• Previous
• Next
• Section Contents

South Africa : Organisation/control of education system

Last reviewed and updated: 24-Jan-2012

 

2.1 Organisation and control of system/structure
2.1.1 Control
2.1.2 Funding
2.1.3 Private sector education

 

2.1 Organisation and control of system/structure

This information is intended to provide the background context of structure and control, within which the curriculum and assessment frameworks are implemented.

2.1.1 Control

The Constitution⁹ determines that three (national, provincial, and local) spheres ('distinctive, interdependent, and interrelated') should function together co-operatively and, since South Africa has a tradition of municipal responsibility for education, it provides that the national sphere has exclusive legislative responsibility for tertiary education and shares responsibility with the provincial spheres for all others levels of education. ³²

The National Education Policy Act 1996¹⁰  empowers the national Minister of Education, working with the provinces, to determine national norms and standards for education planning, provision, governance, monitoring and evaluation. The principle of democratic decision making must be exercised within the context of overall policy goals. In determining policy, the Minister must take into account the competence of provincial legislatures and the relevant provisions of any provincial law relating to education.^{11 31}

The nine provincial departments are responsible for implementing education policy and programmes aligned with the national goals. They make funding decisions and exercise responsibility for all general education and training (GET), as well as further education and training (FET), and for formal adult basic education and training (ABET). ³¹

The South African Schools Act 1996 aims to provide for a uniform system for the organisation, governance and funding of schools. It seeks to ensure that all learners have the right of access to quality education without discrimination, and it makes schooling compulsory for all children from the year they turn 7 to the year they turn 15 (or the end of grade 9, whichever comes first). It regulates the provision of public schools and places of education by provinces, the governance of schools (in particular the establishment and operation of school governing bodies), the funding of schools (including state responsibilities, school budgets, fees and the framework for funding rules or norms) and the establishment and funding of independent schools. ³¹


Role and Responsibility of Department of Education
The national Department of Education (now divided into the Department of Basic Education and the Ministry of Higher Education and Training, see below) is responsible for formulating policy, setting norms and standards, and monitoring and evaluating all levels of education. It is responsible for matters which cannot be regulated effectively by provincial legislation as well as for matters that need to be coordinated in terms of norms and standards at the national level.⁴¹ The core activities of the department are to:

 

• provide research and policy review
• provide planning and policy development
• provide support to the provinces and higher education institutions in their implementation of national policy, norms and standards
• monitor the implementation of policy, norms and standards to assess their impact on the quality of the educational process and identify policy gaps.¹¹

 

In 2009, following the election of a new administration, two ministries were established - the Department of Basic Education and the Ministry of Higher Education and Training. ⁴¹

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) has responsibility for schools from Grade R (reception) to Grade 12 (children and young people aged 6 to 18), as well as adult literacy programmes. The Ministry/Department of Higher Education and Training is responsible for higher education institutions, further education and training (FET) colleges and adult learning centres, as well as the coordination of the National Human Resource Development Strategy. ^{41 41}

The DBE has six branches:

• Administration (Branch A)
• Curriculum Policy, Support and Monitoring (Branch C)
• Planning, Quality Assessment and Monitoring, and Evaluation (Branch P)
• Social Responsibility and Auxiliary Services (Branch S)
• Strategic Planning and Reporting (Branch R)
• Teachers, Education Human Resources and Institutional Development (Branch T) ⁴²

The Curriculum Policy, Support and Monitoring Branch has three main directorates

• Curriculum implementation and monitoring
• Curriculum and quality enhancement programmes
• The National Curriculum Institute. ⁴²

Provincial departments of education
As detailed above, the national Education Departments share a concurrent role with the provincial departments of education for school education, adult basic education and training (ABET), early childhood development (ECD) and further education and training (FET). The South African Schools Act 1996¹² further devolved responsibility to the school level by delegating the governance of public schools to democratically elected school governing bodies (SGBs), consisting of parents, educators, non teaching staff and (secondary) school students.¹¹

