faces of the curriculum: essays in contemporary education

Faces of the

Curriculum

Essays in contemporary education

Adam - Demmer - Jordaan - Labuschagne - Matthews - zinn

2

First printed in 2013

Published by the Faculty of EducationNelson Mandela Metropolitan University

Port Elizabeth • 6031 • South Africa

ISBN 3- 976604-13-8(950202 4387 3731)

Authors identified as Dr Kathija Adam, Professor Denise Zinn,M. Matthews, R. Labuschagne, C. Jordaan & M. Demmer

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Facesofthe Curriculum

Adam DemmerJordaan

LabuschagneMatthewsZinn

essays in

contemporary

education

contents

introduction 5

chapter one 7

I want to change the world

chapter two 10

children born to poor parents remain

trapped in an inferior education

chapter three ??

persistent inequalities: how resources

effect the curriculum, teaching & learning

chapter four 21

heroic deeds under difficult conditions

chapter five 31

awakening sleeping consciences

5

Sometimes a kind of glory lights up themind of person. It happens to nearly every-one. You can feel it growing or preparinglike a fuse burning toward dynamite. It is afeeling in the stomach, a delight of thenerves, of the forearms.The skin tastes theair, and every deep-drawn breath is sweet.

Its beginning has the pleasure of a greatstretching yawn; it flashes in the brain andthe whole world glows outside your eyes.Aman may have lived his whole life in thegray, and the land and trees of him dark andsober.The events, even the important ones,may have trooped by faceless and pale.

And then - the glory - so that a cricketsong sweetens her ears, the smell of theearth rises chanting to his nose, and dap-pling light under a tree blesses her eyes.

Then a person pours outward, a torrent ofhim or her, and yet he is not diminished.And I guess a human's importance in theworld can be measured by the quality andnumber of his glories. It is a lonely thingbut it relates us to the world.

It is the mother of all creativeness, and itsets each person separate from all otherpeople.

introduction

A place of P ossibilityAnd this I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individualhuman is the most valuable thing in the world.And this I wouldfight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes,undirected.

John Steinbeck 1952

7

Teaching in South African classroomstoday often raises questions aroundwhether changes in education sincedemocracy, and the promise of equali-ty in education has truly translated intopractice. Country reports and themedia are fraught with warnings of afailed education system and mucheffort is directed towards “fixing” thecurriculum. However, as Rudd ques-tions in the quote above, should thefocus be on “teaching the curriculum”or should it be about “teaching andeducating the person.” In exploringthis very dilemma a group of studentteachers at NMMU embarked on ajourney. Using photography as a lens,

they captured the reality of lives, and ofliving, of resilience and of truths thatmore than 80% of South African childrenlive with in their homes, communitiesand classrooms. Throughout thisjourney the students deepened theirunderstandings of curriculum by com-paring their theoretical understandingswith the practical reality of contexts inwhich they are doing their studentteaching practicum. Meaning makingthrough this experience culminated invarious forms of expressing theirdeveloping understandings of thecurriculum as it is lived in SouthAfrican schools today, one being thewriting of this book.

chapter one

I WANT TO CHANGE THEWORLD

“I want to change the world.The classroom is truly a place of possibilities.Too often we become caught up in teaching the curriculum instead of teaching and educating the person…”

Roland Rudd 2012

In aligning with the NMMU Faculty of Education'sMission of “cultivating, passionate, engaged, knowl-edgeable, effective and compassionate, teachers,researchers and leaders who are critical thinkers andagents of hope, change and social justice,” this bodyof work can be viewed as a demonstration and illus-tration of a consciousness to the realities of SouthAfrican education that is critical for all teachers tohave.2 Hence, the pages ahead are neither a collec-tion of photographs placed merely for aestheticenhancement nor are they simply an enhanced aca-demic account of student thought and research.They are designed to guide through picture andtext, imploring a closer more informed look of whatreality is and what it means to educate a humanbeing in South Africa today. In exposing these reali-ties, this book also beckons for an acknowledgementof inequality and argues for a contextualisedapproach to education in South Africa. In doing so,it puts forward the classroom as a “place of possibil-ity” where teachers can function as agents of hope.

Perspective and paradigm changes are required asthis group of students discovered for the successfuldevelopment of human potential - that of learnersbut also of the teachers themselves.The chapters thatcomprise this book have been developed from someof their conclusions that had been reached throughengagement in this project to understand the cur-riculum in context. Through this project, theyarrived at deeper understandings, having undertakentheir own critical thinking around the kind of edu-cation required for the successful transformation, notonly of education but of South African society as awhole.

In the second chapter an attempt is made to cap-ture the rea l i ty of educat ion in South Africatoday. It stimulates the reader to return to the same

question that the students often found themselvesreturning to, namely,“Has education in South Africachanged?” They engaged with Spaull's (2012)3

description of the dualistic nature of the SouthAfrican education systemwhich exposes the realitythat national averages shroud severe inequalities thatplague all elements of South African life.

