordinator (probably under orders from the principal, Mr. Salomo Moses) ordered me to adjust the year’s marks for my class so that a certain percentage of the pupils would automatically pass. I protested vehemently, but my colleagues explained that every year “things were done this way.”

The adjustments that were made were not borderline cases. Pupils who gained as little as 25% marks were adjusted to 40% for the pass rate for Afrikaans as home language. Shortly thereafter we received a visit from officials of the Western Cape Department of Education (WCDE). They adjusted the marks further, allowing even more pupils to pass!!! The result was that between a fifth and a third of pupils who should never have seen Gr. 11 (Std 9) were passed!

At the time colleagues explained to me that it was better for everybody’s sake to adjust the marks, otherwise the school’s pass rate would be too low, otherwise “we would have Umalusi (the council for quality insurance in general, and further education and training, on our backs.”

And that is how the “inequalities in education continue to be presented,” as Jansen said on occasion.

At the end of last year I flatly refused to make the excessive adjustments, and was only willing to show mercy to borderline cases who required 5% and less to pass. The result was that in my Gr. 8 registration class of 40 pupils, only one of them passed. After my refusal to make further adjustments, my colleagues simply adjusted my marks lists so that every child was passed. Some of them required as much as 20 extra percentage marks to pass Afrikaans!

I was not the only one who refused to participate in this charade! A colleague who occupied a permanent post also refused to make these excessive adjustments, and was called by the headmaster who thoroughly chided that person. I missed out on a lecturing, but my punishment came later – my contract was not renewed.

No teacher experiences any joy in telling a child that he or she did not make the grade, and that he or she should try again. However, I do not think we are doing our children any favour by expecting too little from them.

Our children are being taken on a joyride from one grade to the next, thus creating a culture of mediocrity. Further, I am convinced that many of the disciplinary problems that occur in schools today also originate through these wrongdoings against our children. Most of these illiterate children find a refuge in disrupting classes, for fear of being ridiculed by their classmates because they cannot read. I cannot even begin to imagine their frustration of being confronted daily with books and words and sentences that they cannot make head or tail of. And what about the children who want to study?

When reports were given out at the end of last year, I was confronted by some children who demanded to know how it was possible for so-and-so to pass in their class. It caused me great embarrassment, and all I could say was: “You know how it works…” I could see the disgruntlement on their faces.

Among the 1100 kids in the school, there are many who – despite their backward socio-economic circumstances – were worthy A-candidates. I often could do nothing more than to allow these pupils to sit by themselves and read instead of becoming bored with work that they had already mastered long ago.

Beaufort-West Secondary is not one of those dysfunctional schools that one reads about in the media. Most teachers there are dedicated, and Moses is a strong headmaster who insists on stricter control of discipline – somebody whom I greatly respect. I can understand his dilemma. Through circumstances he is being forced to do things that he does not agree with. He is just another example of someone who devotes his life to the task of education, but is failing as a result of the system.

During my two years at the school, I could never determine what the official policy of the WCDE and the national department of basic education were regarding the adjustment of marks. If adjustments were made (directly or indirectly) by order of the WCDE, will they admit it, or place the blame at the doors of the school principals? Will they continue – like the Western Cape minister for education, Donald Grant did earlier this year – make the “right noises,” like saying that their aim was to have no more underachievement by 2012”

Dr. Mamphela Ramphele is absolutely correct in saying that a whole generation of children has been betrayed by the authorities. However, it is not only gi=overnment that should shoulder the blame, but also teachers, parents and everyone who remains silent about what is going on in our schools.

Van der Westhuizen has 19 years’ experience as a teacher. After her contract had not been renewed, she is now trying to make a living by giving extra classes.

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 7th, 2010 at 4:02 pm and is filed under Transition to Black Rule. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.