National task team to strengthen maths, science

Image courtesy of Grant Cochrane / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The announcement was made by President Jacob Zuma during the State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Parliament on Thursday, 14 February 2013.

"We urge the private sector to partner government through establishing, adopting or sponsoring maths and science academies or Saturday schools," he said.

Zuma also announced that he will establish a Presidential Remuneration Commission which will investigate the appropriateness of the remuneration and conditions of service provided by the State to all its employees.

"I have directed that the first priority should be teachers. The Commission will also assess the return on investment.

"In elevating education to its rightful place, we want to see an improvement in the quality of learning and teaching and the management of schools. We want to see an improvement in attitudes, posture and outcomes.

"Working with educators, parents, the community and various stakeholders, we will be able to turn our schools into centres of excellence," he said.

According to the President, the Grade 12 pass rate is finally on an upward trend. He also recognised top grade 12 learner Madikgetho Komane, from Sekhukhune district in Limpopo.

He said the Annual National Assessments (ANA) at schools, have become a powerful tool of assessing the health of the education system.

"We welcome the improvement each year in the ANA results, but more must be done to improve maths, science and technology.

"We urge the private sector to partner government through establishing, adopting or sponsoring maths and science academies or Saturday schools," he said.

The President said he wants to see everyone in the country realising that education is an essential service for the nation.

"By saying education is an essential service we are not taking away the Constitutional rights of teachers as workers such as the right to strike.

"It means we want the education sector and society as a whole to take education more seriously than is happening currently," he said.

Meanwhile, the President also announced that the construction of the new planned universities in the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga is expected to commence in September.