In doing so, the students concluded that “the valueof our contribution as teachers should be measuredin terms of the enhanced capacity we open out toour children so that they are equipped to determinetheir own future.”4 Chapter three delves into anexploration of social contexts that are a reality forthe majority of South African children. It considersthe “context of disorder” described by Fataar andPatterson5 and describes the conditions of the com-munities that surround the majority of the country'sschools often characterised as dysfunctional. Thepoor socioeconomic conditions, disrupted familylife, lack of educational support structures, high lev-els of unemployment etc. contribute to learners dis-counting the value of school. It is these conditionsthat can be seen to create a lack of motivation, con-tribute to disruptive behaviour and set the stage forthe lack of a teaching and learning culture in theschools. Students in this project concluded that“poor socio-economic conditions have a directimpact on the academic performance of children.”6

They also concluded that “schools cannot workalone to overcome the impacts of economic disad-vantage”7 and that “even in dire conditions thecommunity contains rich resources and sources ofagency and hope which teachers can use to trans-form the classroom and school environment.”8

Chapter four considers the possibilities that a con-textualised approach to education can bring to aschool. It explores transformation of the school con-

8

text by partnerships where the school or classroom“is a participant in a development process that iscommunity driven, community led and communityowned.”9 The students embraced the notion that“school reform is community reform”10 and active-ly engaged in the debate, arguing that new strategiesfor the development of human capital are requiredbefore a sustained social and economic renaissancecan be expected. Students concluded that transform-ing schools by creating a series of strategic partner-ships between schools, businesses, universities, clin-ics, social services and a series of community-basedservice organisations enhance the social capital ofstudents and their families.They advocate that pro-viding schools with substantial increases in externalsupport is the most cost-effective means of deliver-ing the resources and support they need which ulti-mately leads to greater accountability, better func-tioning schools, and higher levels of student achieve-ment.

The last chapter unifies their collective understand-ings and develops into a call for action towards waysin which their discoveries and conclusions could beshared, digested and used by all those concernedwith education in South Africa.

The chapter engages in a provocative approachtowards a future vision by asking how can educatorsbe assisted in making the necessary paradigm shifts,how can the school become a part of the communi-ty embracing its own agency and how can futureteachers be educated to embrace work with andwithin the “contexts of disorder” and willingly be apart of contributing to the much needed transforma-tion in South Africa today.

Notes1. Rudd, R. I want to change the world. Mail and Guardian (12

November 2012). Retrieved from http://mg.co.za/article/2012-11-

20-i-want-to-change-the-world retrieved 6 December 2012.

2. Zinn, D. (2012). Faculty of Education Newsletter. November 2012

edition

3. Spaull, N. (2012). Poverty and privilege: Primary school inequali-

ty in South Africa. Int. J. Educ. Dev. . http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ije-

dudev.2012.09.09 accessed by K Adam 17 December 2012

4. Student response in a focus group held on the 02 November 2012

5. Fataar, A. and Patterson, A. (1998). Teacher's moral agency and

reconstruction of schooling in South Africa. Unpublished paper deliv-

ered at the World Conference of Comparative Education Societies.

University of Cape Town

6. Student response in a focus group held on 02 November 2012



9.Student response in a focus group held on 02 November 2012


9

In interrogating the current state of affairs withrespect to education in South Africa, students in thisproject voiced a general awareness of the notion thatpost-apartheid education is failing the majority ofSouth African youth. However, through these dis-cussions, a moment of clarity arrived when in a classactivity related to life-histories a number of studentsin this project confessed that the impact of beingpoor on achievement in education had not beensomething they had given much thought to.

This being the case, despite a large body of “researchavailable which confirms that children from poorsocioeconomic conditions face enormous educa-tional challenges in South Africa” (Timaeus,Simelane & Letsoalo, 2011) . They did howevershow an awareness of media reports related to matricexams and the Annual National Assessment (ANA)exams.

In delving into country and media reports, theyfound for example that “…in 2001 just over 1.1 mil-lion learners started Grade 1 but in 2011 only 511 152learners wrote the matric exams. Of these only 377 829passed.” In other words “7 out of 10 'born-frees' didnot make it to matric.” Through these experi-ences, students in the project discovered thatstatistics released in country and media reportsrelated to education, needed to be viewed with“caution” and “within context” as there are“often underlying factors that are not immedi-ately apparent.”

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chapter two

CHILDREN BORN TO POOR PARENTS REMAIN TRAPPED IN AN INFERIOR EDUCATION

“Apartheid fault-lines remain stubbornlyin place in our education system. Childrenborn to poor parents remain trapped in aninferior education…pushed out of theschooling system before they reach Grade 12.”

Zwelenzima Vavi 2012

Deeper engagement around education statistics ledto an engagement with the study by Nicholas Spaull(2012) entitled Poverty and privilege: Primaryschool inequality in South Africa in which he criti-cises government reporting and econometric mod-eling of the country's education data. In this paper,Spaull reworks the country's education data andshows that “when modeling student performanceseparately for the wealthiest 25% of schools on theone hand, and the poorest 75% of schools on theother, there are stark differences in the factors influ-encing student performance which are large and sta-tistically significant.” He goes on to describe the“dualistic nature of the primary education system inSouth Africa,” with his findings showing that “pre-dominantly White schools under apartheid remainfunctional, while Black schools continue to remaindysfunctional in a democratic South Africa.”

Students own engagements confirm the findings ofSpaull (2011) that a socio-economic divide persistswith “approximately 90% of South African poorbeing Black.”Van der Berg (2007) also shows thatthe links between affluence and educational qualityin South Africa can partially explain this outcomesince the poor receive a far inferior quality of edu-cation when compared to their wealthier counter-parts. Students came to the conclusion that “despitepolitical transition, an apartheid legacy still continuesto have a profound impact on South African societywith race remaining the sharpest distinguishing fac-tor between the rich and the poor.”

