Issuu

changing tra ectories our journey to 2020

contents

Acronyms and abbreviations Glossary of terms

Foreword The vision of a better education system for all ... page 4 Introduction Joining forces to change South Africa’s educational trajectory ... page 8 The partnership model How it all fits together ... page 12 Spotlight on Covid-19 ... page 16

Programme statistics Learner Outcomes

... page 18

... page 20

Partnership Schools Message from Hon. FD Gade, Eastern Cape MEC for Education ... page 34

Axium Education

... page 38

School Development Partner: One World Network of Schools ... page 44

Collaboration Schools Message from Debbie Schäfer, Western Cape Minister of Education ... page 48

Common Good

... page 52

Initiative: The School Leadership Development Programme ... page 58

School Turnaround Foundation

... page 60

Spotlight on reading ... page 66

Acorn Education

... page 68

School Development Partner: Ark EPG South Africa ... page 74

Finances in context A pathway to sustainability ... page 76 Conclusion What next? Growing from pilot to evidence-based programme ... page 80

Frequently asked questions Endnotes

acronyms and abbreviations

CPD Continuous Professional Development CAPS Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements DBE

Department of Basic Education

DGMT

DG Murray Trust

ECDOE Eastern Cape Department of Education MEC Member of Executive Committee MOU Memorandum of Understanding NGO Non-governmental Organisation PD

Professional Development

PIRLS

Progress in Reading Literacy Study

PSO

Pilot Support Office

PSP

Public School Partnerships

ReSEP Research on Socio-Economic Policy SGB

School Governing Body

SLDP School Leadership Development Plan SLT

School Leadership Team

SMT School Management Team SOP

School Operating Partner

STF School Turnaround Foundation WCED

Western Cape Education Department

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Quintiles For the purposes of allocating and receiving different funding allocations, South African schools are divided into quintiles based on the socio-economic profile of the community in which they are located. Quintile 1 schools are located in the poorest communities, while Quintile 5 schools are found in the wealthiest. Learners in Quintiles 1-3 schools do not have to pay school fees, although Quintile 4 and even 5 may also be non-fee-paying schools.

Cohort A group of learners who works through a curriculum together; for example, a group of learners who begins Grade 1 in the same year and finishes school together in Grade 12, would be part of the same cohort. Collaboration Schools The name of the Public School Partnerships (PSP) project in the Western Cape.

School Leadership Team (SLT), also known as School Management Team (SMT)

Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) The national policy set out by the Department of Education stating what should be included in the curricula of schools for each grade in South Africa, as well as how it should be tested and assessed.

This is a senior team comprised of the principal, deputy principal(s) and heads of department within a school, who make important strategic decisions, oversee the quality of teaching and learning and/or who lead and coordinate school-improvement priorities.

Partnership Schools The name of the PSP project in the Eastern Cape.

School Operating Partner (SOP) A School Operating Partner (sometimes also referred to as an Operating Partner) is a non-profit civil society organisation that has been commissioned by donors and the provincial education department to work in partnership with a number of public schools to deliver high-quality education. The length of the partnership depends on the terms agreed upon in the service level agreement signed by the SOP and education department.

Pilot Support Office (PSO) This is the PSP project management office (housed within DGMT) responsible for coordination and implementation of the programme. Professional Development (PD) According to the Common Good model, Professional Development is made up of two main components: one-to-one coaching and group training. The coaching is classroom-based, time-tabled and happens weekly during term time. The aim is the professional growth of a teacher according to global best practices for effective classroom management and instruction. Group training happens regularly and sessions are focused on groups e.g. a phase or all staff who need to receive training based on teacher development priorities outlined in the School Improvement Plan.

School Governing Body (SGB) The South African Schools Act (1996) establishes that each school must have a School Governing Body (SGB), which is “a statutory body of parents, educators, non-teaching staff and learners (from Grade 8 or higher) who seek to work together to promote the well-being and effectiveness of the school community and thereby enhance learning and teaching. Democratic in nature, the SGB consists of the school principal; elected representatives (parents, educators, other staff members, and learners); and optional co-opted members who do not have the right to vote (for example, members of the community, or the owner of the school property). The majority of voting members of the SGB must be parents and SGB elections are held every three years.

Public School Partnerships (PSP) A collaborative approach to public school innovation that brings together government, funders, no-fee schools and non-profit education support organisations. PSP aims to bring additional expertise, resources, flexibility and greater accountability in school management into no-fee schools serving poorer communities in a bid to achieve greater equity in quality education in South Africa.

Transition or Turnaround School An existing public school that has joined the PSP project.

FOREWORD

The vision of a better education system for all David Harrison CEO, DG Murray Trust

“If

you want to support the public education system,

for better learner outcomes. These, we believe, are the

why don’t you just give money to the poorest

conditions under which effective learning and teaching

schools? Why do you want to run the show as well?” This is

can happen in schools that persistently under perform –

a common criticism directed at Public School Partnerships,

and which otherwise doubly disadvantage children who

and one that needs to be answered.

already enter school with learning deficits.

The problem with public education in South Africa is money.

Our simple diagnostic of the current problem in public

However, it is not only the lack of it, but also how it is

education is no revelation. Even though there have been

spent and what it achieves. To be clear, the funders of this

some improvements over the past 25 years, the patterns

initiative do not want to “run the show”, but as the response

of apartheid education prevail for three reasons:

to Covid-19 has illustrated, the days of strict ideological

divides between public and private investment and

too many children enter school unable to learn properly because of nutritional, socio-emotional and learning deficits;

provision of education are over. What matters is that all children have access to quality education – and that teachers and school leaders are able to provide it. At the same time, we recognise that universal access and quality can be compromised by commercial interests – not

too many teachers are either unable or unwilling to

too many school leaders (principals and SGBs) are

teach at the required level of competence; and unable or unwilling to lead well.

always, but sometimes. While each of the funders may be

Simply throwing money at an intractably inefficient

exploring different ways of achieving the goal of access

system does not work. This does not imply that govern-

and quality, this initiative unites the funder group around a

ment managers are not doing their work. Rather, it

common agenda, namely the non-profit and non-selective

acknowledges that, generally speaking, the vicious cycle

provision of high-quality education in public schools serving

of under-resourcing and underperformance cannot be

poor communities. It seeks to achieve this by strengthening

broken through top-down financing and management

the capacity of leaders and teachers within a more flexible

alone, for the following reasons: Firstly, the size of pro-

system of management and financing, permitted by the

poor subsidies that government can afford is inadequate to

education department in return for higher accountability

overcome the revenue differentials between wealthier and

poor schools. Secondly, with some amazing exceptions, it

socio-economic development. However, sustained scale-

is difficult for poorer schools to recruit and retain high-

up will require public resources. The hardest part – but

performing principals and teachers. The premise of Public

also the most critical – will be working with Government

School Partnerships is that bottom-up support to local

to ensure that the fiscal savings effected through fewer

networks of schools will have the greatest impact when

failures – not to mention the economic returns of higher-

the education managers – from head of department down

performing students – can be ring-fenced and channelled

and circuit level up – are supportive.

towards implementing the models in other low-performing schools. This will require us to work with the Department

Once participating schools start to function well, fewer

of Basic Education and National Treasury to gradually

children will fail, and the unit cost of educating a child

unlock public financing commensurate with the savings

through to Grade 12 will decrease. The State will not have

that we can demonstrate.

to pay to teach the same child the same content over again. If this partnership model became a new branch

Transforming a school – let alone the entire education

of public education, it could gradually be extended to

system – is a slow and resource-intensive process; we

perhaps the 5 000 schools that fail their children the most.

cannot expect major gains from year to year. However,

There are, of course, major operational constraints to

we can and we must show that children who participate

such scale-up, including the challenge of identifying and

capacitating high-quality school operators. Even at small

fundamentally different trajectory – because that will

scale, we struggled to find effective operators before

ultimately mean far better life prospects for them and for

concluding that commissioning new entities from scratch –

the children who follow them into formerly failing schools

built around a highly-competent, multi-skilled team – was

that are now primed for success.

the best way to go.

Partnership

Collaboration

Schools

are

While national Government and trade unions are currently

The other obvious constraint is the level of funding that

wary of the initiative, we believe that the tide will turn

would be required to scale up such support. Our view is

when we can show unequivocally that both the children

that funders will continue to invest in this initiative if its

in participating schools and children in the broader public

results show unequivocal improvement in the marks and

education system are better off as a result. We have this

lives of poor children. Its expectation of outcomes-based

confidence because we all share a common concern for our

accountability will become more and more attractive to

children, and have a constitutional mandate to put the

South African corporations looking to invest effectively in

interests of children first in all matters pertaining to them.

