STAFF REPORTER
BASIC Education Minister, Angie Motshekga, shared South Africa’s experience on the curriculum recovery plan for rebooting and rebuilding the schooling system during the Education World Forum (EWF) in London during the plenary session.
Such platforms create an opportunity to share lessons from South Africa, learn from what others are doing, and benchmark one’s country with the rest of the world.
Minister Motshekga, supported by Director-General, Mr Matanzima Mweli, attended the EWF in London in the United Kingdom from 7 – 10 May 2023. The theme for 2023 is, “Nurturing learning culture, building resilience and promoting sustainability for stronger, bolder, better education by design” to build on the work done around the COVID-19
recovery.
The Forum included key areas such as foundations for early learning; skills development; digital skills and technology; and Coding and Robotics. The Minister addressed delegates during the official opening ceremony under the sub-theme: “What must we change in order to develop stronger, bolder and better education and learning opportunities, and how can working together help?”
“It is an honour for us to come to share our experiences and learn from other nations about innovative and effective ways to improve education outcomes for all. We must build a brighter future for the next generation and create a world where education is equitable, accessible and inclusive to all.
“We believe that collaboration amongst stakeholders is crucial in achieving these goals and we must prioritise working together to ensure that all children have access to high quality education that prepares them for the future. We have made significant progress in transforming our basic education sector in respect of the six social justice principles of
access, redress, equity, quality, efficiency and inclusivity and we are proud that we haveachieved near-universal access to schooling, with attendance rates above 98% for children aged 7 to 15 years. Access to early learning opportunities has also increased significantly, with almost 90% of 5-year-olds attending educational institutions, compared to only 40% two decades ago. Despite these advancements, we still face challenges, especially unacceptably low and unequal early learning outcomes,” said Minister Motshekga in her address.
Minister Motshekga praised the resilience demonstrated by the South African basic education system: “Rather than observing an increase in the number of children dropping out of school during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen more learners staying in the system and successfully completing their secondary school-leaving examination, the National Senior Certificate. We have streamlined our annual teaching plans during 2020 and
2021, leading to an ongoing process of strengthening of the curriculum. We are leveraging new technologies to provide children with access to 21st Century skills, whilst prioritising literacy and numeracy.
“We have developed a Coding and Robotics curriculum for nationwide roll-out during the next few years, whilst remaining committed to harnessing the power of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), enhancing the use of technology for curriculum delivery, adapting education in response to global changes and cultivating partnerships to promote sustainable development”.
Minister Motshekga attended a side line meeting with the Global CEO of the British Council, Mr Scott McDonald, and the Country Director for the British Council in South Africa, Ms George Barrett, on 9 May.
The Minister also attended a bilateral meeting with the Minister of State for Schools, Mr Nick Gibb on 10 May. EWF is supported by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the Department for Education (DfE), the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), the British Council and industry partners. EWF is a gathering of ministers responsible for education in their respective states.
INSIDE EDUCATION
