Non-racialism is a value to be taught and learnt at schools and not a blunt instrument to be wielded by those in power

Schools are meant to be places of safety for both learners and staff. The ongoing reports of discrimination and racism in our schools require the partnership between the national government, provincial governments and public schools as represented by their school governing bodies (SGBs) to be strong. This also requires cool heads and impeccable leadership.

Discrimination in our schools should never be used as a political tool. Not only would this practice be dangerous, but it would also erode trust in the public schooling system.

Critically, South Africa comes from a past of racial segregation, which played itself out glaringly in the education system. Thirty years into our democracy, policymakers should ensure that race is not weaponised in places of learning. We should at all times strive to manage incidents of discrimination in our schools in a way that isn’t vindictive and punitive, but rather in pursuit of lawful actions and restorative solutions. 

We must choose reconciliation and support over retribution; dignity over humiliation; vulnerability over aggression; and unity over division.

Incidents concerning allegations of racism at various schools across the country over recent years – culminating more recently in the widely reported struggles between the governing body of Pretoria High School for Girls (PHSG) and the Gauteng Education Department and its MEC – offer hard but valuable lessons on how our schooling system should respond to allegations of discriminatory conduct by learners and educators in our schools.

Where allegations of racism arise at a school level, they need to be handled sensitively, timeously, lawfully and transparently. If these situations are allowed to play out acrimoniously in public and remain unresolved for long periods, and if public schools or provincial education departments act prematurely without proper investigation or due process, we undermine efforts to create an enabling school environment for quality teaching and learning.

In his recent letter to the MEC of Education in Gauteng, Matome Chiloane, in respect of the PHSG case, former president Thabo Mbeki highlighted the need to examine how a zero-tolerance approach to racism in our schools is expressed.

He aptly said: “It cannot be correct that we merely rely on fear of punishment on being caught out that we measure the degree to which the young have absorbed the values of non-racialism and non-sexism which our Constitution describes as the Founding Values of our new democracy.”

Further to Mbeki’s argument, it is important that we understand non-racialism is a value to be taught and learnt and not a blunt instrument to be wielded at the whims of those in power against those viewed to be non-compliant. We must resist any attempts to cheapen such a quintessential value of our democratic project.

Leadership is about doing the right thing, even when it may seem difficult and unpopular. 

As the Minister of Basic Education, the National Education Policy Act clearly empowers me to determine national policy on school discipline. This does not give me or my department the legal authority to intervene unilaterally in the affairs of provincial education departments and public schools in matters such as these.

However, as a publicly elected leader in the sphere, I must provide leadership in how I discharge my legislative and executive responsibilities.

We, the leaders, must not be the ones who fan the flames of racial polarisation in our schools. Instead, we must invest in raising citizens of South Africa who will live, build and protect the values of our Constitution.

My department and I are required to ensure policy and legal frameworks applicable to learner and educator conduct are enabling and clear. To this end, the Council of Education Ministers – which I chair – will consider how best to provide technical guidance to public schools on anti-discrimination measures through simplified protocols and guidelines, using existing policy and legislative frameworks.

I will ensure that these processes are finalised urgently.

Central to the implementation of the policy and legal frameworks applicable to our basic education system is the strength of the three-tiered partnership in education between the national government, provincial governments and public schools as represented by their SGBs.

This partnership works best when all partners discharge and account for their respective roles in accordance with the finely balanced set of powers and functions bestowed on them by law. 

Each public school has legal personality and an SGB to exercise the significant original powers given to the school by the South African Schools Act. But they are not independent schools, and their high degree of autonomy must be exercised within a clear framework provided by the national and provincial governments. 

Equally, education departments must provide and manage this clear framework without riding roughshod over the legal competencies of public schools. The list of high-profile court actions since 1996 is a clear indication that the various parties have not always had their roles right. We must avoid adding to this list unnecessarily.

In turn, provincial legislatures must also exercise oversight of the actions of provincial education departments to ensure that they act appropriately and lawfully.

Public schools need to ensure that they regularly review and fairly apply their policies, including the code of conduct for learners. Reviewing these policies in a meaningful consultation with learners, parents and teachers can be a valuable exercise in instilling and realising true inclusivity and diversity.

Our former President Nelson Mandela famously said: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” With this in mind, we must understand that the future of 13.5 million learners is in our hands. 

Let’s shape them to be the most powerful advocates for our democratic project, not only in South Africa but across the globe. We dare not fail those who rely on us to lead courageously in this pursuit. DM