“The Collaboration Schools are making

a positive impact by giving quality education to learners from disadvantaged

communities at no cost to the learners and their families. The schools are equipping the learners for life through skills mastery and motivating them to compete against themselves, so they can be the best that they can be and reach their full potential.” Mrs Kugarakiripi, Acting HOD and Grade 1 teacher Jupiter Street Primary, Ocean View, Western Cape 5

“Collaboration opens new channels of communication for us as teachers. It helps us to find solutions

together with Common Good as our SOP. We learn from each other every day. It brings people in our organisations closer together. We create plans together that support and assist all of us to do better. It means a lot to most of the teachers because it provides extra work opportunities for the community and surroundings. Last but not least, we share the workload in order to provide quality work.” Siyanda Mrobo, Teacher Silikamva High School, Hout Bay, Western Cape

INTRODUCTION

Joining forces to change South Africa’s educational trajectory Khayakazi Namfu Programme Director, Public School Partnership

The

legacy

apartheid

means

that

in schooling that is attempting to change the fundamental

than 20 years after the first democratic

causes of national underperformance in the country. All

elections, education is still bisected by a sharp quality

other support initiatives seek to make change within

divide. Government schools in affluent areas serve the

the bounds of existing governance and management

richest 20% of children, while the remaining 80% of

paradigms. Venturing beyond ‘what is’ and charting a

children are served by poorer government schools with

different path for the public education system has naturally

minimal resources. The gulf only widens as children get

attracted interest from supporters and opponents.

older, despite South Africa’s high level of investment

Despite challenges in court and political pressure, our

in education – one of the highest in the world1. No

partners in provincial education departments remain

single intervention will have a transformative effect if

committed to our joint objective of improved educational

implemented without systemic changes to our education

outcomes through the provision of quality education.

system and the environments in which our children learn.

The Public School Partnership (PSP) Model

In an effort to respond to these structural challenges, a group of local and international funders – led by the 2

DG Murray Trust in partnership with the Western Cape government – began exploring legislative frameworks that

PSP’s intervention is uniquely positioned to tackle

would allow non-state providers to support the delivery

systemic reform through its model of shared governance

of education. As a result of engagements with senior

and accountability. The basic structure is a partnership

government officials and proposed legislative changes,

among parents, a public school, and a School Operating

a management team was established in 2016, known as

Partner (SOP). Together, their representatives constitute

the Pilot Support Office (PSO). The PSO was charged with driving an ambitious new initiative called

the School Governing Body (SGB). Through the SGB,

Public School

the SOP works with the school to create a vision and

Partnerships (PSP) – a five-year3 pilot programme launched

culture focused on achieving and sustaining high-quality

in five urban schools in the Western Cape as part of the

education outcomes. While the provincial education

Western Cape Education Department’s Collaboration

department continues its oversight of the public school

Schools programme. The Eastern Cape project, known as

and supports the SOP, additional technical capability is

Partnership Schools, began two years later, in 2018, and

provided or sourced by the support partner as needed.

operates under its own governance model.

Indeed, the core partnership is complemented by a

All participants of the PSP programme are driven by a

number of supporting funders, service providers, local

deeply-held belief that every child has the right to high-

community and advocacy organisations4 (see page 13).

quality education, regardless of their socio-economic

To participate in the programme, non-profit organisations

status, and that every parent and educator should be

are selected to be Operating Partners with no-fee public

empowered to provide it. We are committed to working

schools by the provincial department of education.

together in partnership with government and civil society

Partnership Schools are also identified by the government

to provide parents with the option of PSP to deliver high-

and can be existing public schools that are on a journey

quality education to their children as measured by learner

of ‘transition’ or brand new schools adding to their body

outcomes.

of learners each year. The type of school is important as

To our knowledge, PSP is the only sustained intervention

it has an impact on the way in which the SOP operates.

The pivotal role of parents, SOPs, teachers and leaders

Three key levers for change

Empowering parents Public School Partnerships are built around parents: although it may look like an external intervention, PSP’s aim is to empower parents to fulfil their governance role. The programme operates in a similar fashion to Quintile 5

Through the intervention of a SOP, Public School

ex-model C schools. In these schools, parents with financial

Partnerships is underpinned by three key levers

resources and expertise (such as lawyers, doctors and

for change:

accountants) are often part of the SGB and help to guide and run the school. Parents at no-fee schools seldom have

the same resources available to them and this is where

Greater capacity and support available to the

the additional funding provided by funders and the skills

SGB, school leadership, staff and teachers;

brought by SOPs to the SGB make a difference.

SOPs need to be flexible and sensitive partners

Accountability of each stakeholder – whether

SOP expertise, increased governance and the flexibility

it be the SOP, SGB, principal or teachers –

granted to them is critical to the success of the PSP

for ensuring that high-quality teaching and

model. We’ve learnt that the manner in which SOPs

learning is taking place in schools; and

partner with schools is crucial – there are sensitive power

dynamics that need to be navigated when introducing

Increased flexibility in the delivery of teaching

resourced and often under-performing school. How this

and learning to best fit the needs of the pupils

is done can either be the foundation for building trust and

within the schools.

sustained good relationships between all parties, or it can

an organisation and additional resources into an under-

set them up for failure.

This year, 2020, marks the final year of the initial five-year pilot phase for the three SOPs

Our approach to the selection of SOPs has evolved over

– common good, acorn educaTion

the duration of the pilot. Initially, SOPs were established

and school Turnaround FoundaTion

educational organisations with their own approach to

– working in 11 Collaboration Schools in the

school improvement. However, at times, these SOPs found

Western Cape. For the SOP in the Eastern Cape,

it difficult to adapt and innovate under the PSP model.

axium educaTion, working in eight Partnership

The outcome was withdrawal from the programme. To be

Schools, the pilot phase ends in 2021.

effective, PSP requires a level of flexibility and innovation combined with an entrepreneurial spirit. Additionally, the initiating PSO had difficulty finding blackled organisations and individuals to join the programme.

Are we on a different trajectory?

We believe this is largely due to the level of risk associated with a pilot project, as well as some of the negative press generated when the programme was launched. The

School improvement is a slow and incremental process

main criticism levelled at the pilot was that it represents

often preceded by early setbacks. Each year we have

privatisation of education, rather than partnership. This

learned new lessons and we are now starting to see what

despite the fact that the SOPs will always be non-profit

is possible, as well as the conditions required for school

organisations accountable to provincial government for

transformation. As we approach the end of the pilot

their performance.

phase, we have a deeper appreciation and understanding of the process. Our cautious optimism on the back of

Educators supported and empowered to teach

positive learner outcomes at the end of 2016 and 2017 Teachers are at the frontline of education. Every day, they

in the Collaboration Schools was subdued in 2018 when

face a myriad of challenges, ranging from overcrowded

results were slightly disappointing. The astounding 2019

classrooms to children with educational delays. As the

results are the early green shoots that have given us

Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)

reason to believe that we are indeed on a different path

2016 revealed, 78% of Grade 4 children in South Africa

(see Learner Outcomes on page 20). The mission of PSP

cannot read for meaning in any language . PSP supports

is to give every child quality education. We have not

and empowers teachers to improve the quality of

yet achieved our goal, but we believe that as you page

teaching and learning through professional development,

through this report, you will see that our partnerships

classroom support and teaching materials. With a strong

have begun to make a difference. In the words of Nelson

focus on instructional leadership, principals, too, are

Mandela: “Education is the most powerful weapon which

given tools to navigate the challenge of managing under-

you can use to change the world.” That is why the gains

resourced schools to attain quality outcomes.

made by PSP are not only promising, they are vital.

THE IMPACT of Covid-19 Covid-19 shone a spotlight on the multitude of challenges that face the education sector. The pandemic has and will continue to impact and transform teaching and learning for some time to come. In addition to focusing Government’s response and support to poorer schools, our hope is that it should be embraced as an opportunity for innovation across the broader system and allow change to happen at a faster pace. In addition to highlighting the true value and role that schools play in society, the school closures increased the level of interest and involvement of parents in their children’s learning, where resources and circumstances allowed. The benefit of the PSP model was further evident through the steps taken to capacitate and support schools to respond and adapt (see Spotlight on Covid-19 on page 16). The impact of the pandemic on school performance remains to be seen.

the PARTNERSHIP MODEL

HOW it all fits together The Public School Partnerships model is based on a core partnership between parents, a public school and a School Operating Partner (SOP). Together, their representatives constitute the School Governing Body (SGB). A SOP is a non-profit civil society organisation that has been commissioned by the provincial education department to work in partnership with a number of public schools to deliver high-quality education. This core partnership is sanctioned by the Provincial Education Department. The provincial education department continues its oversight of the school, as it does with other public schools, but also manages and supports the SOPs. The core partnership is complemented by a number of supporting partnerships with funders, service providers, the local community and advocacy organisations.

funders

provincial education departments

Partnership SCHOOLS

Collaboration SCHOOLS school operating partners (SOPs)

Forest Village Leadership Academy Trevor Manuel Primary School Disa Primary School Boundary Primary School Jupiter Primary School Apex Primary School Langa High School Silikamva High School Zwelethemba High School Apex High School Kraaifontein High School

public schools

Dumalisile Primary School Ngadla Primary School Jongikwezi Primary School Zwelinzima Primary School Mgxabakazi Primary School Ntlahlane Junior Secondary School Hlabizulu Junior Secondary School Dumalisile Comprehensive High School

