DIGEST 2006 - Sabita

these township schools do
not receive the attention of
representatives from the
tertiary institutions because
the latter prioritise those
schools which are more
successful; as a result
learners most in need of
motivation do not receive
such incentives.
STEM exposure
(a) Learners: Learners in general
have no goals for the future, and
particularly do not see opportunity
for themselves to work in the
fields of maths and science. They
have received little exposure to
Science,
Technology,
Engineering and
Mathematics (STEM)
and are unaware of
careers that might
be open to them in
these fields. They
also tend to think of
these vocations as
unattainable for
black children of
poor financial
means.
(b) Teachers: Teachers do not
know what is involved in the
various careers, and therefore
cannot advise their learners. With
the change in curriculum (FET in
2006) teachers do not know how
to advise learners in terms of
subject choice e.g. whether to
study maths or maths literacy.
Conclusion
There are therefore several factors
that must be addressed
It is unproductive
to concentrate
on the output side
while ignoring
the larger
problem on the
input side
simultaneously while mentoring
the teachers in an education
support programme at schools.
It is of little worth to improve a
teacher’s skills if that teacher
faces learners who are negative,
bored or unmotivated, and do not
see the value of the subject that
the teacher is trying to teach.
Thus it is important to cover all
teacher aspects, as well as trying
to assist with improving general
school problems, and supporting
the learners academically and in
terms of their motivation.
Social engineering projects, such
as JIPSA, also function within a
system. Therefore
one cannot only
concentrate on the
output side and
ignore the larger
problem on the
input side. It seems
that the current
JIPSA
implementation is
suffering from a
naïve short term
vision and lack of
appreciation of
system functionality.
There seem to be clear indications
that short term targets tend to be
set in isolation, with political intent,
ignoring the realities of the bigger
picture. The result is that the JIT
principle is applied without
understanding that scarce technical
skills depend on the availability of
very basic maths and science skills
at school level. This paper has
shown that the education system is
terminally flawed and in need of a
systemic overhaul. A well
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