By Lebone Rodah Mosima
The Community Education and Training (CET) college workforce and organisational structures could be reconfigured as government develops a new delivery model built around hybrid learning, technology and community-based learning hubs.
Deputy Higher Education and Training Minister Yusuf Cassim said on Tuesday that changing how teaching and learning were delivered would require the department to reconsider how the CET workforce itself was organised.
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“If we change the delivery model, we must also be prepared to reconsider the way in which the CET workforce is organised. We cannot redesign teaching and learning while assuming that the organisational structure must remain exactly as it is,” Cassim said.
He made the remarks while addressing newly appointed external members of CET college councils during their induction workshop.
“The first question must be: What kind of CET system do we want to build? Once we have answered that, we can determine what functions are required, what skills are required, what roles are required and, ultimately, what organisational structure will best support that model.”
CET colleges serve adults and out-of-school youth, including people seeking second-chance education, skills development and pathways to improved livelihoods.
The Department of Higher Education and Training’s 2026/27 Annual Performance Plan already provides for the development of an “ideal CET college” or Community Learning Centre model. It sets a target for the policy framework and guidelines to be approved by the minister for public comment by 31 March 2027.
Cassim said the restructuring process would have to be phased and based on evidence, with the department determining what could be implemented immediately, what should first be piloted and what could eventually be expanded.
“I believe we must explore a model in which good teaching can reach many more learners. If an educator has demonstrated particular excellence in a particular area of the curriculum, why should that expertise remain confined to one classroom or one learning site?” he asked.
“This is not about replacing the educator. It is about extending the reach of good teaching and giving our educators better tools to support learners.”
Under the model Cassim outlined, high-quality teaching material could potentially be developed centrally and made available digitally across different parts of the country, while educators and tutors based closer to learners would provide face-to-face explanation and support.
He also proposed exploring ways of combining digital teaching material with local-language learner support.
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Cassim said the department should investigate which modules could effectively be delivered online and how existing buildings, ICT laboratories and learning sites could be turned into a network of connected learning spaces.
He said the department was also considering learning hubs closer to rural and underserved communities, potentially reducing the distance students have to travel to access education.
“Imagine a learner who does not have to travel long distances simply to access an educational opportunity but can go to a properly equipped local learning centre, access digital content and receive support from trained tutors,” Cassim said.
Cassim cautioned that the exercise should not simply become a cost-cutting programme.
“Our responsibility is therefore not simply to reduce costs. It is to ensure that the resources available to CET are aligned with the outcomes we want to achieve,” he said.
“We must ask whether our expenditure is helping us reach more learners, improve teaching and learning, strengthen infrastructure and provide meaningful opportunities to communities. We must be prepared to make difficult choices, but those choices must be driven by a clear educational purpose.”
Earlier this year, the department and Services SETA announced a R90 million commitment to strengthen CET infrastructure and learning environments, with R10 million earmarked for each of the nine provincial CET colleges.
Cassim said existing public infrastructure could also be used more effectively and called for partnerships with private companies, communities and other organisations to expand skills training.
“Government does not have to do everything alone, but government must provide the leadership, framework and accountability to ensure that these partnerships serve a clear public purpose.”
The newly appointed CET college councils began five-year terms on 1 September following a nomination, assessment, selection and vetting process. Cassim told council members they would be expected to oversee the sector while it undergoes the proposed reforms.
He also told them to exercise strict oversight over public money, procurement, internal controls and institutional assets.
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“Public trust is not something a Council inherits. It is something a Council must earn and protect,” Cassim said.
He said the eventual objective was not simply to digitise the system, but to use technology, infrastructure, staff and partnerships to extend access and improve the quality and relevance of CET education.
“The question is no longer simply what CET has been. The question is what CET can become.”
