Message from the Minister

André Gaum
Western Cape Education Minister

Background on FET college mergers

By now most people are aware that various colleges throughout the Western Cape, and indeed South Africa, have merged. But few probably understand why this merger has taken place or what it means for the education system in our country.

The merger of 152 colleges throughout South Africa started in 1998 in the Western Cape and was finalised there on September 1, 2002. Thirty-eight technical college sites merged into six institutions, though none of the existing sites have closed down, but will instead be administered by the larger institutions.

"It is not a process to reduce the system, but to increase efficiency," says Keith Loynes, Chief Planner of Technical Colleges at the Department of Education. "It is a two-part process to transform technical colleges into further education and training (FET) institutions. It is much more than just merging, which is a formality. It is transformation, which is more demanding. Transformation involves the design of new training programmes on an ongoing basis, which will mean that the colleges will be responsive, not supply-driven institutions and will be placed at an internationally competitive level."

The new remodelled institutions will respond to the student's needs and curriculum development has been shifted to the college site and will no longer be supplied by the Department of Education. The merger will create the widest range of training possible in each institution and in time the rationalisation of courses will take place to eliminate the unnecessary duplication of certain courses within one institution. " Colleges need to be relative to the training needs of commerce and industry as well as the needs of the community," continues Keith.

The Department of Education is working closely with Wesgro and the Chamber of Commerce to gather information to be able to guage what is needed to encourage colleges to expand their capabilities and implement training in those fields. Seta's annual sector skills plan details what sort of training is required based on information received from businesses in each of 25 sectors - from the hospitality industry to the fashion industry, motor industry and more.

Colleges now have a responsibility to students and the community, therefore measures have been taken to ensure this responsibility is acknowledged through the application of new governing structures and the appointment of new management. Fifty CEO's have been appointed on a five-year performance agreement contract to head the new institutions across the country. The Department of Education reserves the right not to renew the contract should a college not perform well. This means that there will be a higher degree of accountability, which is new in South Africa for a publically-funded institution. "This is quite a new concept, even in First World countries,"says Keith.

Compulsory schooling ends at Grade 9 (Standard 7), for which you will receive a GET (General Education Training) Certificate. From there FET allows access to higher education. This can be accomplished in two ways -either through high school (Grades 8, 9 and 10), which allows the student broader access to a variety of study options or through vocational specific subjects, which affords the student access to a specific path of study. Institutions will be responsible for assisting students in finding gainful employment and will then keep track (post-qualification tracking) of where that student is and how they are doing and whether they are productive.

"The skills of those currently employed have a definite shelf life and become out-dated very quickly. The population must continue to upgrade their skills and broaden their skills base to remain employable," comments Keith. "They have to be a part of a lifelong learning process. Ideally 200 000 people should be in FET programmes because gaining new skills is what makes economies tick and what creates employment. There are 50 000 at present." This is a Labour and Education initiative over and above the normal duties of colleges and institutions will be designed to respond to the training needs of employees, as well as employers.

For South Africa it means more employability, which in time will lead to the stability of the the economy. "Publically-funded institutions have an obligation to respond to the Human Resources Strategy that President Thabo Mbeki set out in April 2002," says Zozo Siyengo, Director of Further Education and Training.

"The FET's will operate differently from old technical colleges," he continues. "They will serve the different needs of each community, such as the student who is inspired by what they are studying and choose to study further, the student who decides to become an entrepreneur or the employee who feels that they want to broaden their horizons and opportunities."

In South Africa there is a 40% unemployment rate, yet there is underemployment in certain sectors. "With the new institutions, the aim is to improve employment and increase employability, so that when the economy picks up, the people are there to be employed productively," says Keith.

The following points summarise the broad impact the redevelopment of technical colleges as further education and training institutions:

• The redevelopment of technical colleges as further education and training institutions has a two-pronged thrust, namely merger and transformation.

• The merger plan is to place the current thirty-eight sites in the Western Cape under six administrations.

• The six new colleges are in the process of installing new governance structures and new managements.

• The Chief Executive/Principal is the most senior appointment and this person is appointed on a five-year performance contract by the Head of Education in the Western Cape.

• Accountability and performance are hallmarks of the new system.

• The fundamental approach to education differs from the old system in that it has a demand focus for education provisioning rather than a supply approach.

• The merger to form six mega multi-sited institutions is a drive to improve efficiencies by capitalising on economies of scale, the eradication of wasteful and uneconomical duplication, to provide for greater specialisation and to offer a one-stop vocational education and training system within each of the six colleges.

• The mergers therefore do not aim to reduce the system, but to lay the foundations for its growth and development.

• In the context of Lifelong Learning, international research has shown that at any one time at least 5% of the entire population should be engaged with vocational further education and training in order to meaningfully provide for the countries skills base. (Currently 1% in Western Cape.)

• The merger and redevelopment of these colleges is national policy.

• The merger and redevelopment of these colleges is an important component of the South African Human Resource Development Strategy launched by the President.

• The further education and training sector is the crossroads of the education system being at the intersection of General Education and Training and Higher Education and Training as well as at the intersection of Education (Department of Education) and Training (Department of Labour).

• Only programmes which carry full accreditation and which are quality assured will be offered by public FET institutions on behalf of the education department.

• New performance indicators will be applied to the colleges which promote responsiveness (colleges will develop tailor-made learning programmes).

• Track learners to test the relevance of their training ensuring improved employability and improved productivity once employed.

• Monitor throughput rates and learner retention rates

• Broaden access

• Support articulation and seamless progression to higher education

• Establish Recognition of Prior learning as common practice in selected learning/training environments

• FET colleges have been identified as key roleplayers in the roll-out of Learnerships for the Department of Labour. (The Learnership system has replaced the Apprenticeship system.

• FET colleges will actively cultivate new, vibrant and ongoing partnerships with other institutions and commerce and industry to ensure that the colleges are well and truly rooted in the realities of appropriate human resource development.

• FET colleges will offer training on behalf of a wide range of private individuals and public agencies and not only on behalf of the education department.

• The Department of Education has declared 2003 as the 'Year of FET'. Announcements in this regard are due to be made by the Minister of Education.

The following are the official working names of the six colleges in the Western Cape:

1. College of Cape Town (Central Metropole District)
2. False Bay College (South Metropole)
3. Northlink College (North Metropole)
4. Westcoast College (West Coast/Winelands)
5. Boland College (Breërivier/Overberg).
6. South Cape College (South Cape/Karoo)

Contact details for the above FET Colleges are available on the WCED web site.

This article was prepared by Special Projects, Independent Newspapers, Cape, for a special feature published in the Weekend Argus of 25 January 2003.