THE IMPACT OF POVERTY ON THE EDUCATION OF THE POOR

Despite remarkable progress since democracy, crush-ing poverty still affects many South Africans.Around68% of children from poor families live well belowthe international 'dollar-a-day' poverty line. TheGini coefficient for South Africa is 0.70, ranking itas one of the most unequal societies in the world.Mahajan further elaborates that, “a South Africanchild born in poverty not only has to work harderto overcome disadvantages at birth due to circum-stances, but having done so, finds that these re-emerge when seeking employment as an adult.”Students also found through their own work that“the motivation to study is just not there in this kindof environment.There is substantial pressure to findwork, earn money even if it is menial.”

As part of the project students discovered that oneresponse to poverty by the Department of BasicEducation was the development of no fee schoolsand a National School Nutritional Programme(NSNP). However, in a panel discussion studentsdiscovered that in practice this may not always workaccording to plan as parents and teachers com-plained of “food disappearing from the schools” andin some cases “corruption and theft by people pro-viding the food” had been reported. Hence, childrendo not always receive all the food that is officiallyallocated. In many areas there appeared to be no sys-tem of accountability to the parent body and many

11

Hill Star BoyzPainting & collage by Darren JacobsGelvandale High School

caregivers claimed that they do not know whethertheir children receive food regularly. To make mat-ters worse, it is reality that “at some point tens ofthousands of learners were going hungry becausethe NSNP in the Eastern Cape was stopped due tolack of funds.” In contrast, a March 2008 report onthe NSNP indicates a successful NSNP in theEastern Cape and Limpopo. From these findings,students in this project concluded that “the conflict-ing reports negated the reality of hungry children atschool who are expected to perform in classroomsand take the same national tests.”

Continuous interruptions of services and servicedelivery protests was also another factor consideredby students in this project to be important whenunderstanding how poverty affects the education ofchildren. “The Walmer Riots” and “Shack fireswreak havoc due to gale force winds in PortElizabeth” featured in News Headlines during theduration of this project. Students in the project werefortunate to be exposed to first-hand accounts of thetwo events (Labuschagne, 2012) . From the footageviewed, it was clear that “learners are inevitablyaffected by the lack of service delivery and this com-pounds the quality of learning that can be expectedfrom these learners.” Lack of infrastructure andpoorly constructed homes subject to beingdestroyed by adverse weather conditions and shackfires contribute to the lack of stability faced by themajority of South African learners. The footageshared also clearly showed that during protests learn-ers from schools were either drawn into the proteststhemselves or witnessed their parents or caregiversinvolvement.Through these resources, students wereable to obtain first-hand accounts of the impact ofriots and shack fires which impact the lives of learn-ers in poor communities. As the victims of shackfires were housed in nearby schools, students in this

project were able to reflect on the value of a schoolin such communities. It further served to confirmthat “schools are a community resource” and that“…its gates should be opened to allow the commu-nity in.”

Another aspect widely captured by student photog-raphy related to the daily lives of children in poorsocio-economic contexts. The collection depicts anumber of photographs showing children carryingwater, doing household chores or being responsiblefor the care of siblings at an early age. During discus-sions related to the photographs and an engagementwith the findings of a survey conducted by Mitik &Decaluwé (2009) which considered market labor,household work and schooling in South Africa, interms of racial category, it was clear that Black chil-dren are found to be most engaged. Mitik &Decaluwé (2009) also show that nearly one-thirdof Black children were engaged in fetching woodand/or water, and that seven out of ten Black chil-dren engaged in work activities mainly on schooldays (some during school hours). A substantiallyhigher number of girls involved in these activitiesthan boys across all household categories. An inter-esting outcome for the students in the project wasthe finding that the problem for children is not thatworking prevents them from attending school ratherit appears that their work activity results in a lack oftime to do homework, catch up with lessons, andstudy, as well as have time for recreational activities(De Lannoy, Pendlebury & Hall, 2010) . It did, how-ever, confirm for them that children engaged inwork activities are likely to progress through schoolmore slowly than their non-working peers. Students'deeper engagement with these findings enabledthem to reconsider the lives of children from thesecommunities who might some-day be a part of theirclassrooms.The deeper understanding is reflected in

13

recurring statements around “knowing about thechildren's backgrounds, home-lives, developing rela-tionships with their parents etc. is mandatory.”

A common concern of students was similar to thatof De Lannoy, Pendlebury and Hall (2010) that“access to schools and other educational facilities isa necessary condition for achieving the right to edu-cation.” The location of a school and the distancebetween school and home does pose a barrier toeducation for many South African children. Accessto schools is also hampered by poor roads, transportthat is unavailable or unaffordable, and danger alongthe way.The students in the project found that risksmay be different for young children, for girls andboys, and are likely to be greater when children trav-el alone. For children who do not have schools nearto their homes, the cost, risk and effort of getting toschool influences regular attendance. Those whotravel long distances to reach school may wake upvery early and risk arriving late or being physicallyexhausted, affecting their ability to learn. Lack oftransport to school can results in learners beingfaced with the risk of rape and/or robbery on theirlong walk to school. In one attempt to overcomethe transport problem, students in this project dis-covered that the buses organised to transport learn-ers were found to be transporting 326 learners intwo buses certified to transport 60 passengers each,putting the learners and vehicle at risk. Hence thestudents in this project were able to identify withdifficulties related to transport to school as many hadseen “bakkies for example packed to capacity inpeak traffic” on a daily basis.

Within the context of widespread poverty and gen-erally poor living conditions described above, stu-dents in this project concluded that “it is difficult toexpect learners to perform anywhere near their

optimum or even begin to view education as a pri-ority.” Hence, they concur with the findings ofSpaull (2011) that “an inferior quality educationdisadvantages the poor in the labour market andentrenches their poverty. What is of note is that inSouth Africa, this does not refer to a minority butrather to the vast majority of the population.”

