The matric results are out and, as in previous years, they are not that good.

The matric results are out and, as in previous years, they are not that good.

Various reasons are given for this, but to my mind the main reason is not being addressed. To me the maxim - The closest school is the best school - has lots of merit. The following can go a long way in addressing the problem.

l Teachers must be able to easily liaise with parents;

l Parents must be able to easily attend school functions, see teachers, and so forth;

l Pupils must be able to get to school easily and quickly;

l They must be able to spend afternoons with friends from their school, doing projects together or just enjoying time together; and

l After-school activities must be available to everyone as transport is not necessary.

In view of the above, every government school should be as good as the next one. Previous Model C schools should offer exactly the same education as schools in poor areas.

The government should start working on this as soon as possible. White teachers should teach English in "black" schools and black teachers should teach Setswana, isiZulu and so on in "white" schools.

If all schools had the same facilities, teachers would happily apply to teach at schools in poor areas and black pupils would not need to travel long distances to get an education far from home.

The obvious place to start would be primary schools.

Anne Cremer, Johannesburg