“Access to quality education

has long been a desire, but is now starting to become a reality. We are thankful for this partnership and hope it can continue to enable our children to reach their full potential in life, and to become contributors in our communities. Acorn Education can play a distinctive role in breaking the cycle of poverty and has given hope to our community.” K. Fredericks, Parent Apex Primary School, Eerste River, Western Cape

SPOTLIGHT ON COVID-19

keeping children learning during lockdown ANCO BOOYSEN CEO, ACORN EDUCATION

By 18 March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in the abrupt closure of schools nationwide. As of August 2020, it was estimated that children will have lost between 30 and 59 days of school, depending on their grade6. While virtual learning was meant to help to keep children learning from home, the reality is that most learners outside of private and Quintile 5 schools in South Africa have limited or no access to interactive and internet-based learning; even if resources are open access or zero-rated, they may remain inaccessible due to connectivity issues or the lack of hardware in learners’ homes. For example, the main barrier to online learning for learners at Apex High School was access to data and for some, access to a basic smartphone. To respond to these challenges, Apex High School launched virtual teaching on 31 March 2020 via 55 Facebook groups – all linked to the Apex High Facebook page. The Apex High learners proved keen to continue their learning with average learner attendance close to 80% across all subjects. Educators recorded lessons on their phones or computers and uploaded these lessons onto the Facebook subject group daily. The Apex High Virtual School ran the full timetable in all grades from 8am-4pm four days a week. Forest Village Leadership Academy and Apex Primary School carried out their virtual learning by sending WhatsApp messages of video lessons and worksheets in maths, reading, home language and first additional language to learners. To ensure learners could access this content, Acorn Education pushed data to learners’ phones on a daily basis. We also launched our new Learner Management System (Moodle) at the beginning of June 2020 and through a partnership with our funders and BiNu - an interface that allows us to reverse bill the data costs to an external funder - our learners were able to access virtual schooling via an app on their phones or via a browser, completely data free. Where households didn’t have access to a basic smartphone or internet-enabled device, we loaned over 500 basic smartphones to learners. Educators defied the odds and empowered themselves to develop online lessons, compress videos and adopt innovative new ways of delivering lessons remotely. Thanks to these interventions and the educators’ commitment, by the time schools re-opened many high school educators had already covered the next term’s work. In addition to supporting their academic needs, we became increasingly concerned about learners’ general wellbeing, health and safety during lockdown. As such, our educators called learners on a regular basis to offer support and alert us to families that required additional assistance e.g. with food parcels or counselling. Educators completed a Google form after each call to keep track of learners who required additional support. We also appointed a part-time assistant social worker to help with the follow-up on these calls and act as an intermediary between households and our psycho-social wellness partner, Community Keepers. Community Keepers proactively switched to offer telephonic counselling and visited households to provide bereavement counselling when required during lockdown. Despite the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, school lockdown has helped to magnify the strengths of the PSP programme i.e. innovation, teamwork and the sustained support of educators so they feel equipped to teach learners - even in the most challenging of circumstances.

partnership schools

collaboration schools

2020 in numbers school operating partner

school

number of educators

number of learners

Acorn Education

Apex High School

909

Acorn Education

Apex Primary School

612

Acorn Education

Forest Village Leadership Academy

1 351

Acorn Education / PSO Transition

Trevor Manuel Primary School

1 557

Common Good

Boundary Primary School

519

Common Good

Disa Primary School

569

Common Good

Silikamva High School

780

School Turnaround Foundation

Jupiter Street Primary School

305

School Turnaround Foundation

Kraaifontein High School

333

School Turnaround Foundation

Langa High School

940

School Turnaround Foundation

Zwelethemba High School

608

school operating partner

school

number of educators

number of learners

Axium Education

Dumalisile Comprehensive High School

463

Axium Education

Ntlahlane JUNior Secondary School

251

Axium Education

Dumalisile Primary School

Axium Education

Mgxabakazi Primary School

Axium Education

Ngadla Primary School

240

Axium Education

Zwelinzima Primary School

157

Axium Education

Hlabizulu JUNior Secondary School

201

Axium Education

Jongikwezi Primary School

100

NOTES: 41 educators across all 7 Eastern Cape primary schools Number of learners extracted from Day 10 Numbers - dated 14 February 2020 Number of educators (excludes non-educators) extrated from the 2019 SOP Close Out Reports - dated 31 January 2020 18

4 school operating partners 19 schools 298 educators 10 048 learners

245

240

262

162

161

157

154

140

120

158

174

191

198

237

158

115

201

254

199

231

218

208

177

198

189

155

138

100

114

180

153

224

205

213

170

128

149

166

165

128

125

141

eastern cape

western cape

learner

The Public School Partnerships programme

is dedicated to improving learner outcomes through increased school capacity, flexibility and accountability. The programme has a strong datadriven mandate and seeks to demonstrate success through multiple measures of learner and whole school performance.

learner outcomes

outcomes

learner outcomes

summary highlights *

A diverse range of project metrics provide insight into learner outcomes in numeracy and literacy across the Public School Partnership programme.

In the Western Cape, PSP schools (known as Collaboration Schools) achieved a 9% increase in the aggregated pass rates from 2018 to 2019 – the highest improvement to date.

Distribution of learners’ systemic test results in 2019 show a shift towards higher quality marks with more learners achieving 60% and above.

Early trends from the pilot appear to indicate that Turnaround Schools experience a decline in the first year as the school adjusts to new interventions and systems introduced by the School Operating Partner before showing improvements. This highlights the often complex and unexpected implementation patterns of school improvement interventions such as PSP.

Results from the first PSP cohort analysis in the Western Cape show a 22% point improvement in systemic pass rates and a 13% point improvement in average marks as learners moved from Grade 3 to Grade 6.

In the Eastern Cape, PSP schools (known as Partnership Schools) have shown a significant growth in early grade reading ability. After only two years in the programme, the number of developing readers increased from 6% to 66% as measured by the Early Grade Reading Assessments (EGRAs).

NSC matric results are closely linked to individual school contexts, but improvements in both quantity and quality are evident for two of the three high schools that wrote matric in 2019.

Ranking of PSP schools using external standardised assessments highlight the impact of home language on learner outcomes across the Eastern Cape and Western Cape. Future implementation of these assessments should enable the comparison of schools in more refined ways.

National

Senior results

(NSC)

implemented in 2017 at PSP schools and track numeracy

important

and literacy skills across all schools in the foundation

Certificate are

phase.

metric for Grade 12 learners across both the Eastern and Western Cape. However, because NSC results are

Efforts to obtain a project-wide objective measure of

available only at the end of learners’ school careers, the

learner performance in numeracy and literacy before

PSP programme has actively sought earlier indicators of

Grade 12 are underway. Standardised assessments

learner performance in these provinces.

provided

service

providers,

JumpTrak

and

In the Western Cape, these include systemic testing

Greenshoots, were implemented in 2018 and have

of numeracy and literacy skills in Grades 3, 6 and 9.

provided early insights into how PSP schools rank against

Numeracy and literacy are fundamental skills that

each other across grades and over time in both provinces.

unlock learning potential across all other subjects. The

The following section provides an overview of the

Western Cape Education Department (WCED) is the only

heterogeneity of learner outcomes across the PSP

provincial education department in South Africa currently

programme:

conducting systemic testing. The tests are internationally benchmarked and administered, marked and moderated

the Western Cape systemic results over time;

results are compared to 2011 baseline results7 and the

pass rate is based on the 50% mark.

In the Eastern Cape, measures of learner outcomes are

the Eastern Cape EGRA and EGMA results for foundation phase learners; the NSC matric results across both provinces;

based on Early Grade Reading and Maths Assessments (EGRA/EGMA) conducted by the local school operating

partner, Axium Education. These assessments were

the ranking of PSP schools using standardised assessments.

“The teachers at a Collaboration School

are true role models. We show our learners that we can also improve and learn from mistakes. Our teacher coaches are amazing, because they help us become better educators, better lesson planners and better class managers through a growth mindset and practical steps. So personal development is not just talking the talk, but we are also walking the walk. This is the future of education, because the learners, educators, SLT and Acorn Education share a common goal: striving for excellence – because just passing a grade or showing up is not evident of a growth mindset and won’t lead to our scholars’ success after school. Anneke C. Smit, Subject Head and Educator Apex High School, Eerste River, Western Cape 23

learner outcomes

externally to ensure objectivity and credibility. All existing

WESTERN CAPE outcomes

western cape systemic results Changes over time Complex social interventions, like the Public School Partnership programme, take time to demonstrate effect8. Despite early gains in 2017, the programme struggled to show improvements in learner outcomes in 2018. However, in 2019, Collaboration Schools in the Western Cape delivered their best systemic test results since the project’s inception. Learners in Grades 3, 6 and 9 achieved an aggregated pass rate across maths and language of 36% in 2019 compared to 27% in 2018. This is a 9% point year-onyear increase in pass rate, making it the highest improvement since 2016. Similarly, the average marks increased by 6% points from 37% in 2018 to 43% in 2019 (See Table 1, LHS)9. Comparatively, provincial systemic results indicated improvements of 2% and 1% in pass rates and average marks respectively.