WHAT DOES A “CONTEXT OF DISORDER”LOOK LIKE ?Socio-economic issues aside, the departments ofeducation, both provincial and national have to takeresponsibility for their roles in the current educationcrisis. Many prominent South Africans are nolonger prepared to remain silent on the matter.Mamphela Ramphele for example has been vocal inlaying the blame for what she refers to as the “mon-umental failure” of South African education fairlyand squarely at the door of the current government.Monica Hendricks, in her study of state of educationrefers to the Eastern Cape Education Department's“malaise of inefficiency and corruption” .

Some of the issues plaguing education in SouthAfrica are the lack of schools, teachers and class-rooms despite R207. 3 billion allocated to educationin the 2012/13 national budget. 9.6% of stateschools are described as “disaster schools” and thepercentage of structurally unsafe schools rose from14% in 1996 to 53% in 2000. In March 2012, anestimated 13 874 additional classrooms were neededin the Eastern Cape. Recently parents in theUitenhage district have resorted to closing downschools in order to compel the provincialDepartment of Education to address the issue ofteacher shortages in public schools. Taking thesefigures into account, questions of departmentalinefficiency and corruption are raised.

14

Students also found through their own work that“the motivation to study is just not there in this kindof environment. There is substantial pressure to findwork, earn money even if it is menial.”

Captions have still to be obtained and set.Photographic credits (where available) can beinserted at the end of the book after theglossary of terms and index.

As Professor Elmore (as cited by Metcalf, 2012) ofHarvard University states,“Teachers are accountablefor the performance of their students. But they areaccountable to the extent that they have received thenecessary resources and training for them to fulfilltheir task.”

Class engagement with ethno-biographical work ofBotshabelo Maja (1995) and the result of one groupof students mapping schools reported to be dysfunc-tional in the Nelson Mandela Metropole area fortheir concluding presentation, brought into the con-versation that the vast majority (though not exclu-sively) of dysfunctional schools are in Black commu-nities with poor socioeconomic conditions.The stu-dents' engagement in this project concurred withChisholm and Vally (1996) that there is a lack of “aculture of teaching and learning” in many of theseschools. Students described schools in these areas as“overcrowded”, “disorderly and chaotic” as a placewith “a general don't care attitude”, and a general“lack of classroom and school pride evident” . Inone reflection a student wrote, “…it appears asthough they've given up, that it's all hopeless.” Inother reflections, students spoke of many “disrup-tions to the school's daily program”,“a high rate ofteacher and student absenteeism,” and “a generallack of respect for time with students being usheredinto the school at the main gate at 9am while oth-ers are loitering outside waiting for their classroomto be cleaned.” Students agreed with the findings ofFataar and Patterson (1998) that “in such circum-stances, learning continuity cannot be establishedand even those teachers who try are frustrated by anabsence of a consistent stable routine in the studentpopulation that is required to enable good qualityteaching and learning.” In working with the extractderived from Maja (1995) students drew from theirengagement in the project two categories of teacher

responses to context in dysfunctional schools. Twotypes of teacher responses were described the firstbeing a “victim” response where the identity ofthese teachers are rooted “in helplessness” due to“the impossibility of changing the school context”and the other pointed to hard working teachers“engaged in the social welfare of children” but whoafter a while “burnt out, left the school for betterschools or left the profession all together.” Oneexplanation given by Fataar and Patterson (1998)related to this observation was that “the mindset ofteachers who have been conditioned by the powersof the apartheid state (as virtually omnipotent)believe and continue to believe that the new statehas the same powers, failing to recognise that thenew government is constrained by its democraticconstitution, the consequences of the negotiatedtransition and by economic constraints of neo-liber-alism.” They also cite the Gauteng Culture ofLearning Report observed that there was a “mis-placed and disarming hope that the new dispensa-tion at the national and provincial levels would auto-matically translate into better schools, which accen-tuated the pervasive sense of powerlessness andhopelessness” (Gauteng, 1996 as cited by Fataar &Patterson, 1998).

Students also concluded that in many of theseschools, management failed to engage in a “processwhereby the staff shared a common vision for theschool.” Principals interpreted their leadership roleas one that “manages the school reasonably withinthe constraints and mediates conflict in the school.”There is no effort to “develop community.” In addi-tion to general school conditions and a shortage ofclassrooms and teachers, the issue of departmentalmismanagement and teacher unions was also raised.Mamphela Ramphele highlighted the role that thatteacher unions such as SADTU has played in addition

17

to general school conditions and a shortage of class-rooms and teachers, the issue of departmental mis-management and teacher unions was also raised.Mamphela Ramphele highlighted the role thatteacher unions such as SADTU has played in con-tributing to the current situation by stating that“…teachers are failing us, and when you look intowhat the problem is, you find teachers are beingforced to defend mediocrity.” Strike action fre-quently keeps teachers from their classrooms andattending union meetings during school hours iscommonplace in many township schools. Vaviapproaches the issue from a different perspective butdoes challenge SADTU members to “inculcate arevolutionary morality which seeks to radically alterthe status quo” and urges union members to“mobilise and galvanise … behind a campaign tosave our collective future as a nation”. The roleunions play in the education system in South Africais acknowledged, whether it is considered to be con-structive or destructive. Media reports of teacherstrikes were also debated by students, some of whomfelt that “education is an essential service so action has tobe taken in some form other than striking, because it affectsthe education of the children.”

