WCED hosts Education Indaba | Western Cape Education Department
WCED hosts Education Indaba

WCED hosts Education Indaba

On the 26th of January 2019, the WCED met with various stakeholders in education across the Province on a variety of issues affecting schools in the Western Cape.

These challenges included:

  •  dealing with the learner influx/growth in learner numbers and the challenge of placing learners;
  • the use (and growing distribution) of drugs and alcohol by thousands of learners, even on school grounds;
  • regression of learner discipline, lack of order in schools and the challenges that teachers face;
  • vandalism of and theft from our schools (lack of community ownership, protection of schools, accountability);
  • struggling to transcend from fair education to good/great education in all schools (quality principals, in-fighting and undermining amongst school SMTs, disenabling governing bodies, disruptive communities, underperforming schools etc.);
  • embracing diversity in all schools; and
  • our inability to garner community volunteerism in all schools.

The Indaba gave everyone the opportunity to share their ideas about how to effectively deal with these matters and particularly how their organisation, as a key partner of the WCED, is able to assist in addressing these challenges.

The participants were split into four groups for discussion and their suggestions were presented later in the day. All inputs will be collated and further contributions have been encouraged. It was a productive engagement which will require further discussion both within and outside the organisation. These are tough challenges to overcome, but we all need to work together to find effective solutions and workable strategies.

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