TABLE 1 Percentage point movements 2016-2019: Western Cape Collaboration Schools Systemic RESULTS pass rates

average marks

Province

0.5%

Province

2019

(vs 2018)

27% to 36%

37% to 43%

23% TO 22%

36% TO 34%

2018

2017

(vs 2017)

(vs 2016)

16% to 23%

33% to 36%

16% TO 12%

33% TO 30%

2016 (vs 2015)

When reviewing these results across primary and high

School. Turnaround Schools tend to experience a decline

schools for 2019, 27% of Grade 9 high school learners

in the first year of the programme as the whole school

passed the systemic assessments while 45% of primary

adjusts to new interventions and systems introduced by

schools learners (Grade 3 and 6 combined) passed

the SOP. For example, systemic results declined by 5% in

respectively. Overall, this is a 2% increase from 2018 for

Disa Primary between 2017 and 2018, but 2019 saw a 29%

high schools and a 16% increase for primary schools.

point improvement in their pass rate and an 15% point

Table 2 highlights these results for each Collaboration

improvement in their average marks.

School in 2019 . 10

The graphs overleaf show the distribution of marks scored

Zwelethemba High and Boundary Primary are the only

by learners in each grade11. In 2019, fewer students scored

schools where pass rates and average marks declined

under 30% and more students achieved quality marks of

between 2018 and 2019. Despite this, Zwelethemba High

over 60% across the board. The most pronounced shifts

continues to outperform its provincial quintile average. It

occurred in primary schools. Even though there is still a

is also worth noting that Boundary Primary only joined the

large number of learners who achieve a score of below

programme in the second term of 2019 and is a Turnaround

50%, the overall quality of marks improved in 2019. learner outcomes

TABLE 2 Percentage point movement 2018 vs 2019: Western Cape Collaboration Schools Systemic Results pass rates

LANGA (14%)

SILIKAMVA (31%)

APEX (41%)

-6%

ZWELETHEMBA (22%)

30%

TREVOR MANUEL (44%)

29%

DISA (47%)

14%

FOREST VILLAGE (56%)

-7%

BOUNDARY (34%)

average marks

HIGH SCHOOL

25% to 27%

36% to 40%

PRIMARY SCHOOL

16%

29% to 45%

38% to 46%

(34%) LANGA

(40%) SILIKAMVA

(47%) APEX

(38%) ZWELETHEMBA

-1%

(47%) DISA

15%

(43%) TREVOR MANUEL

12%

(53%) FOREST VILLAGE

(41%) BOUNDARY

-3%

WESTERN CAPE outcomes

GRAPH 1 Distribution of learners’ systemic marks by grade: 2018 vs 2019 30

GRADE

% of learners

25 20 15 10 5 0

0-19%

20-29%

30-39%

40-49%

learnErs scoring < 50%

50-59%

60-69%

70-79%

80-100%

learnErs scoring > 50%

GRADE

% of learners

25 20 15 10 5 0

0-19%

20-29%

30-39%

40-49%

learnErs scoring < 50%

50-59%

60-69%

70-79%

80-100%

learnErs scoring > 50%

GRADE

% of learners

25 20 15 10 5 0

0-19%

20-29%

30-39%

40-49%

learnErs scoring < 50%

50-59%

60-69%

70-79%

80-100%

learnErs scoring > 50%

Cohort evaluation One of the most compelling measures of progress is to track the same group of learners over time, as they move from Grade 3 to Grade 6 three years later12. Table 3 illustrates this for the group of learners at: Forest Village Leadership Academy, Trevor Manual Primary, Boundary Primary (which joined the programme in 2019), Disa Primary and Oranjekloof Primary (which exited the programme at the end of 2018). The table highlights the findings from this cohort analysis across school grades and subjects. Overall, learners in these schools showed a 22% point improvement in systemic pass rates and a 13% point improvement. For comparison, the average trend is for schools to show a slight decrease over this time. Learner improvements varied across subjects for each school. For example, 25% of learners from Forest Village Leadership Academy who were in Grade 3 in 2016 passed Grade 3 language, while 42% passed maths. In 2019, 64% of them, now Grade 6 learners, passed language, while 51% passed maths. This is a 39% and 8% point improvement respectively – a remarkable outcome when compared to the provincial partnerships between educators, learners and committed partners.

TABLE 3 Changes in pass rates and average marks for learners who moved from Grade 3 in 2016 to Grade 6 in 2019

pass rate GRADE

FOREST VILLAGE

oranjekloof

TREVOR MANUEl

BOUNDARY

DISA

average %

GRADE

Maths

42%

51%

Language

25%

64%

Maths

21%

36%

Language

18%

Maths

15%

62%

Language

18%

average marks

impact on cohort, 3 years later

8% 39% 15% 11% 47% 11% -2%

GRADE

46%

51%

37%

54%

31%

43%

22%

34%

27%

55%

22%

32%

impact on cohort, 3 years later

5% 17% 12% 12% 28% 10% 3% 15%

Maths

34%

32%

40%

43%

Language

11%

40%

29%

28%

43%

Maths

28%

63%

36%

53%

Language

21%

44%

34% 23%

32%

46%

17% 14%

21%

43%

22%

32%

45%

13%

learner outcomes

improvement of only 3%. We believe these results are early indications of what is possible with strong

eaSTERN CAPE outcomes

eastern cape outcomes a tale of two years Partnership Schools in the Eastern Cape include seven comparatively smaller primary schools and one high school. These schools cater for over 1 700 learners in the Amajingqi area, near Willowvale, and have formed part of the broader Public School Partnership programme since 2018. The Early Grade Reading and Maths Assessments (EGRA/EGMA) conducted at regular intervals show promising results. Graph 2 below demonstrates improvements in reading skills for foundation phase learners as they moved from Grade 1 in 2017 to Grade 3 in 2019. After two years of participating in the PSP programme, there has been a significant reduction in the number of non-readers from 51% to 12%, and substantial growth of developing readers from 6% to 66%.

GRAPH 2 Student reading skills over time based on EGRA results for primary schools in the Eastern Cape 100%

90% 80%

70% 41

60%

50% 40% 30%

20%

10% 0%

may 17 grade 1 (0/73)

may 18 grade 2 (6/90)

NOV 18 grade 2 (13/88)

Non-readers

Basic readers

Developing readers

NOV 19 grade 3 (10/101) Competent readers

Partnership Schools in the Eastern Cape committed to the implementation of external standardised assessments across all grades for the first time in 2019. The results and ranking of these schools against other PSP schools is discussed opposite.

National Senior Certificate Performance The 2019 NSC matric results saw a decline in matric pass rates for the first time across PSP high schools (see Graph 3 below). While this is disappointing, these results should be viewed in the context of each school’s unique journey. For example, both Langa High (Western Cape) and Dumalisilie High (Eastern Cape) showed a nominal decline of 5-6% when compared to the more than 20% year-on-year improvements between 2017 and 2018. Moreover, the quality of results at these schools has improved with an 8% and 9% increase in learners achieving bachelor pass marks for Langa and Dumalisile respectively. These results indicate that more learners who pass matric at these schools are eligible for university entrance. The dramatic decline at Silikamva High also warrants further comment. This school is based in the informal settlement of Imizama Yethu in Hout Bay, Western Cape. In March 2017, a devastating fire swept through Imizama Yethu, destroying about 3 500 homes and displacing thousands, many of whom were learners at Silikamva. A joint recovery plan by the SOP, management staff and WCED learner outcomes

was kick-started in November 2019 to address learner outcomes in matric.

GRAPH 3 NSC pass rates for PSP high schools 2010-2019

100% 92%

school nsc pass %

90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40%

68%

70%

56%

55%

74% 63%

78%

75% 76% 68%

58%

71%

40%

72%

56%

78%

72%

71% 60%

66%

50% 42%

46% 36%

73%

81%

78%

44%

39% 40% 34%

30%

32%

27%

20% 10% 0% 2010

2011

national average

2012

2013

2014

dumalisile

2015

2016

langa

2017

2018

2019

silikamva

TABLE 4 Ranking of PSP schools across provinces for language assessments in Grade 3, 6 and 9 in 2019 = collaboration school (WC)

GRADE

2019

GRADE

2019

GRADE

2019

= partnership school (EC)

school

term 3 HL average score

relative rank

languages

FOREST VILLAGE

e,a

mgxabakazi

dumalisile

TREVOR MANUEl

a,x

ngadla

ntlahlane

BOUNDARY

jongikwezi

disa

hlabizulu

zwelinzima

disa

e,a

FOREST VILLAGE

e,a

BOUNDARY

TREVOR MANUEl

e,a

dumalisile

jongikwezi

ntlahlane

ngadla

hlabizulu

mgxabakazi

zwelinzima

apex

a,e

silikamva

zwelethemba

langa

dumalisile

ntlahlane

hlabizule

Standardised Assessment Results across PSP Schools In an effort to obtain objective measures of learner performance across PSP schools, two private providers were contracted to develop and administer standardised assessments across all grades for maths and language. Results from these assessments allow schools to be ranked and compared. To date, assessment implementation has improved with 18 out of 19 schools participating in term 3, 2019 assessments. Table 4 highlights the rankings across all PSP schools for language assessments conducted in term 3 for Grades 3, 6 and 9 in 2019. These assessments were conducted in English (E), Afrikaans (A) and isiXhosa (X). It is interesting to note how schools across both provinces are more evenly distributed when language assessments are conducted in the home language of students in Grade 3. However, these results differentiate for Grade 6 and Grade 9 as language assessments are predominantly conducted in English and Afrikaans. The impact of home language and diverse contexts on learner outcomes across the Eastern Cape and Western Cape should not be schools, there will be more opportunity for comparison of learner outcomes in the future.