Teacher absenteeism was a further considerationtaken into account when viewing the current situa-tion of education in South Africa. It is reported thatup to 20% of teachers are absent on Mondays andFridays. Additionally, Modisaotsile reports thatteachers in predominantly black schools teach onaverage 3.5 hours a day in comparison to the 6.5hours taught in former white schools. Another fac-tor compounding the issue of teachers in SouthAfrica is the gap between the number of teachersleaving the profession (18 000 - 20 000 pa) and thenumber of graduate teachers (6 000 - 10 000 pa).This deficit must be made up somehow but in the

meantime, it is the education system and learnerswho suffer the consequences. Student accounts of“students loitering about because of the teacherbeing absent” or “lining up alongside locked doors”clearly reflected some of the concerns describedabove which relates to teacher absenteeism.

SO WHO IS TO BLAME?

The published outcomes of system evaluations andpoor learner performance and with the Limpopotextbook debacle fresh in the national memory, it iseasy to blame the provincial and nationalDepartments of Education. For example, MinisterAngie Motshekga has recently faced court action bya group called Equal Education in an effort to forceher to establish “minimum norms and standards forschool infrastructure.” The action also includedFinance Minister Pravin Gordhan and all provincialeducation ministers. However, laying blame solelyon education departments negates a much deeper,wider, more insidious problem, namely, the socialcontext that the majority of South African learnersfind themselves in. In these contexts, they face anumber of challenges that are much broader thanjust an inept and corrupt education system. It mustbe stated that education policy documents devel-oped for South Africa are too idealistic as they donot take into account the context in which the vastmajority of learners live and study. It is therefore, dif-ficult for these plans to translate into a functionalreality (for example see Action 2014) .The problemis that none of these ideals are accounted forthrough the social filters through which they mustflow.

So, having taken what Dr Allistair Witten describesas a “deficit” perspective on South African educa-tion, students in this project were tasked with delib-

18

erating on what are possible solutions or at least,pathways of hope. They re-engaged with “contextsof disorder” to discover rich resources within thesecommunities since education cannot be viewed in avacuum, there are a myriad of social and economicissues at play which have had and will continue tohave an indelible effect on the future of the educa-tion of South African children.

Notes

Macupe, B. (2013). Matric pass rate celebrations premature. IOL

News 6 January 2013 retrieved from

http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/matric-pass-rate-celebra-

tions-premature-1.1448143 on 9 February 2013.

Macupe, B. (2013). Matric pass rate celebrations premature. IOL

News 6 January 2013 retrieved from

http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/matric-pass-rate-celebra-

tions-premature-1.1448143 on 9 February 2013.

Student responses at focus group held on 2 November 2012

Spaull, N., Poverty and privilege: Primary school inequality in South

Africa. Int. J. Educ. Dev. (2012). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ije-














Van der Berg (2007).Apartheid's enduring legacy: Inequalities in

education. Journal of African Economies, 16(5):849-880

19

Self portrait Drawing & collageby Luvo MatiwanaSt.Thomas School

Captions have still to be obtained and set. Photographic credits(where available) can be inserted at the end of the book afterthe glossary of terms and index.

21

chapter four

HEROIC DEEDS UNDER DIFFICULT CONDITIONS

“A tiny band of schools situated in thepoorest communities provide some of thehighest quality education.They are per-forming heroic deeds under difficult condi-tions and serve as a role model for the restof the system.”

Taylor 2006

In October 2012 IthembilihleComprehensive School's rugby teamwon the “Best School Team of theYear” and “School Development Teamof the Year” in the South AfricanNational Sports Awards. The coachMr.Theo Pieterse was interviewed liveby the local news station Algoa FM at7:00am just before our 7:45am class.For the students in this project, thisevent marked the beginning of valu-able classroom discussions around whatCantor, Smolover and Stamler termed“innovative outliers.” Based on thenewspaper reports and what studentshad heard on the radio, they conclud-ed that the solution for transforming

high poverty schools lie in addressing“the barriers that are created by poorcircumstances.” During this discussion,students recalled previous engagementswith Dr. Witten, Director of theCenter for Community Schools (CCS)and with a Manyano network schoolprincipal. It was at this precisemoment of clarity that students in thisproject perceived that “it is possible forschools in poor areas to succeed despite theodds.”This marked a significant paradigmshift in student thinking as up to thispoint the fieldwork, reading and class-room discussions reflected mainly andwriting (as reflected in Chapter 2).

Through the conversation that developed after themorning news the concept of “educationalresilience” (Wang, Haertel & Walberg, 1998)emerged as a pathway of hope.The completechange in perspective allowed renewed thinkingtowards action.

SUCCESS THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS

Undoubtedly, schools alone lack the necessaryresources to address the large number of obstaclesthat children confront on a daily basis but asSchorr highlights,“schools can become islands ofhope…they help children avoid a culture of fail-ure.” Research conducted by Herbert on high-achieving learners from poor backgrounds andanother more recent local study by Kamper of sixhigh achieving schools in poverty stricken areas inSouth Africa, reflect common findings that schools,family and community partnerships,“make learnersuccess possible and contribute to poverty allevia-tion.”

Bourdieu termed “cultural capital as a major factorthat influences the character of interactionsbetween school officials and the parents theyserve.” Despite the importance of schools as socialinstitutions “strategies for involving parents are typ-ically not included in school reform plans.” Suchomissions are a major contribution to the consis-tent failure of education to alleviate poverty andachieve school reform.

