Giving power back to parents

The Minister of Basic Education

The Shadow Minister of Basic Education 

The nine provincial Members of the Executive Council (MECs) for Education 

As a committed South African, I am concerned about the quality of education being provided to South Africa’s children.

It is unacceptable that, according to data from the Department of Basic Education, only a third of schools have a library, that roughly one in five children who take the subject will pass maths in matric with a grade of 50% or higher, and that a child entering school today has a less than 50% chance of finishing high school with a good matric pass. 

This is not in the main about resource constraints – international studies indicate that South African children lag significantly behind the numeracy and literacy standards of children in comparable emerging markets.

I believe that:

• The responsibility to raise and educate children should rest with their parents and community and not the state;
• The government has usurped much of the control that parents and communities should exercise over their schools;
• Parents must be empowered to exercise more control over the staffing, curriculum, resources, and ethos of public schools; and
• Current government policy, which is moving in the opposite direction, should be reversed.

Schools and the money spent on education are resources that should belong to and be controlled by people and communities. Government officials and political leaders have usurped that control and let South Africa down so badly that the majority of young people today are denied the prospect of a bright future in which they may help to build a better country.

There is no doubt that South Africa can have a world-class education system.

By endorsing this Charter, I ask that you consider letting parents and communities exercise more control over our country’s schools. Our collective future depends on it.

Endorse our charter by completing the form below.

The IRR will convey your endorsement to the minister of basic education, each of the nine provincial MECs, and the shadow minister of basic education, and that you want the right to decide what is best for your child. The IRR will not share or reveal any of your personal information outside of the IRR.