Educational inequality on access to physical resources at Highveld Ridge East Circuit : Mpumalanga

Abstract

The phenomenon of educational inequality on access to physical resources in the Highveld Ridge East Circuit of Mpumalanga was investigated in the study. Since the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic had affected education on a global scale, South Africa included, it became necessary to incorporate this new development into the emerging design that unfolded. The study explored the impact of access to physical resources in three public schools. The aim of the investigation was to ascertain how educational disparities on access to physical resources manifested at the chosen research sites, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative research approach was utilised comprising of a multiple case study design. The study reported how the principal and deputy principals viewed educational inequality on access to physical resources from a management perspective, while educators provided insight on the effect of this phenomenon on the teaching and learning process. Observations, individual interviews involving the principal and deputy principals as participants, and focus group interviews involving the teachers, as well as the scrutiny of relevant official documents provided the empirical data for this investigation. All research participants were purposively selected, as a full staff complement was unavailable at the research sites during the pandemic. The results that emerged from the study indicated that educational inequality was prevalent in these public schools. The dearth of resources, and in some instances basic essential resources, had a marked impact on the management as well as the teachers and students at these schools. A significant point to consider was how ill-equipped the public schools in this area were to deal with education during a global pandemic. The backlog of the inequities on access to physical resources needed to be addressed as a matter of dire urgency if the country had any hope of salvaging the education process even at the most basic level. The recommendations in the conclusion of the study are desperate pleas for help in assisting the country, especially the previously marginalised, to move forward in the worst of times.