Proposed education legistation amounts to “school capture”, says FEDSAS
The type of state control that goes against everything a democracy stands for.
This is the opinion of the Federation of Governing Bodies of South African Schools (FEDSAS) regarding the proposed Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill. The Amendment Bill was recently published and is aimed at limiting certain functions of school governing bodies, including being able to make recommendations about certain appointments, admission and language policies as wel as certain financial functions.
“This Amendment Bill takes us back to a model where the state controls everything. It goes against the spirit of the South African Schools’ Act, which provides for public schools and not state schools,” says Dr Jaco Deacon, Deputy CEO of FEDSAS.
Deacon says people have until 10 November this year to comment on the Amendment Bill. FEDSAS encourages all education roleplayers to comment. A copy of the Amendment Bill is available on the FEDSAS website at www.fedsas.org.za under the link “What is new?”
“Parents should take note of the fact that the propsod Bill places a limitation on the right of parents to make decisions about their children’s education. In essence it is a violation of the Constitution as school governing bodies enable parents to be involved in decision-making.”