Summary The PSP programme has documented a diverse range of learner outcomes across its schools in both the Eastern and Western Cape. In summary, Collaboration Schools in the Western Cape have demonstrated a significant 9% improvement between 2018 and 2019 across systemic results for Grades 3, 6 and 9. In the Eastern Cape, improvements in early grade reading and maths skills show that foundation phase learners at Partnership Schools are laying the groundwork for future achievements in literacy and numeracy. NSC matric results are closely linked to individual school contexts, but improvements in both quantity and quality are evident for two of the high schools that wrote matric in 2019. Finally, standardised assessments enabling the ranking of schools across provinces show the clear impact of home language on learner outcomes. Future implementation of these assessments should enable the comparison of schools in more refined ways. As the PSP programme looks to the next phase of implementation post pilot, it will continue to explore diverse measures of learner outcomes that are sensitive to the context and complexity of the Public School Partnerships environment.

learner outcomes

underestimated. As standardised assessments are implemented more uniformly across grades and

Partnership

Public School Partnership schools in the Eastern Cape are referred to as Partnership Schools and have formed part of the broader PSP programme since 2018. Axium Education is the SOP working with seven small primary schools and one high school, catering to about 1 600 learners in the Amajingqi area, a remote rural area near Willowvale.

partnership schools

schools

government

working together for a common goal Hon. FD Gade MEC for Education, Eastern Cape

Chapter 2

African

implement interventions to improve the quality of public

Constitution deals with

education for learners in eight public schools in the rural

the

South

area of Willowvale in the Eastern Cape.

the Bill of Rights; Section 29 guarantees every child a right to education and Government is responsible for

I had an opportunity to interact with our implementing

providing it. Chapter 9 (Improving Education, Training

partners recently for the first time since I came into

and Innovation) of the 2030 National Development Plan

office on 27 May 2019. I was quite pleased with the

(NDP) also calls for all stakeholders (private, public and

interventions they have implemented since January

NGO sectors) to work together in delivering improved

2018 when they started working with the schools. Whilst

education. As the Eastern Cape Department of Education

I would not hasten to say that the schools are on a

(ECDOE), our Provincial Development Plan is grounded in

different trajectory, the data they presented around early

the NDP, but it is shaped by critical priorities specific to

grade reading for the primary schools and the high school

the Eastern Cape. We have identified the following seven

matric results for the past two years is promising. The high

strategic goals:

school, Dumalisile Comprehensive’s matric pass rate has

Improved quality of teaching and learning through

improved from 32% in 2016 and 38% in 2017, to 70.7% in

timeous supply and effective utilisation and

2018 and 65.5% in 2019. Our implementing partner, Axium

Adequate quality infrastructure provided on the basis

Provision of quality Learning and Teaching Support

Education, reported that PSP schools’ foundation phase perform significantly better than an estimated “rural

of a datadriven infrastructure plan.

average” on Early Grade Reading Assessment (both on the percentage of children reading at Grade Level, and

Materials (LTSM) and furniture to all schools through

the percentage of children who cannot read a single

data-driven planning and provisioning.

* *

Improved assessment of learning.

Improved school functionality through effective

Improved learning outcomes through partnerships

word). They also highlighted some operational challenges such as debilitating infrastructure, learner transport and

Improved quality of Grade R teaching and learning

resource shortages, which have hindered the work that

through training of teachers and provision of readers.

they do with the schools. It is our intention to assist the project to achieve its objectives and, in this regard, a

governance, management and monitoring.

team of different directorates will visit the schools at the appropriate time to address the identified challenges.

and stakeholder engagement.

We are grateful to our PSP funding partners for the

The objective of improved learning outcomes through

resources they have invested to support our schools.

partnerships led to us signing a Memorandum of

The task of providing quality education to every child is

Understanding with the PSP project funders, represented

enormous and will only be realised when all stakeholders

by the DG Murray Trust. We decided to be involved

work collaboratively and in partnership towards a

precisely because of the understanding that education

common goal.

improvement in the province requires collaboration among different stakeholders. We decided to pilot PSP as

Hon. FD Gade MEC for Education, Eastern Cape

one of our tailored improvement initiatives to strengthen the quality of public schools, demonstrate effective models of public school improvement, strengthen public school governance models, develop educators, and

partnership schools

development of teachers.

“The Public School Partnership programme has had a positive impact in my school. It has

capacitated the SMT, the principal and Learner Representative Council (LRC) members to become better in terms of performing their duties. It has encouraged accountability in the school leadership and management. PSP has also supplied my school with different resources. It has improved our financial management systems and trained our SGB members.” Mr Siphenathi Ncebetha, Principal Dumalisile Comprehensive High School, Willowvale, Eastern Cape

school operating partner

innovating to unlock the potential IN rural schools CRAIG PAXTON Executive Director, AXIUM EDUCATION

“Axium Education’s mission is to raise learner achievement in rural South African communities. We believe there is a vast amount of untapped potential in every rural student, teacher, community and school. Our vision is to see that potential realised so that every rural student leaves school with purpose, agency and options. Axium was started in 2009 and is based in the village of Zithulele in the rural Eastern Cape.”

Why did you decide to join a pilot of this nature?

What are your key learnings from the pilot?

We were drawn by a combination of factors: the need,

We’ve been able to attract some high-quality people to

a recognition of the complex factors that have made

live and work in one of the most remote locations in the

rural schooling very challenging – and what this has

country. There is real appetite for this work, particularly

meant for the students and teachers ‘left behind’ in these

among people who call the Eastern Cape home.

schools; the fit, a sense that much of our previous work

When it comes to supporting and managing multiple

and research might find full expression in the context of

schools, learner numbers are not a sufficient consideration

a PSP school; and the opportunity to try something new,

when assessing how best to deploy resources and

challenging and different – something that might have

support. Our group of eight schools includes a number

significant impact if we can get to the ‘other side’ of the

of very small schools (fewer than 90 students), but still

learning curve!

require roughly equal amounts of time for those on our team working on school leadership and governance,

and investment can bring to an organisation. So, while

infrastructure, etc. In other words, there is some ‘magic

that growth has at times been uncomfortable, it has

formula’ for determining efficient investment in schools,

brought some great people into our team that we

which should include both learner numbers and number

would otherwise not have been able to attract. It has

of schools.

also brought us into a relationship with the One World

The research is clear: school leaders make a critical

Network of Schools13, which has been our development

difference to student learning. So, it should have come

partner. There is no doubt that we are a better, more

as no surprise to us that leadership is the number-one

professional organisation as a result.

determinant of the functionality of each of our schools; somehow, we continue to be struck by just how important this is.

How would you describe your journey with PSP?

For a number of years, we have helped senior school students apply for colleges and universities. The

Stimulating and challenging! Our particular community of

connection between purpose, agency and options – the

eight PSP schools is located three hours’ drive from our

three things we hope all our students leave school with

home office in Zithulele Village. This has meant added

– has proved vital in our PSP work, too. At Dumalisile

complexity in terms of travel, remote support and a new

Comprehensive High School, for example, as students

Axium team located on site. Additionally, our budget and

learn more about career options, their sense of purpose

staffing have grown rapidly in ways that put strain on

increases, which in turn increases their sense of agency

our operations and senior management capacity – and

and

all of this before one even contemplates the complex

performance. It’s not just about hammering home the

school improvement work itself. Two years in, we are now

need to pass matric; it’s about connecting the dots

beginning to understand what is required to shift student

and helping learners to see the bigger picture of their

learning – and are hopeful that results will follow.

educational journeys.

motivation,

which

increases

their

academic

partnership schools

We were also cognisant of the benefits that growth

What advice would you give to potential School Operating Partners?

What gives you hope for the future? Our conviction, based on our experiences working

South Africa needs entrepreneurs and innovative thinkers

with rural students and teachers prior to PSP, is that

in the education space – don’t let the size of the challenge

there is tremendous potential in rural communities.

put you off! Many of the hard lessons we’ve learnt were

What

built into the ‘deal’ we signed up for, but for new SOPs,

* *

often

lacking

–

for

reasons

marginalisation of rural schooling – is the enabling

chances for success:

most

related to our country’s history and the ongoing

we would recommend the following to increase their

environment

required

for

people

flourish.

