The South African Students Congress (SASCO) notes with utter dismay the pronouncement made by Minister Bonginkosi Nzimande, on measures to phase out the lockdown and phasing in of PSET strategic functions. We vehemently reject the attempt to create academic streams for the have and have nots, we are unmoved by the rhetoric and lip service of the Minister, his well-prepared speech with no feasible strategies is but an ill-thought hasty attempt to save the academic year at the expense of the most vulnerable of students.
In our submission (which has been disregarded) to the department in an effort to save the academic year, we expressed the need to capacitate historically disadvantaged institutions; the need to enforce mixed methodologies; adopt a clear resolution around exclusions for the 2021 academic year; mechanisms put in place to ensure punctuality in the delivery of hardware devices to students before commencement of academic projects; and adequate investments into ICT infrastructure across the board inter alia. At the core of it all, a clear plan and commitment by DHET in the establishment of an ad-hoc oversight committee that will regulate and enforce government resolutions, all of these fell to deaf ears and as such shall lead to the inevitable abuse of institutional autonomy by institutions that seek to operate as Ivory Towers of the privileged.
The Department of Basic Education has reported that e-learning is about 20% effective. We have since asked the DHET on its plans to deliver devices in rural areas of the country where there are no physical addresses. The Minister’s tired depiction of what science suggests should be done, completely overlooks one of the most
important forms of sciences, humanities and social sciences – social pedagogy.
The department seemingly forgets that an overwhelming portion of our student populace hails from rural areas; informal settlements; farms and remote areas of our country and yet it plans to leave them behind regardless of their reality. This is the most vulnerable of students with little to no internet access and/or connectivity in places they call homes. Furthermore, DHET continues to fail in exercising its legislative mandate and powers to create a single coordinated higher education system even in the midst of a global pandemic which threatens life as we know it, all for appeasing historically advantaged institutions while turning a blind eye to historically disadvantaged institutions with no capacity to see their pipedream through.
SASCO stands not opposed to innovative ideas and feasible ways of operation within the post-schooling and training sector, but we ought to remain realistic, solution orientated, and practical at all material times. We are however of the view that this should not happen at the expense of poor students from working-class backgrounds. We reiterate our call that the department must, by any means necessary ensure that all our institutions adopt a single academic calendar and not leave institutions to do as they please in the name of autonomy.
We note with concern the suggestion to make use of community libraries, which seems a tad far from being realistic as the majority of our community libraries in townships; small towns and rural provinces are without sufficient reading material and/or WiFi hotspots and services that are the core competency of local municipalities, a very frail sphere of government engulfed in corruption and in some cases bankrupt as a result.
A significant number of universities (14) have indicated that they are not ready for the e-learning migration, while arguably having suitable and decent ICT infrastructure than most if not all of our TVET Colleges. The Department had since reported that about 20% of TVET Colleges could possibly be ready for digital migration yet that still leaves the majority of them behind. At the centre of their inability to go online is the nature of teaching and study, DHET continues to give no mechanisms let alone measures put in place to accommodate vocational education and training.
Throwing laptops and data at students will not make their learning environment suddenly conducive at home for self-study neither will it easy for students to migrate to the blended system.
Upon exhausting all known channels and avenues to address our grievances, we have since concluded to write to the President of the Republic of South Africa and the National Command Council to put place regulations that will ensure:
-No roll-out of online learning takes place in all institutions till a single academic calendar is designed, practical and is pro-poor.
– All institutions abide and adhere to the centrally adopted calender.
– No assessments are to be conducted online. All assessments are to be determined upon the presentation of the said calendar.
– A clear strategy and implementation plan to accommodate the missing middle.
No institution of higher learning is a No man’s land within the borders of the country, autonomy is not total independence, all shall abide by the laws of the Republic. And as such should Government fail to respond to us by the 5th May 2020 at 16h00, we will then explore the legal route. For it would show cowardice and recklessness to betray the proud legacy this glorious students movement boasts in being in service of the voiceless, poor, and working-class students.
Leave No student behind a commitment to a Single Co-ordinated Higher Education Sector.
Issued by SASCO NEC
Bamanye Matiwane
President
President@sasco.co.za
Buthanani Ngwane
Secretary-General
Sg@sasco.co.za
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