The Toxic Mix

Having recently attended a talk by Graeme Bloch, as well as reading his book, ‘The Toxic Mix’, this topic has become all the more real for me. I would encourage you, as parents, to read this book, which takes a careful look at the state of education in South Africa. It certainly delivers a strong dose of reality, and makes one appreciate the challenge that lies ahead.
I thought I would include some of the statistics which offer a stark portrayal of the situation in our country. Here are some facts which you may find interesting:
45% of university students drop out before completing their studies. This is even higher at Universities of Technology, where the drop-out rate is 66%.

10% of white matriculants achieve ‘A’ aggregates, as opposed to 0.1% of blacks who achieve ‘A’ aggregates.

It is estimated that only 52 out of 100 learners start at Grade 1 and make it to Grade 12.

Of children with at least one parent who has attained less than Grade 10, only 30% gain matric.
This rises to 56% where one parent has Grade 10 or 11, 74% where a parent has matriculated, and
84% if a parent has a degree.

17% of schools have no access to electricity
79% of schools have no library facilities
60% of secondary schools have no laboratory facilities
68% of schools have no computers
31% of schools depend for their water supply on borehole or rain water

South Africa spends more (as a percentage of GDP) on school education than any other African country, and yet appears to demonstrate the worst return on investment, especially when considering the following results of tests conducted:
Grade 3 Systemic Evaluation (released in 2003) – 51 000 learners were tested in 3 assessment tasks. Average score of 30% for the Maths task, 54% was the literacy average, and 39% for reading and writing.
National Grade 6 testing (released in 2005) – 34 015 learners were tested in language, maths and natural sciences. 35% mean score for language, 27% for maths and 41% for natural sciences. Only 28% of Grade 6 learners reached the ‘achieved’ level or higher, with 81% scoring at the ‘not achieved’ level – this means that only about 1 in 10 learners was at the standard required by the National Curriculum Statement! The 2008 results do not show statistically significant improvements.
The Monitoring Learning Achievement study of 1999, designed by UNESCO and UNICEF took samples of Grade 4 learners in a number of countries. South Africa was rock bottom in numeracy, with a score of 30% compared to Tunisia’s 60%. Literacy was at 48% - short of Tunisia’s 78% and Mauritius’ 61%.
TIMMS was conducted by the HSRC to a sample of Grade 8 learners. With an international average score of 467 for maths and 474 for science, South African learners achieved 264 and 244 respectively. Black schools had a mean of 227, and formerly white schools a mean of 456 (Still below the international average!)
Far from being a ‘doom-and-gloom’ exercise, what becomes clear is that blame cannot rest on one, nor can success. Successful education requires the dedication and commitment of all role players, from government to the classroom. While change might be slow in the higher rungs of government, change can start now, in the classroom and in the home through the continual promotion and affirmation of the benefits of hard work, realistic goals and high personal standards. In addition, let us be mindful of our privileged position, and make the most of the opportunities afforded us, opportunities which are inaccessible to many, if not most, South Africans.