Children with a higher than average IQ were given a boost on Tuesday when the Education Minister Kader Asmal, said they should be nurtured and promoted and that they could add value to society as a whole.
Asmal was speaking at the launch of the Read Education Trust’s new building in Ormonde, Johannesburg.
”It is a fallacy that the government does not value bright children because it wants to reduce every child to the lowest common denominator,” said Asmal. ”As I said before, bright children come from all social backgrounds — the rich, the poor, urban, rural, boys and girls.”
He said programmes had to be put in place to make the most of these children’s potential.
”The system has to provide opportunities for bright children from Ingwavuma through Bushbuckridge, and through Dimbaza to the foothills of Table Mountain.”
He said this did not mean isolating and required that they remain part of the mainstream.
”Bright children should be in the same schools as all other children. Children who are leaders are not selfish children. They can add great value to the potential of other children through collaboration.”
The minister said gifted pupils should be provided with opportunities to achieve their greatest potential. ”All children, particularly bright children, get easily bored. We should challenge them with expanded opportunities to free their potential. If we do not do this we are likely to encourage truancy and all other sorts of deviant behaviour.”
On another note the minister said while there was insufficient money to fund libraries for all schools, the government was making every effort to ensure access to information for all, in the shortest amount of time through the use of modern technology. ”This will open new vistas for our teachers and students in the form of a range of digital learning materials.”
In this regard the department would soon present a draft white paper on e-education. – Sapa