Special schools need more support and staff

A shortage of specialist support staff such as educational psychologists and nurses is among many issues faced by special needs schools in KwaZulu-Natal.

This was revealed by the basic education portfolio committee after a visit to such institutions in the King Cetshwayo district, part of a weeklong oversight programme.

The committee urged the province to enhance support for special needs schools to protect and promote the constitutional right to education. 

Committee chairperson Bongiwe Mbinqo-Gigaba said while provincial support for these schools was appreciated, gaps needed to be filled urgently.

“The provision of specialist support staff ... to these schools is necessary to ensure adequate care. And curriculum delivery is critical and should be enhanced urgently.”

Mbinqo-Gigaba added that the shortage impeded quality learning and teaching. She said district-based support for such schools was lacking, as most staff were not equipped to cater for these pupils’ needs. Furthermore, budget increases for assisting devices and modified transportation should be high on the provincial education department’s list of considerations.

Collaboration with the department of employment and labour was required to enable the absorption of pupils into sheltered-employment factories, said Mbinqo-Gigaba, adding that this would enable those with special needs to live meaningful lives with gainful employment. 

“The committee welcomed collaboration with private companies that have shown a willingness to employ learners from these schools following the assessment.

“Meanwhile, the committee has called for a focus on critical subjects such as mathematics and science. This will ensure the system produces dynamic learners who are able to respond to the needs of a contemporary economy. The committee remains concerned that there is a low uptake of and achievement in these critical subjects and has called for strategies to address concerns about the low pass rates therein,” she said. 

Despite these concerns, the committee was encouraged by the assurance that strategies were in place to improve performance in the subjects. The committee also praised KZN for its 83% matric pass rate for 2022, a 6.2% increase and the highest in the country. 

With an enhanced focus on critical subjects, the province had the potential to achieve even higher results, Mbinqo-Gigaba added. 

The committee visited several schools in Zululand on Monday, noting serious concern about insufficient school transport and calling for an urgent resolution to this challenge. It said the lack of quality transport for pupils, with some as young as six hitchhiking to school, was detrimental to the desired outcome of education for every pupil, while affecting learning and teaching. 

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