Relations with provincial departments of education are guided by national policy, within which the provincial departments have to set their own priorities and implementation programmes. The National Education Policy Act ¹⁰ formalised relations between national and provincial authorities and established the Council of Education Ministries (CEM) and the Heads of Education Departments Committee (HEDCOM) as intergovernmental fora to collaborate in developing the education system.¹¹

School Governing Bodies
The South African Schools Act adopted a model of school governance that devolved significant powers to school governing bodies (SGBs). Governing bodies are composed of the school principal and elected representatives of parents, teachers, non-teaching staff, and (in secondary schools) learners. They may also co-opt non-voting members. Governing bodies are legal entities with the power to enter into contracts, to sue and be sued. A set of basic functions is stipulated:

• Developing and adopting a constitution and mission statement for the school
• Determining the admissions policy of the school, subject to certain restrictions
• Administering and controlling the school's property, buildings and grounds, including the right to rent them out for fundraising purposes.
• Recommending to the Department of Education the appointment of teaching and non-teaching staff.
• Developing a budget for the school, which could include school fees (see section 2.1.2) for approval at a meeting of parents.

SGBs may also apply to the provincial authorities for additional functions. These can include determining extra-curricular activities, choosing the curriculum options offered at the school (within the parameters of provincial curriculum policy) and purchasing textbooks and other materials and equipment. ³¹

Statutory bodies
The Council of Education Ministers consists of the Ministers and Deputy Ministers of Education of the nine provinces and its executive council meets regularly to discuss the promotion of national education policy, share information and views on all aspects of education, and collaborate on matters of mutual interest. ¹¹

The Heads of Education Departments Committee (HEDCOM) consists of the Director General of the national Department of Education, the Deputy Director-General of the Department and the heads of the provincial Departments of Education. The functions of the Committee include facilitating the development of a national education system, sharing information and views on national education, co-ordinating administrative action on matters of mutual interest, and advising the Department on a range of specified matters relating to the proper functioning of the national education system.¹¹

The Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training (Umalusi) ensures that education and training providers have the capacity to deliver, and also assesses qualifications and learning programmes to ensure that these conform to set standards. Umalusi is guided by the General and Further Education Act 2001. The functions of the former South African Certifications Council (SAFCERT) have been incorporated into those of the Council.¹¹

The South African Qualifications Agency (SAQA) is a statutory body of 29 members appointed by the Ministers of Labour and Education. Through the National Qualifications Framework (NQF), SAQA ensures that South African qualifications are of high quality and internally comparable. SAQA oversees the:

 

• Development of the NQF by formulating and publishing policies and criteria for the registration of bodies responsible for establishing education and training standards or qualifications.
• Accreditation of bodies responsible for monitoring and auditing achievements in terms of such standards and qualifications.
• Implementation of the national qualifications framework by ensuring the registration, accreditation and assignment of functions to the referred bodies.
• Registration of national standards and qualifications on the NQF. ¹¹

 

2.1.2 Funding

In 2010, public expenditure on education was 19.2 per cent of total government expenditure (source). This amounts to almost six per cent (5.98 per cent ) of gross domestic product (GDP) (source).

 

Financial planning for education occurs within the Government's medium-term expenditure framework which, through a three-year budgeting horizon, aims to facilitate sustainable and properly planned financing. ³⁰

Equity in financing between and within provinces is achieved through the equitable division of national revenue using the Equitable Shares Formula (ESF), the National Norms and Standards for School Funding, and the National Post Provisioning Norms. The ESF promotes financial equity between provinces on the basis of relative need and backlogs. In the area of education, the size of the school-age population and the numbers of learners enrolled in public ordinary (mainstream) schools are taken into account, as well as capital investment needs.¹¹

The National Norms and Standards for School Funding which became national policy in 1999, aim to achieve equality and redress poverty in schools in terms of non-personnel expenditure within a province. ¹¹

