The effect of national education policies on learner discipline and academic performance of schools in the Tshwane South district : a focus on school discipline policy

Abstract

The study was limited to three national education policies, which were the teacherlearner ratio policy, teacher workload policy and learner discipline policy. The problem was the learner moral decay, which was conspicuous to the public who saw learners all over the school grounds during contact time, along streets strolling to their schools without showing any remorse long after schools had started at 8h00. Poor academic performance in public secondary schools in the Tshwane South District is a cause for concern, whereby one of the schools in Tshwane South had only 6% of learners passing in 2018 out of 300 in Grade 8, and the rest were progressed. Qualitative methodology was used, and one-on-one interviews were conducted to collect data from the SGBs, SMTs and teachers of five poorly performing schools in the district. The study revealed that the incorrect development and implementation of the new national education policies had a negative impact on learner discipline and academic performance. The classrooms were overcrowded which meant the teacher-learner ratio and teacher workload were high. The learners and the parents were not provided with the Code of Conduct, and some teachers never read the education policies and did not know that the Code of Conduct is an alternative policy to the corporal punishment policy. Consequently, learners who misbehave and are under the leadership of COSAS defy it because they are aware that teachers are ignorant of the correct procedure to enhance the Code of Conduct implementation. This implies that any case against the learners was considered unprocedural and nullified. It became evident that the Department of Basic Education needed to invest even more in education to deal with the issue of overcrowding by deploying more teachers and teacher assistants. The intervention was also necessary to equip stakeholders with skills in the adoption and implementation of national education policies. The intervention should empower the SGBs to develop and adopt the Code of Conduct correctly, teachers to maintain discipline with confidence and effectively to improve academic performance. As well as the powerful tools for planning correctly by the SMT to involve policy authorities for stakeholders’ development. The implementation of the teacher-learner ratio policy, teacher workload policy and learner discipline policies required monitoring, and to be reviewed if necessary, to avoid disparity between policy and practice.

Thuto ye e akareditšwe ka melawana e meraro ya thuto ya naga, lenaneo la ditekanyetšo ya barutiši le barutwana, lenaneo la mešomo la barutiši le lenaneo la maitshwaro la baithuti. Thuto ye e dira dinyakišišo mabapi le maitshwaro a go phuhlama a baithuti: barutwana ba ba kantle ga diphapuši tša bona ka nako ya thuto, ebile go nale setlwaedi sa go fihla ka morago ga nako sekolong. Se se hlola dipoelo tša go se kgotsofatše dithutong tše di phagamego seleteng sa borwa bja Tshwane, gomme se ke tlhobaboroko. Mohlala, dikolong tsa borwa bja Tshwane, ke diperesente tše tshela fela tša baithuti ba mphato wa seswai go ba makgolo a mararo bao ba phasitšego ka noši ngwageng wa ketepedi lesome seswai, mola ba bangwe ba fitišitšwe. Thuto ye e šomiša mokgwa wa di nyakišišo wa khwaliteitifi, mme dintlha di kgobokantšwe ka go šomiša molawana wa go botšiša dipotšišo thwii, re lebelelane ka mahlong go dihlopha tša go buša dikolo (SGBs), dihlopha tša taolo ya dikolo (SMTs) le go tšwa go barutiši ba dikolo tše hlano tša go se šome gabotse seleteng seo. Thuto ye e tšweletša gore go hloka tšweletšo ya maleba le tšhomišo mpe ya melawana e meswa ya thuto ya naga e nale khuetšo e mpe taolong ya baithuti le mešomong ya sekolo. Palo e kgolo ya barutwana diphapušing e baka morwalo o boima go barutiši. Baithuti le batswadi ga ba fiwe Melao ya sekolo ya maitswaro, gomme barutiši ba bangwe le bona ga senke ba ipha nako ya go bala melawana ya thuto ebile ga ba tsebe gore melao ya maitšhwaro ke mokgwa o mongwe wa go fapana le kotlo ya go betha. Ka lebaka leo, baithuti bao ba sa itshwarego gabotse ebile ba huetšwa ke COSAS ba nyatša melao ya maitšwaro gobane ba lemogile gore barutiši ba hlokomologile mokgwa wo o nepagetšego wa go matlafatša tšhomišo ya maleba ya melao ye. Se se bolela gore kgafetša kgafetša melato kgahlanong le barutwana e tšewa okare ga se ya maleba ebile e phošagetše. Go molaleng gore Lefapha la Thuto ya motheo le hloka go lokiša taba ya go tlala ga barutwana ka diphapušing ka go thwala barutiši bao ba lekaneng le bathuši ba barutiši. Go tsea karolo go thuša batšeakarolo ka tsebo ya go amogela le go šomisa melawana ya thuto ya naga gwa hlokega. Se se ka matlafatša dihlopha tša go buša dikolo go amogela le go šomiša Melao ya maitswaro ka nepo, ele ge barutiši ba holega ka go netefatša maitshwaro ama botse le go kaonafatša dipoelo tša thuto ya barutwana. Dipoelo di hlagiša gore lenaneo la tekanyo ya barutiši le barutwana, lenaneo la mešomo la barutiši le lenaneo la maitshwaro la baithuti di hloka go hlokomelwa le go lekolwa, gomme moo go hlokegago e hlahlobje gore go efošwe thulano magareng ga lenaneo tshepedišo le tiragatšo ya lenaneo leo.