Start with one or two schools.

For instance, we’ve found that when learners find

Ensure new school selection remains within the control

themselves in a high-support, high-expectations environ-

of the SOP, particularly when it comes to school

ment, where they are able to connect their work to a

leadership.

vision for themselves in a career, they thrive. Similarly, when teachers are valued, are able to connect with each

Give yourself a good six- to 12-month planning runway

other in communities of practice, and receive regular

before taking on your first school.

feedback on their teaching, not only does their practice

Where you can, grow and deploy your own talent into

improve, but they become exemplars for others to follow.

this new venture in order to seed your organisational

All of this gives us hope that the doom and gloom that so

values and culture into SOP and schools.

often accompanies discussion of public education, and

Ensure your own house is in order first when it comes to

rural education in particular, need not be the future for

things like policies, processes and operational capacity –

all our schools.

there is enough complexity in managing schools without needing to worry about your own environment.

“It’s a good project; it’s as if it was designed for our community. Previously, people were not so eager to

take their kids to school, but now everyone wants their child to be at PSP school. Most of their schools had been renovated. Support staff like clerks, teachers, tablet facilitators and career interns have been employed; it’s addressing the shortage of staff in the schools. PSP has created jobs in the community. We also benefit from PSP trainings and meetings.” Mr Malangeni, SGB Member Dumalisile Comprehensive High School, Willowvale, Eastern Cape

CASE STUDY

ESTABLISHING A CLEAR FRAMEWORK OF ACCOUNTABILITY Eighteen months into the pilot, Craig Paxton, Axium’s Executive Director was, very diplomatically, called into a meeting with the Dumalisile Comprehensive High School SMT. In the meeting, the principal tactfully explained that they didn’t know what to do with Axium. Did they report to us or did we report to them? Were we there solely to support implementation, or did we in fact have a stronger accountability role? And if so, what did this mean for their existing relationships with the Department of Education, such as the principal’s accountability line to the Circuit Manager? All of this felt uncomfortable and the SMT didn’t

Of course, what this meeting did was to highlight what is possibly the critical piece of this partnership, at least in the Eastern Cape version, where the accountability framework is more open to interpretation – even if partnerships look a little different from school to school, there needs to be agreement on who is responsible for what and to whom. We promised to come back to them after having done some more thinking and research. It turns out that in other contexts, when new and different schooling models were introduced, the question of reporting and accountability lines were not necessarily any clearer cut than in our situation, and that these lines need to be hammered out in the fire of everyday schooling, so that they make practical sense to all involved. Our first attempt at this refining process involved engaging our very receptive and proactive Circuit Manager with a first draft at an accountability framework. We suggested how Axium and the Department might play complementary roles in the support and accountability of schools, and how communication might flow in a way that would support this. With his input and blessing, Axium’s Mr Paxton returned to the high school some months later to present this framework for further comment. We now have a working document – the real test of which will come in the months ahead.

partnership schools

know what to make of it.

axium education’s school partnerships Ntlahlane Junior Secondary School Founded in around 1935, now the largest primary school in the area with about 250 learners.

Dumalisile primary School A small school of about 90 learners, Dumalisile has three teachers covering Grades 1-7, with no administrative support. The school, founded in 1917 by King Zwelinzima, is scheduled for merger with Zwelinzima Junior School, but there has been divided sentiment about this in the community.

Dumalisile Comprehensive High School Prior to Axium arriving at the school, Dumalisile High School had not had a principal for four years. The school has a technical stream that is taken by about 30% of the students – based on the vision of the Chief for comprehensive education when the school was opened in 1999. Matric pass rates have improved over the past two years.

Mgxabakazi primary School The smallest of our schools with only around 60 learners, Mgxabakazi has not had a principal for a number of years. While many of the teachers display immense commitment to the students and school, there are many factors that make it a tough teaching and learning environment.

Ngadla primary School Ngadla is the second largest primary school in the area with about 240 learners. Traditionally a well-run school, the retirement of the principal and loss of three senior teachers, have left the school short on staff and leadership.

Hlabizulu Junior Secondary School Hlabizulu is one of two junior secondary schools in the area that have retained their Grade 8s and 9s. It has around 200 learners and six teaching staff.

Jongikwezi primary School

more than one grade due to a lack of teachers). It has an excellent multi-grading exponent which, despite the strain, is working well in the foundation phase of this school.

Zwelinzima primary School The school was founded in 1994, and moved to its new ASIDI14 campus in mid-2018. The school has approximately 150 learners.

partnership schools

With only 100 learners, the school practises multi-grading (when one teacher is required to teach

school development partner

developing the next generation of school leaders Brian Sims Executive Director, one World Network of Schools

The One World Network of Schools is an education NPO whose objective is to improve student achievement by developing the next generation of school leaders in under-resourced communities. In 2019, it became the development partner for Partnership Schools in the Eastern Cape, supporting Axium Education.

One

World Network of Schools is an education

leading workshops and helping to create monitoring

non-profit whose mission is to improve

tools, as well as providing ongoing guidance.

student achievement by developing the next generation

of school leaders in under-resourced communities around the world. We currently operate in eight countries on four

Organisational health: supporting the leadership team with essential elements of a healthy organisation, including annual strategic priorities,

continents, supporting and training over 3 500 leaders

talent recruitment and development, team meeting

who serve more than 1 275 000 students.

purposes and patterns, and other operational necessities.

One World’s expertise is instructional leadership. We

believe that strong school leaders change lives – both the teachers and staff in their schools, and the students in

Strong schools: developing school leaders in the knowledge and skills necessary to run a great school,

their communities. Through tools and training, we focus

including school visits/inspections and classroom

on helping school leaders develop the capacity to elevate

observations, weekly/bi-weekly planning and data

learning, which in turn accelerates life opportunities

analysis meetings, ongoing coaching and training

for young people. We engage with educators in three

sessions, and the creation and ongoing usage of

different yet inter-related, ways: Leadership Training

implementation monitoring systems.

Programmes, School and Network Improvement Support,

We’ve also had a specific focus on:

and Scalable Tools. Our experience has shown that One

World can have the greatest impact on an educational ecosystem when we are able to work in all three areas

Matric & Beyond: creating a tracking tool that the school can use to help identify areas of strength/need

– and over many years. For example, we have been

among the current Grade 12 learners as they strive for

supporting the SER network of schools in Mexico since

successful matric passes. This project has included

2013. Last year their students outperformed national

engagements with local universities and colleges, as

averages in reading and maths by more than 3.5 times.

well as potential employers; it has also expanded down in grade levels to include learners in Grade 9 as they

One World has been working with local educators

select their matric subjects, as well as Grade 10s and

in South Africa for several years. In 2017, we helped

Grade 11s as they navigate the curricular expectations

launch the Instructional Leadership Institute (ILI), and

for matric coursework.

we coached the leaders of a high-performing low-cost

private school. In 2019, we became the development

Early Grade Literacy: providing training and

partner for Partnership Schools in the Eastern Cape,

coaching to Axium’s Nobalisa teachers15, as well as the

supporting Axium Education, and since then, we’ve added

Axium coaches and teachers who focus on Grades 1-3;

engagements with Western Cape Collaboration Schools

priorities have been on the shared understanding of

and more Johannesburg-based low-cost private schools.

key pedagogies and effective use of existing curricular resources.

Much of our work with Axium has focused on the following:

In 2020, with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, One

Strategic planning: supporting the CEO/

World has taken on a leadership role in supporting the

Executive Director with their three- to five-year plans;

PSO as it helps SOPs respond to the current crisis.

Collaboration

The Public School Partnership pilot project was launched in the Western Cape in 2016 with both new and existing public schools. Referred to as the Collaboration Schools Project, the pilot is set to run for five years until the end of 2020. The three SOPs working with Collaboration Schools in the province are: Common Good, School Turnaround Foundation (STF) and Acorn Education.

collaboration schools

schools

government

working together to deliver quality education Debbie Schäfer Western Cape Minister of Education

The

Collaboration Schools model appears to

held accountable for education outcomes.

be on the right track, but its effectiveness

Not every school has worked out as planned, and there

depends on fully functioning partnerships and sound

is always work to be done to improve each school’s

management.

performance. But the signs so far have been encouraging.

The Western Cape sees an increase of around 18 000

In the WCED’s annual Systemic Testing for Grades 3, 6

learners in its schools each year. Unfortunately, the

and 9, Collaboration Schools have on average showed

budget we are allocated simply cannot keep up with

increases in performance above the provincial average

demand. This makes it increasingly difficult to deliver on

– an encouraging sign of improvement at these schools.

our mission to ensure quality education for every learner, in every classroom, in every school in the province.