State funding is organised on a five quintile system, in which schools are divided into five categories according to the poverty levels in the areas they serve; poor schools are given larger state subsidies ('school allocations') and so have lower school fees, while wealthier schools are given smaller subsidies and so have higher fees. In the poorest areas of all, parents are exempt from paying school fees. Such no-fee schools receive all their required funding from the Government, and made up 40 per cent of all schools in 2007. Parents and the entire school community should know which quintile a school falls into. If they disagree with the category, an appeal may be made to the provincial office.^{16 14}

Once placed in a category, each public school is given its 'school allocation' annually. The aim of school allocation is to ensure that all learners, regardless of economic status and geographical area, are able to access quality education. The school allocation is intended to be used to improve the quality of education; it should not be used to pay for personnel costs or build classrooms, but for:

• Student support materials
• Computers
• Student furniture
• Laboratory equipment
• Fax machines
• Intercom systems
• Cleaning equipment
• Stationery for students and administration
• Building maintenance, water and lights. ¹⁶

Some school funding norms have been reviewed to ensure that, however low the number of learners, a small number of rural schools are guaranteed a minimum level of funding. ⁴²Some school funding norms have been reviewed to ensure that, however, low the number of learners a small number of rural schools are guareenteed a minimum level of funding.

School fees
In accordance with the South African Schools Act 1996¹², public schools must supplement government funding by charging local school fees and doing other forms of fund-raising. The right to not charge fees is limited to those schools which have been declared 'no fee schools' (see above). The names of no fee schools are published in a Provincial Gazette and the criteria to determine no fee schools are based on the economic level of the community around the school. ¹³

A school fee is an agreed amount of money that parents pay to schools, aimed at improving the quality of education. School fees may not include registration fees, administration or other fees. The school may not charge further fees for additional subjects chosen by students from the school programme. School fees are set at an annual public meeting of school governing bodies (SGBs) at which parents vote on the amount to be paid. Parents who cannot afford to pay or who can only afford a lesser amount are usually granted an exemption or reduction in fees. ^{11 16}

To enhance the attainment of equity in funding ordinary public schools, the National Norms and Standards for School Funding provide full, partial and conditional exemptions for parents who cannot afford to pay school fees, thus ensuring that learners with financial difficulties cannot be denied access to education. ¹¹

Orphans are exempt from school fees. ¹⁴


School fund
The school fund is a combination of school fees, fundraising money and donations. It is the responsibility of school governing bodies (SGBs) to ensure that all these funds are kept and managed in one bank account. No public school should have more than one bank account.¹⁶

A public school has the right to take legal action against a parent who does not pay school fees, but only after the exemption criteria have been applied and the parent is still liable to pay such fees. The student must remain in school while the case is underway. A learner cannot be excluded from participation in school programmes, examination farewells, or sporting events due to non-payment of school fees by a parent. A school may not retain a learner's report because a parent cannot afford school fees.¹⁶

Each school governing body (SGB) must prepare a budget of the estimated income and expenditure of the school for the next financial year and present it at an annual general meeting (AGM) of parents for their consideration and approval (by a majority of the parents). In addition to the budget, school fees, language of instruction and school uniform are also discussed at the AGM. ¹⁶

 

2.1.3 Privately funded education

The South African Schools Act 1996¹² makes provision for the establishment of independent schools alongside public ones. Under certain conditions, independent schools may be eligible for state subsidy. The conditions include:

 

• Level of fees
• Registration with and application to the Provincial Education Department (PED)
• Length of operation
• Is a not-for-profit organisation
• Is managed successfully according to the PED management checklist
• Is not in competition with a nearby uncrowded public school or equivalent. ²⁷

Additional conditions apply for independent secondary schools, which may be considered for subsidy if:

 

• They demonstrate a Grade 12 pass rate of 50 per cent or more of full-time candidates (17- to 18-year-olds) taking the Grade 12 leaving examination in the prior year.
• The repetition rate in Grades 11 and 12 is not more than 20 per cent.
• The school does not engage in practices that are calculated to artificially increase the school's Grade 12 pass rate. ²⁷

• Previous
• Next
• Section Contents