The President of South Africa Jacob Zuma addressed a rally and said it was the government’s plan to provide free education to all learners. People have to love this president, for making such a generous gesture of aiming to educate South Africans. The current education system has collapsed, and there is not enough money to fix the country’s electricity supply, the water crisis needs urgent attention, and Zuma is talking about creating industrialists.
Zuma said education should not have a price tag, and education should not be sold as a product or only available to minorities. Zuma said the African National Congress (ANC) party was serious about free education. During the speech, the president said that if the government were dictators the police would ensure all children attended school and children addicted to drugs would be forced to go to Robben Island for education. However, the president said the government was not dictators and, therefore, would aim to provide free education, and this would help to break the shackles of poverty.
At first Zuma would have to get people to become qualified educators to educate learners. It would be an attempt to get the people trained not to burn down schools when anger and resentment are aimed at government failures. There have been serious incidents in the past when schools have been destroyed, not enough equipment, no textbooks and standards lowered to such an appalling degree that learners graduate without any knowledge.
While it might be said that Mathematics and Science are the foundation of any modern economy, the results obtained by students throughout South Africa spells doom for standards of living and any hope of progress. The students in South Africa have underperformed in both language and mathematics. The numeracy and literacy levels are lowered causing hopelessness, anger and violence through a useless education system.
The ANC should have in all earnest began investing in education 21 years ago and, unfortunately, have now produced a generation that will not be employed due to substandard education grades. Education will certainly help to fix the current problems that the country is experiencing and at the same time might hamper the ANC rule. Educated people will understand democracy and might not vote for the ANC.
Presently, free education in South Africa is working at school entry level but the conditions of these no fee schools are appalling. At times, there is no electricity or water due to unpaid bills. Teachers are not paid salaries on time, due to the Education Department delaying payments. Schools are not maintained; sports fields are no longer in use, long grass and weeds cover the once cherished place of the schools. There is no security at the free schools as budgets could not afford additional expenses, along with a never ending list of wrongs that must be corrected................READ THE ENTIRE STORY - PUBLISHED TODAY ON THE GUARDIAN LV