INVESTING IN SOCIAL CAPITAL

One student reflection introduced the concept of“school bias” which was explored through obser-vations that he made during practice teaching. Hedescribed a specific incident and concluded that,

“poor black parents are treated differently com-pared to middle class parents.” He added that:“…interactions at schools can be different depending onrace and/or socioeconomic status.What does this mean forthe place of poor parents in our schools and for their abil-ity to advocate for their children and participate in schooldecisions.”

Post democracy access to public schools in SouthAfrica by poor children has at times resulted inthese schools operating as sources of negative socialcapital as described by the student above, especiallywhen schools isolate themselves and underminethe social capital of the community. In contrast,Kamper describes effective schools in these con-texts as those that develop social capital in poorcommunities by working actively to include thesupport and cooperation of parents. Noguera con-curs that “when a school and community partner-ships are based on respect and a shared sense ofresponsibility positive forms of social capital can begenerated.”

A common source of social barriers is that schoolpersonnel often do not reside in the communitiesthey serve hence differences in race, class and cul-ture do at times contribute to barriers between theschool and the community. Lipman suggests thatsuch separations reinforce or contribute to thedevelopment of bias when “they see poor childrenand their families as deficient, dysfunctional andeven hopeless.” This power differential reproducesinequality and undermines the interest of the com-munities they serve. Social inequities such as thesemay at times have “such an air of legitimacy that itmake the process seem fair and almost natural.”So, those that we expect to succeed,“affluent chil-dren,” do and those that we expect to fail,“poorblack children,” tend to be more likely to fail.

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Captions have still to be obtained and set. Photographic credits(where available) can be inserted at the end of the book.

Student reflections spoke of “teacher attitudes werenot conducive to bussed in students succeeding,”and “they had already failed the moment theywalked in through the door because the teachersonly saw problems and trouble.” The lack ofchoice by the poor also limits their influence andmore often than not their concerns are disregardedby school authorities. Hence, the failure of schoolin poor communities is often not problematisedand the inclusion of parents as positive social capi-tal largely ignored. In contrast Kamper found suc-cessful partnerships depend on “the quality of edu-cational leadership that empowers and acts as a cat-alyst for community development.” In addition,“respect for human dignity and culture, care, com-mitment, excellence, collaboration and accountabil-ity,” were identified as key foundational principlesin successful schools in poor socioeconomic con-texts.

It is therefore clear that “school-family partnershipsbuild social capital or networks of trust that fami-lies draw from to help their children succeed.”The networks of trust include teachers, familiesand community members.They also “provide asource of connections, information and under-standings that parents can draw on to help theirchildren succeed.” They “facilitate exchanges ofknowledge and can be a means to bridge the gapbetween home and school cultures in terms of val-ues and expectations.” Students in this projectstarted to visualise the power of these partnershipswhen an alumni volunteer from Charles DunaPrimary school accompanied the deputy principalduring a panel discussion in which she discussedthe different ways in which the alumni supportlearners, teachers and parents. One student reflec-tion noted,“…for me the community engagementsstood out as something I never really considered as

so vital for school success.What a contributionthey (the alumni) make in ways that connect thecommunity.”

Research has indicated that the inclusion of fami-lies,“improve school programmes and school cli-mate” and at the same time, it “increases parents'skills and leadership, connects families with othersin the school and community and improve chil-dren's chances of success in school and life.”Family involvement was also found to result inchildren getting better grades, attending schoolmore regularly and increasing the chance that theywould go to university.The creation of positiverelationships amongst schools, families and commu-nities presupposes a paradigm shift.There must beaccording to students in this project,“…a shift from seeing parents as peripheral toeducation and as deficient to seeing them as valu-able resources and as assets to the school and as ashared responsibility with equal capacity to con-tribute to the education of their children.”

In addition,“parents and family members oftenemerge empowered by the process of participationand in their partnerships with schools.” They gain“skills, knowledge and confidence that help themin bringing up their children, in improving theireconomic conditions and in becoming good citi-zens.” Winters for example, observed that low-income, single mothers seem to emerge from theseprogrammes with “strengthened self-competence,new skills and a determination to alter the direc-tion of their lives. Parents entered these pro-grammes feeling powerless, socially isolated or self-enstranged.” Student experiences with fieldwork atManyano schools also confirm “that parents bothcontribute as social capital and in turn they emergewith better self-perceptions, they gain stronger

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Captions have still to be obtained and set. Photographic credits(where available) can be inserted at the end of the book .

Captions have still to be obtained and set.Photographic credits (where available) can be inserted at the end of the book .

social networks and are more willing to initiatechange in their communities.”

They concluded that “in current times schools areincreasingly becoming the most reliable source ofsocial support for children, they therefore have arole to play in community upliftment.” Schools aretherefore in a position to be a “resource to thecommunity” as they can facilitate “empowerment”that could transform the character and quality oflife in the communities they serve “if they embracethe opportunity to allow parents and the commu-nity in.”

DEVELOPING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

In the context of persistent inequality and theHIV/AIDS pandemic, deep crisis affects children'slives creating barriers to meaningful education.With 5.7 million people living with HIV/AIDS(2011) in South Africa the epidemic has had adevastating effect on children. In fact, there is anestimated 1.9 million orphans due to the epidemicin South Africa. The loss of a parent not only hasan immense emotional impact on children but formost families the financial implications are high.Orphans either relocate to live with relatives whobecome their primary care-givers or institutions ifthey are lucky. Otherwise they become part of agrowing South African phenomenon of child-headed households.

Children living with HIV must also deal with themedical, emotional, behavioral, and social effectsassociated with the infection.At the same timethey often find themselves living in a context ofbereavement and stress associated with the death ofa parent or caregiver, stigma and discrimination.