Hierdie ondersoek word beperk tot drie nasionale onderwysbeleide: die beleid op die onderwyser-leerder-verhouding, die beleid op onderwyserwerkslading en die beleid op leerderdissipline. Die navorsing ondersoek wat meestal beskou word as die morele agteruitgang van die leerder: leerders is gedurende kontaktyd buite die klaskamer en daar is gedurige laatkommery. Die kommerwekkende gevolge hiervan is swak akademiese prestasie in openbare sekondêre skole in die TshwaneSuiddistrik. By een skool in Tshwane-Suid het byvoorbeeld slegs 6% uit 300 Graad 8 leerders in 2018 geslaag, terwyl die res oorgeplaas is. Die ondersoek maak gebruik van ’n kwalitatiewe metodologie, en data is ingesamel in een-tot-een onderhoude met lede van die skoolbeheerliggame (SBL’e), skoolbestuurspanne (SBS’e) en onderwysers van vyf swak presterende skole in die distrik. Die navorsing toon dat die onvoldoende ontwikkeling en implementering van nuwe nasionale onderwysbeleid ’n negatiewe uitwerking op leerders se dissipline en akademiese prestasie het. Die hoë onderwyser-leerder-verhouding in oorvol klaskamers het vir onderwysers ’n hoë werkslading tot gevolg. Leerders en ouers word nie van ’n Gedragskode voorsien nie, en sommige onderwysers het nog nooit die onderwysbeleid gelees nie en weet nie dat die Gedragskode ’n alternatief vir die lyfstrafbeleid is nie. Leerders wat hul wangedra en deur COSAS beïnvloed word, minag gevolglik die Gedragskode omdat hulle bewus is dat onderwysers oningelig is oor die juiste prosedure ter bevordering van dié kode. Dit beteken dat sake teen leerders dikwels as prosessueel ongeldig beskou word en nietig verklaar word. Dit is duidelik dat die Departement van Basiese Onderwys aandag moet bestee aan die kwessie van oorvol klaskamers deur meer onderwysers en onderwysassistente aan te stel. Ingryping is ook nodig om belanghebbendes toe te rus met vaardighede vir die ingebruikneming en implementering van nasionale onderwysbeleide. So ’n ingreep sal SBL’e bemagtig om die Gedragskode korrek te ontwikkel en aan te neem, waardeur onderwysers bygestaan sal word in die handhawing van dissipline en die verbetering van akademiese prestasie. Die bevindinge dui aan dat die implementering van die beleide op onderskeidelik die onderwyser-leerder-verhouding, die onderwyserwerklading en leerderdissipline monitering en, waar nodig, hersiening vereis ten einde skeiding tussen die beleid en die praktyk te vermy.