Proposed new General Education Certificate could fail – Jonathan Jansen

Leading education analysts have warned if the proposed General Education Certificate (GEC) is not properly implemented, it could leave future generations of children doomed.

Stellenbosch University’s distinguished professor of education, Jonathan Jansen, said the poor quality of the country’s education system could fail the GEC.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga announced the GEC would enable Grade 9 pupils to exit school and apply at technical colleges in pursuit of technical careers.

However, Jansen wasn’t buying it.

“This is a rational pathway in a well-designed and functioning system of school and post-school education, but ours is dysfunctional,” Jansen said.

“And by all accounts the technical and vocational system is low-quality lower-tier education with underqualified teachers for the TVET [technical and vocational education and training] system in general.”

The department of basic education (DBE) said in a statement yesterday the GEC certificate was predicated on the three-stream model which allowed for an academic pathway, a technical vocational pathway and a technical/occupational pathway.

“The plan aims to send more [pupils] into technical education,” DBE spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said in the statement.

“Under the technical vocational stream, there was a target of 10,000 artisans per year. The department has also introduced new subjects – technical mathematics and technical science,” Mhlanga said.

However, Jansen reckoned should the government fail in the implementation phase it would leave a large number of pupils under-skilled and unemployed. He raised his concerns over the readiness of students to take decisions on career paths.

He said Grade 12 pupils struggled with the momentous decisions of choosing careers and said the GEC was a political move to save the basic education department from the embarrassment of the large numbers of dropouts.

Political studies lecturer at Walter Sisulu University, Lungani Mthethwa, said government was known for introducing theoretically sound policies and failing in the implementation process.

“Government comes up with beautiful policies but fails to establish supporting mechanisms,” he said.

What is the GEC certificate?

The GEC would be a registered qualification to recognise:

• Pupils have acquired a structured set of competencies built up over the 10 years of compulsory schooling.
• Pupils who may want to access further learning can be assisted in the selection and guidance of subjects from Grade 9 level already.
• As pupils’ circumstances change and influence their participation, so the access to various learning pathways can match those circumstances.

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