GDE needs to advocate for SGBs
20 February 2018
The DA is calling on the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) to initiate an ongoing outreach awareness campaign on the roles and importance of the School Governing Bodies (SGB) in our public schools across the province.
This awareness campaign is crucial as the three-year term of the current SGB members comes to an end on 28 February and the new elections will take place from 1- 31 March 2018.
This must be an ongoing campaign, and not only take place during the election time of the new SGB members.
In many public schools across the province, SGBs are dysfunctional and severely affecting the delivery of services to the school as well as teaching and learning.
During the DA’s visit to the Kensington Ridge Primary School yesterday, we discovered that the SGB has never been functional despite being elected to office to promote the best interests of the school.
This has affected the development of the school in terms of infrastructure as there is no support from the parents. There is no proper leadership and learners are ill-disciplined due to a lack of collaboration between teachers and parents.
The Department is not doing enough to highlight the crucial role played by the SGBs in our schools. Advertising the SGB elections in mainstream newspapers and on radio does not reach the residents and community at large, who have a vested interested in the school.
Officials should be holding parents meetings and engaging them to be part of the SGB.
The DA is appealing to parents to be involved in school activities and take part in the SGB elections.
Parents need to be reminded that there are rules that the SGB must adhere to and there are also limitations that they should not infringe to how teaching and learning is conducted in class.
The schools are built for communities and it is their responsibility to take ownership of them.
The DA believes that it is also the responsibility of all community members to safeguard school infrastructure, ensure safety at schools and to promote discipline.
Issued by Khume Ramulifho, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Education, 20 February 2018
