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South Africa: Technical High Schools to Set Up Committees
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BuaNews (Tshwane)
13 May 2008
Posted to the web 13 May 2008
Gabi Khumalo
Johannesburg
Technical high school principals have been urged to set up committees to develop strategies to address the challenges facing these schools.
Addressing the Symposium of Technical High School Principals at Kempton Park on Tuesday, Education Minister Naledi Pandor challenged the principals to propose ways in which the schools could emerge as centres of excellence offering a high demand of education and training.
"Technical schools have the advantage of both academic and vocational experience, they can provide young people with the skills they need in an expanding and increasingly sophisticated economy," the minister noted.
She said the current challenge for technical schools was to find a purposeful identity in light of recent developments in the Further Education Training (FET) landscape.
"The introduction of the new curriculum in schools and more recently the introduction of the National Certificate (Vocational) in FET colleges raise questions about the alignment and identity of technical schools.
"The phasing out of the N1-N3 programmes, I know will impact quite significantly on many of the schools offerings," Ms Pandor said.
The meeting was aimed at discussing the role of technical high schools in skills development, the progress on the implementation of the technology subjects in the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) and the challenges faced by technical high schools in general and recommend solutions.
The four technology subjects developed for implementation in Grades 10, 11 and 12 are updated versions of the Report 550 subjects stressing the importance to ensure that schools and teachers are equipped to offer these subjects.
"It is important to ensure that schools and teachers are equipped to offer these subjects, the meeting creates an opportunity for us to gain a full understanding of these schools and to consider ways in which we can provide improved support to them," said Ms Pandor.
She further said that with the development of a single education system, government has made significant progress in increasing access to education for young people.
The recently published ministerial committee on learner retention has revealed that recent enrolment patterns in schools indicate that South Africa has already achieved universal access to education for young people aged seven to 15.
"This achievement is a clear expression of our commitment to providing our people with opportunities for participation in education.
"Government is committed to supporting our education system along this growth trajectory so that all our people can enjoy the fruits of our democracy," said Ms Pandor.
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She encouraged technical schools with specialised focus in technology to train young people to become welders, electricians, boilermakers, instrumentation and electronics technicians.
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