The ripple effect on schools is that they have toplay a role beyond educating children but they alsoneed to help children gain access not only toschool but to the social, health and other servicesthey need within the “school community” The2000 Tirisano campaign calls for schools to become“centers for community life” because they holdvaluable potential as centers of learning for thewhole community.

In a panel discussion with Vice President ofUbuntu Education Fund Mr. Gcobani Zonke, stu-dents in this project were introduced to a model bythis organization that considers whole child devel-opment. Maslow's hierarchy of needs was exploredthrough an Ubuntu experience. Students were pre-viously exposed to the fact that children who arehungry, sick or afraid cannot learn, but now theystarted to see “how conditions inside and outsideof schools could work to be conducive to chil-dren's growth, learning and development.” Thebreakdown of family structures due to poverty,high unemployment, violence and HIV/AIDS andhow they contribute to children's vulnerability wasdiscussed during the panel discussion. One studentcommented that:“Teachers must pay attention to learners' physicaland emotional well-being before they can teach. Soeven though schools cannot solve all problems,they do offer a useful starting point for identifyingvulnerable children and addressing their needs. Formany children, school is the only place where theyhave contact with adults they can talk to.”Relationships between schools and communitiesare not always easy or productive. Partnershipsdepend on “relative capital that each partner bringsand are seldom free of power relations and dynam-ics.” Principals who are attentive to learners andeducators contribute significantly to building

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Relationships between schools and communities arenot always easy or productive. Partnerships dependon “relative capital that each partner brings and areseldom free of power relations and dynamics.”Principals who are attentive to learners and educa-tors contribute significantly to building healthyschool and community relationships (as demonstrat-ed by Kamper's study). healthy school and commu-nity relationships (as demonstrated by Kamper'sstudy).While the role of school leaders is becomingincreasingly complex as they are expected to imple-ment a series of sophisticated education policiesoften with very little support or training, SchoolManagement Teams (SMTs) and School GoverningBodies (SGBs) are resources that can assist inschools.A review taken by the DoE in 2004 suggestthat SGBs in formerly disadvantaged schools oftenfunction poorly “due to poverty, lack of experienceand expertise and that schools find it difficult to sus-tain active parent participation due to low literacylevels, lack of time and indirect costs.”

Despite these challenges SGBs can be a powerfulmechanism through which communities can bedrawn into schools. They quoted Collett, Rudolphand Sonn who describe “the school as nodes of careand support for vulnerable children.” Students inthis project concluded that with the assistance of thecommunity, schools can,“identify strengths and work towards a shared visionof a better future so that protective factors like love,care, social grants, access to clinics, money for booksand uniforms, transport to and from schools etc. canbe sought meet children's needs.”

Through marketing and publicity drives it is evidentthat the “school community” also includes anotherimportant stakeholder, namely the private sectorwhere businesses and corporations position them-

selves as partners in the upliftment of education inSouth Africa. Due to media coverage they wereimmediately recognised by students in the project asan important resource. A recent article in the MailGuardian entitled “Forgotten schools of the EasternCape left to rot” describe dire conditions at schoolsuntil Eskom stepped in with funding to help.

BUSINESS AND PRIVATE SECTORINVESTMENTS

In South Africa, the private sector has made invest-ments in schooling and continues to do so.However, research shows that “most of these invest-ments are not having a lasting impact on the qualityof the schooling. A lack of cohesion, piecemeal andsporadic initiatives have little chance of making alasting impact.” The National Business Initiativelaunched the Education Quality ImprovementPartnerships (EQUIP) programme in 1995, toincrease the quality of education in schools. One ofthe key findings through this programme where“business involvement has worked is when they getinvolved with schools over the long term.” Thisfinding has been confirmed by both the Manyanonetwork and Ubuntu Education Fund. They agreethe school leadership has to in the first instance be“proactive and motivated” and they must take“teaching and learning seriously” and the “schoolshould be keen to develop its teachers.” Programmeswork when they are “designed in relation to theschool's culture and its environment.”It ensures that the initiative is a partner to the schooldevelopment plan.So it is designed and funded in waysthat help to solve the problems unique to that school.This kind of liaison can generate additional resources,create effective inter-school relations and communitynetworks. It was apparent to students in this project that“change in schools cannot happen overnight.

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Schools need flexible and long-term support if theirimprovements are to be sustained over time.”

Non-performing schools make up 80% of theschools in South Africa, and they are in dire need fora collective effort that expands the pipeline forengagement with businesses. However, it has alsobeen observed that there is a barrier to access bythese schools as their principals and SMTs are not asconnected or skilled to engaging with business part-ners.This needs to be recognised so that business canmake efforts at extending their assistance by becom-ing engaged in public dialogues, linking up withlocal university projects and being selective in deci-sions around where their assistance is required themost.The most critical factor is a commitment to adevelopmental approach that is flexible and long-term. 'Quick-fix' projects are also unlikely to suc-ceed and adhoc donations to schools do not offerlong term solutions.

Students in this project concluded that “an informedpartnership and long-term sustained commitment are criti-cal success factors if companies are to be sure that theirinvestments of time and money will make a difference.”

CONCLUSION

Despite the odds and dire circumstances in whichthese schools find themselves students in this proj-ect were able to see that there “is hope for the trans-formation of the large majority of schools that servethe poor.” Although good leadership, committededucators and engagements with the broader“school community” enhance the social capital ofstudents and their families, students in this projectswere required to reflect on a last essential question,namely: what does all of this mean for teacher edu-cation in South Africa today?

