The process to review the Education Act is long overdue, and it is positive that professions related to education are given due importance within the ever-changing local context.
The Faculty of Education participated actively during the consultation process which leads to the formulation of a new Education Act and provided substantial feedback. Although this was based on research evidence and documentation it has only been taken into consideration marginally.
The Faculty is especially concerned with the lack of clear parameters in relation to the warranting of the teaching profession. This could potentially have negative implications, which could undermine teacher education and, even more seriously, the whole profession. Furthermore, it notes that the proposed Act ought to give more prominence to the development and upgrading of teacher education, as recently agreed in liaison with stakeholders. There is no reference to the minimum qualifications necessary to qualify as a teacher and the mechanisms proposed to regulate this are obscure.
The Education Act, as proposed, requires major re-thinking and should put teachers and learners at the centre of a wider process. At present, it can lead to excessive centralisation of decision taking, and to a situation where the voices of educators and learners are not given the space they deserve. The institutions that this Act will govern, including the Council for the Teaching Profession, require a better representation in their composition and a transparent process in relation to the manner through which members will be selected. It should be ascertained that they all have the necessary expertise for the role assigned to them.
As the foremost teacher-education institution in the country, the Faculty of Education asks for its views to be duly respected, and renews its willingness to collaborate with all parties. It takes this occasion to remind all that the 5th October, World Teachers’ Day, celebrates the rights and responsibilities of teachers as professionals. It also marks the importance of high standards for their initial preparation as well as possibilities for further education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions. These are all aspects that should be safeguarded by the Education Act and by all policies related to professions in education.