Overall, I think PSP is on the right track. Some lessons learnt are that we need more operating partners with the

When I was approached early in my first term of office to

right attitude and experience to manage tough schools. It

test a model for schools similar to the academy schools in

is definitely more difficult in a Turnaround School, where

the United Kingdom, it offered the possibility of delivering

some teachers are employed by the School Governing

better education quality at schools in partnership with

Body and others by the Department, and requires

private donors and operating partners who govern and

ongoing management and close co-operation between

manage the schools.

the SOP and the Department. I think it is important that

We started the pilot programme with five schools. The

there should be a person in the Department who actively

model was developed by the Western Cape Education

manages the process, as there are many issues that need

Department (WCED) with the assistance of Ark Schools

to be dealt with, from financial to people management;

UK (see page 74), who established a Pilot Support

and if these are not dealt with speedily, they can fester

Office to manage the Public School Partnerships pilot

and cause further problems later on.

project. Co-operative partnerships have proved vital in

A very exciting ‘spin-off’ has been that, because we have

implementing the model, and we appreciate the support

developed a framework and legislation for these schools,

of all parties involved in the project.

a number of schools – which were not part of the initial

Key to the implementation of the model was establishing

group – want to adopt the model, with one having already

a mechanism within the law that would allow us to operate

done so.

this type of school. We did that. The next important step was the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between the WCED and the PSP funding group. The signing of Service Level Agreements between the Head of the WCED and each School Operating Partner (SOP), of each Collaboration School, is important to ensure Debbie Schäfer Western Cape Minister of Education

accountability for all parties. Collaboration Schools remain public schools. In the traditional Collaboration model, i.e. when starting a new school, the School Governing Body appoints all teachers, and the operating partner comprises 50% of the SGB – since the partners are also

“For me this is something so good especially for schools in under-privileged communities because they

provide additional resources that government cannot provide such as teacher, learner, leadership support and training, and the community can see the difference that Common Good has made in the school. The parents want to send their children to this school.” Fazlin Riley, SGB Chair Disa Primary, Bonteheuwel, Western Cape

school operating partner

BUILDING capacity and accountability Sarah Binos Education Programme Director, common good

“Common Good is a faith-based NPO that creates opportunities for those marginalised by poverty and injustice to realise their full potential. Our Early Life, Education and Employment programmes focus on three critical stages of human development when the opportunity to nurture potential and shift trajectories is most significant. As a PSP School Operating Partner, we exist to ignite and nurture the God-given potential of EVERY child through excellent education. Our goal is to demonstrate that within a growing network of non-fee paying government schools, excellent educational outcomes are possible at a feasible cost per learner. Achieving this goal should result in 100% of the learners within our school network being able to achieve a bachelor pass for matric.”

Why did you decide to join a pilot of this nature?

academic outcomes (100% bachelor pass rates, children in primary school all being high school ready, etc.). We believe exposure to exemplars would catalyse hope and

The most vulnerable learners in South Africa are found in

possibility in the minds of the leaders and teachers who

no-fee public schools. It is a great injustice that learners

serve no-fee schools. We were drawn to PSP because we

attending these schools do not access the same quality

believe that it is crucial to firstly demonstrate that the

education as schools in the leafy suburbs. Common

provision of excellent education is not only possible, but

Good cares deeply about these children and shares

also feasible in no-fee public schools.

PSP’s desire to address this inequality in our education system. We were excited to work in this space because it resonated with our vision for a more equitable society

How would you describe your journey with PSP?

where all children have access to learning opportunities that enable them to realise their potential.

It has been exhilarating – an extraordinary roller Education equality will only be achieved if we can improve

coaster ride defined by wins and losses, fruit and failure, and lots of failing-forward to accomplish, four

of learners in South Africa attend. We were drawn to the

years later, some noteworthy gains. It has necessitated

pilot because of its bold systemic vision and potentially

deep humility, relentless grit, perseverance and an

scalable approach to driving school improvement in our

unwavering belief in the vision of high-performing no-fee

most under-resourced school communities. Successful

schools. It has involved working collaboratively across

school improvement, at scale, has been demonstrated in

multiple organisations and with multiple stakeholders

many parts of the world and there is plenty of research

in a bureaucratic environment that was not designed to

that points to what enables this change. However, in

foster innovation.

our most under-resourced school communities there are

But, progress has been made, partnerships forged

unique contextual constraints that must be addressed to

and relationships built and strengthened as we have

create the necessary environment and capacities to drive

collectively pursued this common goal with a remarkable

change. We could not resist the incredible opportunity to

partner

with

numerous

stakeholders,

group of stakeholders. We have gained invaluable

including

understanding and insights into what it really takes to

local school staff, to develop strategies and solutions

create the enabling environment necessary to build

that would be relevant to our context, and potentially

capacities and accountability structures vital for driving

applicable to a number of no-fee schools.

school improvement in the South African context. There is

We saw this as a chance to immerse ourselves in every

early evidence that our primary schools are on the right

functional area of no-fee schools, which would grant

trajectory. At the school that we have partnered with

us the privilege of more deeply understanding the

the longest (Disa Primary School in Bonteheuwel) results

very real constraints hampering improvement, and the

improved dramatically last year (see Learner Outcomes

existing opportunities that could be leveraged to enable

on page 20). However, we are only just out of the starting

change. Finally, we wanted to help write a story that

blocks. In the next phase it will be critical to build on what

could communicate great hope in our nation. There are

works and rapidly address the risks we have unearthed

very few examples of no-fee schools achieving excellent

that could undermine progress.

collaboration schools

educational outcomes in no-fee public schools, which 66%

What are your key learnings from the pilot?

Repurposing this time for focusing on the quality of teaching, monitoring school improvement, and team building is key. Weekly principal and SLT development

Alignment between key influencers on the vision,

and coaching sessions have been instrumental. Teacher

mission and strategy for school improvement is key - this

professional development is a non-negotiable – there

is a partnership model after all: The key influencers in

are no short cuts. If we are going to improve learning

this partnership – the chair of the SGB (who influences

outcomes in South Africa, strategies that increase

the community and parents), the principal (who leads

the

and influences the school community) and the School

motivation

and

opportunities

for

professional

advancement of teachers are crucial.

Operating Partner CEO (who leads and influences the SOP team) have to agree on what success looks like and how it will be achieved. This is the agreement on which

What advice would you give to potential School Operating Partners?

the partnership is forged. Working with no-fee schools that don’t have a vision for or commitment to driving school improvement in a manner that is aligned to the SOPs educational philosophy is futile. This necessitates a

Learn from the many mistakes we have made in this pilot

slow but rigorous selection, a matching and onboarding

and build on our collective failures and wins. Be very clear

process that highlights areas of disagreement and

on your theory of change for school improvement and

disconnect prior to contracting. This process creates

your non-negotiables within this. Define the type of no-

trust, establishes mutual expectations and surfaces

fee school you would be best positioned to partner with

potential areas of conflict, which can be addressed early

because, whilst there are thousands of no-fee schools,

on in the partnership.

they are not all are the same – each has different assets to work with to accomplish school improvement.

Buy-in and ownership of the strategy from the School Leadership Teams (SLTs) and majority of the teaching staff is critical for success: Excellent schools are created

What gives you hope for the future?

by SLTs and teachers who are committed to driving change and constant improvement. In no-fee schools, leaders and managers often spend the lion’s share of

We have seen improvement in our schools. We have a

their time teaching due to overcrowded classrooms and

little taste of what is possible, but our hope is intensified

insufficient teaching posts. Principals are often isolated

when our collaboration across communities, cultures,

and their leadership is reactive as they face numerous

organisations and teams results in shared wins. We have

daily challenges as community and social ills spill over

worked with many incredible leaders and teachers who

into school life. We have learnt that key to driving school

want the same change that we dream of.

improvement are interventions that create the time and develop the capacity of entire school leadership teams to

When we witness the positive impact of our shared

lead and manage well. The introduction of learning labs

plans on the lives of our learners; when we see children

run by community facilitators, centralised HR, finance

laughing, playing and enjoying and progressing in their

and infrastructure support, and the creation of one extra

learning at school, it helps us to keep our eyes on the

teaching post, create blocks of time in the timetable.

prize.