Change in schoolscannot happenovernight. Schoolsneed flexible andlong-term support if their improvementsare to be sustainedover time.

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My TownshipBrush & ink drawingby Lihle MaqwatiJoe Slovo primary

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chapter five

AWAKENING SLEEPINGCONSCIENCES

“There is a dual focus for social documentary photography; firstly theyshow conditions under which people are forced to live in order toawaken the sleeping consciences of those who haven't yet realised theiroppression and the danger of the non-commitment to change.

Secondly, social documentary photography should not be contentwith negative portrayal but must also show hope and determinationto freedom and serve the needs of the struggle.”

Newbury 2009

If the primary purpose of education isabout “awakening sleeping con-sciences” as described by Newbury inthe quotation above, then the journeymade by the students in this project isevidence of their critical reflection ofthe reality of lives “on the other side ofthe fence.” Observing through the lensof photography they were able toengage in what Kathy McDonoughdescribes as “discourses of possibility.”These are ways in which teachersdevelop critical consciousness andbecome involved in social change.Such an outcome aligns well with theNMMU Faculty of Education's Visionand Mission which aims to “cultivate

passionate, engaged, knowledgeable,effective, and compassionate teachers,researchers, and leaders who are criticalthinkers, agents of hope, change andsocial justice through practicing ahumanising pedagogy...”

According to Paulo Freire, “criticalconsciousness is a state of awarenessactivated through dialogue where oneengages in an analysis of context andpower.” bell hooks built on the workof Freire focusing on “the formation ofan engaged pedagogy to support stu-dents to take a reflective stance thatinvolves interrogating one's location,the identifications and allegiances that

inform one's life.” hook's engaged pedagogy fore-

grounds that critical consciousness is a counter to

“dysconsciousness” which is a “misinformed way of

thinking about society and inequality that limits our

ways of knowing.” Enacting critical consciousness as

an educator is an “ongoing social process of multiple

insightful moments that can alter this state of

“dysconsciousness” and positively affect teaching

practice.” This project depicts one of the ways in

which students at NMMU Faculty of Education

engaged in pathways to critical consciousness.

The following is a student reflection of her overall

learning during this project is an example of some of

the changes students experienced. She wrote:

“…it (the project) taught me that discrimination is some-

thing we build up in our minds and that it has no tangi-

ble truth.This project makes me want to be more careful

about what words I use, how to make a conscious effort to

treat people and love people equally, but it has also made

me realise how human and fragile I am. It's really hard liv-

ing in this world.You have to learn to love people who

don't love you back. Learning to love is a life process.”

Later she adds:

“I believe that having insight opens your mind.Knowledge

is so important.We must be wise in our choices and this

stems from a good upbringing and a good education. Sadly

as this project has shown, not many people have had the

opportunity to have received a good education.The major-

ity of South African children and youth of my generation

and before are still facing many challenges in this harsh and

competitive world.”

However it is important to note that despite the

strides students made in this project, critical con-

sciousness involves reflection on the complexities of

multiple identities and multiple relations of power

towards a process of “consciousness-becoming.”

This process “grounds a teacher's ability to engage in

culturally relevant teaching with a willingness to be

self-reflective about their identity and culture, an

exploration of power and privilege in micro and

macro contexts and questioning assumptions.” This

reflection process is an act of unlearning that “does

not necessarily involve a destination and neither

should it follow a linear form.” Hence, for students

in this project engagement on this level is only a

beginning and should be confronted again in class-

room practice.

A few other studies limited to single course experi-

ences include that of Arce whose study focuses on

five bilingual Latino teachers as they drew on their

developing social consciousness to enact critical

pedagogy.Another case study by Jennings and Potter

Smith investigated an elementary teacher's class-

room practice in her efforts to become a multicul-

tural educator. Both studies note the importance of

reflexive dialogue as part of “consciousness-becom-

ing.” The students in this project contribute to this

body of research as they face critical questions with

regards to the reality of context and towards consid-

ering the hope, agency and sustainability of social

change.

It is also important to note that student's thinking in

this project went beyond the personal as they

reflected on their learning in relation to the curricu-

lum. In one student account she writes:

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“I found it an eye opener to see how powerful a curricu-

lum can be in the hands of the wrong people, or people of

high authority. My experience in this project has made me

think more critically about what curriculum actually means,

and how controversial a curriculum can be in institutions of

learning. I also felt that this project made me more under-

standing and sympathetic towards those individuals who

were victims of Apartheid and mental enslavement. I also

discovered that it really is a worldly problem that is still

happening in some parts of the world.After learning about

the various curriculums, I feel that a curriculum focuses on

being more balanced would be better for an individual.”

Perhaps the greatest learning for students in this

project is captured by the words of an Australian

Aborigine woman who said, “If you have come to help

me you can go home again. But if you see my struggle as

part of your own survival then perhaps we can work

together.”

The development of a critical consciousness that

sensitises future teachers to social, political and eco-

nomic oppression so that they are empowered to

take action as future teachers, meaning-makers and

change agents is a goal that teacher educator pro-

grammes in South Africa cannot be negated.

This project depicts one such attempt upon which

the NMMU Faculty of Education will continue to

build on as teacher educators themselves grapple

with and engage in their own “consciousness-

becoming.”

“This project makes mewant to be more carefulabout what words I use,how to make a clear andconscious effort to treatpeople and love peopleequally. But it has alsomade me realise howhuman and fragile I am.”

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faces of the curriculum: essays in contemporary education

Art & Photos

world chapter

understandings of curriculum

inferior education chapter

curriculum essays

teaching learning chapter

world glows

mind of person

failed education system