TimesLIVE Premium reports that education experts are worried at the many vacant teacher, principal and deputy principal posts in the country.
Department of Basic Education (DBE) spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga confirmed that 14,564 teacher and 3,555 principal posts were vacant at the end of May. There were also 3,461 vacant deputy principal posts in the Western Cape, Northern Cape, Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal, according to figures supplied by the provinces. At least 2,577 of the 3,461 deputy principal vacancies were in KwaZulu-Natal. Mhlanga said the issue of vacancies was discussed at length during a meeting of the council of education ministers comprising DBE Minister Angie Motshekga and the nine provincial MECs of education on Friday. He said teacher vacancies amounted to 5% of all posts in schools and that this number “fluctuates daily due to ongoing attrition”, but it should be expected that a reasonable number of posts would be vacant at schools at any given time. Prof Chika Sehoole, dean of the education faculty at the University of Pretoria, said “the levels of vacancies are too high for comfort”. He indicated that the vacancies might be attributed to teachers and principals taking early retirement at the age of 60 instead of 65 and that this should be “anticipated and planned for”. Sehoole said the vacancies will “definitely compromise” learning and teaching as principals “provide vision, leadership and management for the school”. The DA’s education spokesperson in KZN, Imran Keeka, said the many vacant principal and deputy principal posts “creates potential for irregularities with the filling of these posts”. “The ‘selling’ of posts is unfortunately not an uncommon practice in our province. The involvement of certain teacher unions in creating upheaval is also a reality that needs grappling with as educators vie for these posts,” he claimed.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Prega Govender at TimesLIVE Premium (subscriber access only)
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