Cape Town - The controversial Basic Education Laws Amendment (Bela) Bill signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa will have consequences on provincial budgets, the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) has warned.

Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube withheld her support and boycotted the signing of the bill on Friday; now political parties have threatened court action, and while experts have given it the green light, they advised government to come up with ways to ease the financial burden.

Education MEC David Maynier, said while they supported the extension of Grade R into the basic education portfolio, which is one of the amendments to the South African Schools Act, provinces would find it difficult to cope financially.

The WCED two weeks ago announced that it would be cutting 2 407 contract teachers from their payroll at the end of December due to a shortfall in budget, after only receiving 64% of the cost of the nationally negotiated wage bill.

“The National Treasury has indicated that no funding is available, and provinces will once again be left to find the money to cover this R17.7 billion unfunded mandate on their own.

“Doing so at the time when the Western Cape Education Department is already facing a R3.8bn budget shortfall will explode the deficit,” Maynier said.

The Bela Bill intends to help guide, among others, the abolishment of corporal punishment in schools, the merger of schools, to make Grade R the new compulsory school starting age and provide penalties for parents and guardians who do not ensure their children are in school.

It also seeks to transfer decision-making authority from school governing bodies to provincial departments of education in relation to schools’ admission and language policies.

Ramaphosa said two clauses of the bill on admission and language policy would be suspended for three months to allow all parties to debate further. Thereafter if there was no agreement, the clauses would come into effect.

Provincial head for the Educators and Allied Workers' Union of SA (Eusa), André de Bruyn, said while the incorporation of Grade R was crucial for long-term educational development, budget cuts could strain the resources needed to ensure its successful implementation.

“This might lead to challenges in infrastructure, teacher quality, class sizes, laying the proper foundations and equitable access,” De Bruyn said.

Education expert Professor Murthee Maistry, an academic at the School of Education at UKZN, said the issue of funding should not stand in the way of the future of children.

“We welcome the initiative. In the past, we only had the middle class who had access to Grade R, so making it compulsory, means that children from all walks of life, income groups and race, get to start their schooling career the proper way.

“The state should be finding ways to come up with the funds, for example, through partnering with private businesses.”

Maistry said the signing was long overdue.

“This is a positive move. Yes, education has taken a cut but this to me is a fundamental important decision.

“It’s something that should’ve been implemented a long time ago.

“Too often the poorest of poor have gotten the short end of the stick, now schools have the opportunity to start a dual medium learning, an opportunity to share resources and do so from the foundation of Grade R and 1.

“We’re not saying change the whole system immediately.

“Schools possess assets of the state that should be enjoyed by everybody.

“We should not be caught up in the budget debate.”

Education activist Hendrick Makaneta agreed and said while the signing took place at a challenging moment in the history of the country, the government should find a way to resolve, in a proactive way, potential challenges that may emanate as a result of the new cohort of Grade Rs entering the schooling system for the first time.

“It takes place at a time when the government is grappling with austerity measures that have resulted in the review of budget allocation for a wide range of departments. It’s very important that the necessary infrastructure be made available to accommodate this new cohort of Grade R learners.”

The DA, meanwhile, has indicated they are preparing for court action regarding the adoption of the bill, while ActionSA said they were reviewing their options and considering the next steps, explaining that the bill proposes relatively cosmetic and poorly costed changes and additions to a system that “requires a near-complete overhaul to ensure access to quality education”.

However, leader of the opposition in the legislature and spokesperson for the ANC Western Cape, Khalid Sayed, said they welcomed the signing and explained the Grade R clause in the bill should not have a negative impact because the WCED should have already budgeted for it.

tracy-lynn.ruiters@inl.co.za

Cape Argus