Archive photo (Photo: Pixabay)
The Gauteng Department of Education is warned in a formal letter to stop its planned inclusion of gr. R in the central online admission system for 2027 to review.
In this joint letter from Solidarity’s Teacher Network, the Solidarity School Support Center (SOS) and AfriForum, it is warned that the hasty decision is not only unrealistic, but may also have been taken illegally.
The organizations demand, among other things, that the department implement mandatory gr. Urgently postpones R inclusion until the basic requirements for gr. R-education has been sorted out.
Johan Botha, the head of Solidarity’s Teacher Network, says this decision is a classic example of policy that does not match the realities on the ground level.
He emphasizes that the department is trying to offer an administrative solution to an infrastructure crisis.
“It is senseless. An online system cannot create classrooms, train teachers or build schools overnight. This decision is simply removed from reality,” says Botha.
Lebogang Maile, the MEC for education in Gauteng, told the media earlier this year that there is a shortage of around 200 schools and 5,554 classrooms in Gauteng.
Archive photo for illustration purposes only. (Photo: Stephen Andrews/Unsplash)
Alana Bailey, the head of cultural affairs at AfriForum, says the department’s own recognition of this serious classroom shortage and lack of schools is already creating serious problems for education in the province.
That’s why she believes proposals for online admissions for gr. R, while lacking infrastructure and funding is inexplicable.
“We see every year how Gauteng struggles to place learners in existing grades on time, with online placements often only completed months after the start of the school year. To further expand an already overburdened and flawed system to include grade R is not only irresponsible; it is reckless and puts enormous pressure on everyone involved,” says Bailey.
Melanie Buys, head of development at the SOS, emphasizes that this decision will place an unfair and additional burden on schools and parents.
According to Buys, parents are obliged to register their children through a central system, while in reality there is no guarantee that there will be a place available.
“That duty must go hand in hand with the state’s constitutional duty to ensure real access to education. The adoption of the Bela Act in December 2024 created an obligation that in reality cannot be fulfilled,” says Buys.
Meanwhile, schools that have their own gr. R facilities built with private financing, exposed to central control, without any clear compensation or support.
She says that the state cannot evade its constitutional duty by shifting the burden onto schools and onto parents.
“Nor can the state enforce compliance with a system for which it itself does not have the capacity to maintain or support. In addition, there is a serious shortage of qualified grade R teachers.”
Archive photo for illustration purposes only. (Photo: Eric Rothermel/Unsplash)
According to indications, approximately 2,333 gr. R teachers are needed and “no credible plan has so far been announced on how this shortage will be dealt with”.
“The question is simple: Where will the necessary classrooms, resources and teachers come from? Who will pay for facilities that schools have already built themselves,” asks Buys.
In the letter, the respective organizations request the department to provide the following information in writing within 14 days:
- The department’s implementation plan, budgets and timeframes to address the shortage of classrooms and schools.
- The funding and appointment of the additional 2,333 qualified gr. R teachers.
- Compensation, subsidies and further support for schools that already have their own gr. funded R facilities.
- The process for parents who, due to a lack of available space, cannot place their children in gr. R cannot register.
- Or non-registration for gr. R a child’s gr. 1 placement in 2028 or later will be detrimental.
- The current number of available gr. R places per school and per district.
- The budget for the integration of gr. R in primary schools.
Solidarity, the SOS and AfriForum agree that the implementation of the decision, without sufficient capacity, infrastructure and resources, is not only impractical, but also entails serious legal risks.
The Teacher Network therefore insists that gr. R admissions remain school-based for the time being, until the department can prove that there is sufficient space, staff and funding to accommodate each learner.