Opposition parties criticised Education Minister Kader Asmal during his budget vote debate in the National Assembly on Tuesday for the department’s stance on religion in schools, and extra pay for teachers by school governing bodies.
Democratic Alliance education spokesperson Willem Doman said the department seemed intent on eroding the autonomy of the governing bodies, saying that government was treating them as state agents, instead of partners.
He added that not trusting the governing bodies with what matters most to them, namely the appointment and retention of quality teachers for their children, was a smack in the face.
Doman said the plan to outlaw additional pay and perks from governing bodies for excellent teachers would lead to an exodus of good teachers from the public education system.
The plan might appear as a convincing argument for equality across all schools, but poor schools were going to suffer most as they would be stripped of their best teachers, who would just move to greener pastures within the system, he added.
The Inkatha Freedom Party’s Alfred Mpontshane said South Africa was a highly-centralised federal state, and some of the policy choices made revealed a tendency towards centralised power.
”It was good that power was devolved to the lowest rung of the education ladder, the governing bodies.”
”We are, however, witnessing the gradual erosion of their powers. Their powers must be enhanced and not diminished,” he said.
Deputy African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) leader Louis Green rejected Asmal’s proposals on religion in education, arguing that governing bodies should reserve the right to choose the religious ethos in a particular school.
”The minister preaches tolerance, but practises bigotry.
”Why is the minister adopting a top-down approach to force all schools to accept his format of a weekly assembly, and uniformity in terms of multi-faith prayer and teaching?
”The ACDP will never accept these restrictions placed on school assemblies, and we call on all parents and teachers to stand by their convictions on this issue,” Green said.
Martha Olckers of the New National Party said the restrictions on religion at schools went against the Constitution, which reserved the right to religious observance at state institutions.
She also said the state’s proposals on extra pay would suppress excellence at both poor and more affluent schools.
Freedom Front leader Dr Pieter Mulder said the department’s policy on religion would force parents, who preferred a specific religious approach, to send their children to private schools.
”This will be discriminating and unfair because these parents will then have to pay twice.
”They will have to pay taxes for government’s education, which they will not make use of, as well as school funds for private schools,” he said.
But Asmal hit back, saying there had been considerable distortion about the intentions around additional payments to teachers by school governing bodies.
”Let me be clear that we would prefer a system of self-management on this issue, but it does require policy guidelines and regulations by the employer of teachers, which is the province.”
The Employment of Educators Act already made it unlawful for teachers to earn extra remuneration without the necessary authority.
Current efforts were simply designed to infuse a degree of flexibility into this global proscription.
”And we will work with the parties concerned to ensure that this happens with due regard to issues of incentive, equity, and fairness,” he said.
During a media briefing prior to the debate, Asmal said it should be emphasised that the draft Education Laws Amendment Bill was exactly that, a draft bill, published for comment, and that the department would take account of all serious and constructive comments.
Turning — in his Assembly speech — to religion in education, Asmal said people had confused an attempt to promote nation building in the school context with an attack on religious freedom and diversity.
”It is not the case that we are expelling or banning religion from schools. In fact we are advocating the strengthening and recognition of the role of religion in education.
”In so doing we are providing proper policy and guidelines on the three aspects involved — education about religions of the world, particularly those practised in South Africa, religious instruction in a particular religious denomination, and religious observance in schools.”
Asmal said he would be meeting the National Forum of Religious Leaders to discuss the draft policy with them next week. – Sapa