Leadership – An Ever-Evolving Position…

What do I want to be when I grow up? A frequently pondered question that occupies the mind of every learner from time to time. Whether the prospects of being president looks appealing or being the next Albert Einstein is an aspiration, the reality for the leaders of tomorrow has to start in the classroom. It is no secret that the organisations of the future will require that leaders be trained to be leaders – and with that being said, this requires skilled and trained professional teachers.

Great and passionate teachers are absolute heroes to countless students, because they change the trajectory of children’s lives for the better. They stir curiosity and illuminate the power of learning. Socioeconomic status or family background is not the alfa and omega of a learner’s academic growth, but the teacher standing at the head of the class. It is a known fact that once teachers finish their studies and preparation programs, they enter a profession that treats them as something less than highly-skilled professionals. Teachers are not evaluated on the impact they have on student learning, but rather on credentials and time spent on the job. Teacher evaluation and preparation programs seem to be have been developed in a more industrial age where schools were seen as factories and children simply going from grade to grade and class to class like products through a process to reach completion. Often there is no differentiation between the teachers or instruction methods. So we need to evaluate the importance of development of teachers within the job sector. As former US president Obama rightfully stated: “Education is no longer just a pathway to opportunity and success – it’s a prerequisite to success.”

The Department of Education announced that 75.8% of matriculates passed their 2014 National Senior Certificate (NSC) exams, but in real terms the reality is very grim. Taking into account the number of drop-outs over the past 12 years, the real number of learners who managed to get a senior certificate is approximately 41.7%. It is evident that the matric pass rate is not a true reflection of the state of education in South Africa.

In 2015, Times Live reported that Minister of Education, Angie Motshekga announced that the Grade 9 ANA Mathematics results, which was close to 10% average, is a shocking reminder that education at its most crucial stage before entering the FET phase is absolute chaos. And all that she could comment was that she was very disappointed. Very few learners would achieve a 10% average for Maths if the teacher was actually teaching. The question arises: Why are teachers who are not equipped to teach in the positions they are, and why is nothing being done to empower teachers that do make a significant difference?

South Africa supposedly has one of the highest rates of public investment in education in the world at about 7% of gross domestic product (GDP) and 20% of total state expenditure. Government spending on basic education during 2015/16 is estimated at R203 468 billion! Why can’t more be done to make sure that teachers are fully equipped to be the best they can be and that the evaluated and remunerated as they need to?

On average, teachers with five to nine years’ experience have salaries between R124,038 and R146,087 per annum and teachers with 10 years plus experience earn R146,088 plus per year – if you do the math that works out at about R12,174 per month! With an expenditure of R203 468 billion that is available for education every year surely teachers can be rewarded a tad more for the invaluable task that they have every day? Surely there is enough in the bank to make sure that all teachers can be sent for training on a regular basis to ensure that they are up to developing standards at all time?

Dear Mrs. Minister of Education, to pass matric your only prerequisites are 40% for your Home Language, 40% for four other High Credit Subjects and 30% for two other subjects! What happened to standards? 18% of matriculates that register across the country’s institutions drop out and between 50% and 60% drop out in their first year of study. Does this not scream out that there is something seriously wrong? Our leaders of tomorrow are raised with the perception that performance can be below average and you still meet the requirements. An average or sub-standard teacher believes that they are just in the position they are for a meal-ticket.

Without proper leadership and in-school training for teachers who are responsible for building the foundation of the future leaders of tomorrow, the youth is on a downward spiral into a dark abyss. The greatest leaders mobilise others by coalescing people around a shared vision, not by the blind leading the blind…