CASE STUDY

Creating space – and time – for instructional leadership School leaders’ greatest priority needs to be the constant monitoring and improvement of the quality of teaching and learning in the classroom – we call this instructional leadership. In no-fee schools, dwindling establishment posts, operational crises, community disruption from gang violence and politics, and low parental engagement are often the norm. These factors combine to work against our central belief that a school’s core business is teaching and learning. The principal and management team tend to spend most of their working hours in the classroom, leaving little room to lead or manage. Whatever precious time is left, is often school leader to immerse him/herself in classrooms to gather data to inform the development and support of improvement strategies focused on teaching and learning. After nine months in Boundary Primary we were able to take some small but significant steps of change, resulting in the principal Mr Stanford Allies becoming more available to focus on the school’s core business. Boundary Primary Principal, Mr Allies says: “Common Good has created an extra teaching post; freeing up some of my deputy principal’s time, which means I can delegate to him more easily. This, combined with Common Good’s centralisation of operational tasks, such as financial administration, data capturing and infrastructure upgrades, means I can now schedule time for school walks, classroom visits and a quarterly evaluation of the quality of teaching and learning in my school. I have a weekly meeting with Mark Williams, Common Good’s Head of Primary, who coaches me on how to implement these activities and collect and use the data to measure progress and drive improvement. I have greater insight now, more than ever before, on what is actually happening in the classroom, and it has been a rewarding and enlightening experience. I am growing as a leader, and am better equipped to lead, support and challenge my own teaching staff. I have never been exposed to activities and practices that support development at school as much as I have through the Collaboration Schools Project.”

collaboration schools

spent reacting to numerous daily disruptions and district deadlines. This rarely allows the

“The Common Good team has

supported the school and, as learners, we have benefited a lot

academically. The exceptional support and team behind us make us so much more comfortable about working towards completing and passing our matric exams.” Ongeziwe Jako, Grade 12 Learner Silikamva High School, Hout Bay, Western Cape

Common Good’s school collaborations boundary primary School

Town. It was founded in 1964 and today serves 518 learners. Boundary Primary became an official Collaboration School in April 2019.

DISA primary School Disa Primary, just down the road from Boundary Primary, is located in and serves the community of Bonteheuwel. Also founded in 1964, it currently serves 577 learners and was launched as a Collaboration School in January 2018.

SILIKAMVA HIGH School Silikamva High School serves the community of Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay. Founded in 2013, it is a Quintile 3 school with 759 learners currently enrolled. The first matric class was in 2016, and in the latter part of 2017, the school entered into collaboration with Common Good. In 2019, Silikamva High School relocated to beautiful new school buildings constructed on the same site overlooking the Hout Bay valley.

collaboration schools

Boundary Primary is located in and serves the community of Bonteheuwel in Cape

initiative

the school leadership development programme Dr Abraham de Villiers Head of Education, ACORN EDUCATION

Outstanding schools emerge when outstanding leadership teams refuse to settle for the status quo. In our public schools there is an urgent need for support and leadership development from those who have been promoted into management positions with no prior leadership training or experience. Common Good and Acorn Education initiated the 2019 School Leadership Development Programme (SLDP), aimed at building strong, courageous School Leadership Teams (SLTs) committed to transforming education.

Leadership

in South African schools

The SLDP ran from July to December 2019 across five

is often an overwhelming

Collaboration Schools in the Western Cape: Forest Village

challenge that can result in discouragement, isolation,

Leadership Academy, Apex High School, Boundary

loneliness and at worst, burnout and resignation. Lack of

Primary, Disa Primary and Silikamva High.

staff and other constraints demand that most leaders still

spend large portions of their time teaching, leaving little

2019

School

Leadership

Teams

(SLTs)

committed

school

leaders

attended

the

challenges and opportunities faced by leaders in South

Development

African education, gave participants the tools to help

Programme (SLDP), aimed at building strong, courageous School

over six months. These modules explored the specific

With this in mind, Common Good and Acorn Education the

around

programme, which comprised of six modules delivered

time for supporting and investing in the people they lead. initiated

total

them grow an awareness of themselves and others, and

promoted personal accountability.

transforming education in no-fee public schools.

The programme also focused on the essential ingredients

The SLDP was designed to equip SLTs (comprised of

needed to build strong teams and how to invest in and

principals, deputy principals and heads of department)

develop knowledge, skills and abilities. Furthermore, the

with increased capacity to lead and find the collective

modules highlighted self-care and how essential it is to

courage to dare greatly. A core idea of the SLDP was

lead out of a place of personal wellness and resilience.

to communicate that most often real change is only ever

Participants examined the impact of stress and trauma

accomplished by teams of diverse people leveraging

and developed skills in preventing and coping with

their collective strengths, skills, abilities and experience

circumstances that increase stress.

towards a single-minded goal.

Based on feedback surveys following the training, the To lead an entire community towards a vision of educa-

SLDP was highly appreciated and well-received. One

tional excellence within and through the complexities and

hundred percent of the of school leaders who attended

constraints of our education system, and the social ills

rated it as ‘excellent’ or ‘good’, and 97% “agreed” or

of the communities we serve, is difficult, and yet there

“strongly agreed” that they felt more confident in their

are schools in South Africa that have demonstrated

ability to set priorities and development goals with and

this is possible. The best chance of achieving this vision

for their staff than before the training. As one participant

is through the efforts of exceptional SLTs who are

noted: “I truly have grown. I feel empowered on a level

motivated, inspired, equipped, and supported to keep

way beyond any leadership and management training

leading towards the achievement of their vision, whilst

that I have received in the past. This programme equipped

enabling an entire school community – staff, learners and

us thoroughly.”

parents – to go on the journey with them.

Building on the positive response from the pilot SLDP

The SLDP provided the start to a journey that recognises

programme, our aim is to make the SLDP an annual series of

the immense value of SLTs and the impact of their ability to

events to engender even more bold and innovative school

lead and create high-performing schools. The SLDP aims

leaders. Whilst the Covid-19 pandemic has prevented

to increase the capacity of SLTs by providing them with

another SLDP programme from being implemented in

the opportunity to gain new skills, knowledge and personal

2020, the goal is to extend the programme to include all

insights to lead and manage their teams effectively, but

Western Cape Collaboration Schools over the course of a

also to be good team players within an existing team.

year.

school operating partner

working together to provide a recipe for learning Eugene Daniels CEO, School Turnaround Foundation

“School Turnaround Foundation (STF) was founded in 2015 to ensure that all our learners are successful in all our schools, every year in every grade, irrespective of their context. We are committed to demonstrating that excellent learner outcomes can be achieved, sustained and replicated in our public schools through public-private partnerships. We are committed to doing things differently and doing things better. Our School Turnaround Methodology (STM) represents a disruptive technology that focuses on individualised learner education plans, a focus on learning rather than teaching, applying datadriven decision-making and applying extended learning time.”

Why did you decide to join a pilot of this nature?

(Worcester, Western Cape) as a School of Excellence despite the poverty and challenges prevalent in the rural areas. STF quickly had to learn how to shift from being

We decided to join PSP because it represents a unique

a service provider to becoming a SOP, which is a whole

opportunity to showcase that public education can

new ball game.

deliver good results at a basic level and outstanding achievements if schools are given the necessary support

We partnered with Langa High (Cape Town, Western

and resources to become Schools of Excellence.

Cape) in 2018 and this represented a new challenge, as a Transition School is very different from partnering with

Collaboration Schools and the PSP model enables us

a new school. In 2019, we started working with two new

to work closely with schools and, in that way, impact

schools in Cape Town: Kraaifontein High and Jupiter

more directly and therefore more effectively. STF is

Primary. This was particularly challenging as we did not

transitioning from being a service provider to becoming

have sufficient time at our disposal to fully prepare for

an operating partner. As a service provider we were

the schools’ onboarding in January 2019. In spite of this,

contracted by funders to support schools in an indirect

Jupiter Primary hit the ground running; Kraaifontein High struggled initially but has since gone to a whole new level

get involved in SGB activities, the appointment and

in 2020.

coaching of teachers, enhancing teaching and learning in the classroom and the management of finances. Most

What is even more pivotal is that the PSP programme

of our staff members were left feeling frustrated working

provides funding to the school and SOP, as well as

in the public school system, which does not encourage

support – from both PSP and ARK (see page 74) – to

innovation or ‘thinking outside the box’.

enable us to deliver on our mandate.

The PSP programme facilitates direct involvement in the

Our involvement in PSP has challenged, strengthened

running of the school and holds us accountable to deliver.

and supported STF to enhance its own governance and

PSP is forging a new path for public education in that the

management structures, methodology and organisational

pilot is working closely at all levels of the system whilst

functionality.

being responsive, reflective and collaborative.

What are your key learnings from the pilot?

How would you describe your journey with PSP?

One of our most important learnings has been that

Our journey with PSP has been an adventurous one. We

the flaws in the public school system cannot be fixed

have had joys, successes and challenges as individuals

overnight. Structures need to be put into place to create

and as an organisation. We had to grow our team,

an environment conducive to effective teaching and

deeply reflect and learn from our challenges and

learning.

weaknesses, toughen our organisational functionality

The pilot provided STF with the opportunity to use

and enhance our leadership and governance. We started

the experience and expertise of our team to train and

off in 2017 with a mandate to develop Zwelethemba High

develop school staff and school leadership teams. These

collaboration schools

manner. This had numerous limitations as we could not

What advice would you give to potential School Operating Partners?

are shortcomings in the public school system that have been neglected for years. STF, at the outset, realised that the professional development of educators has been non-existent in

Firstly, the founding members of a new SOP must

the public school system. Educators have been left to

spend at least six months or more to develop and

cope on their own in often challenging situations. STF’s

refine a methodology that is relevant to the objectives

sessions are aimed at the clarification and consolidation

of the project and the needs of the school. This is best

of the unique STF methodology to improve curriculum

achieved by learning from successes and struggles of

development, results analysis and remediation. School

previous SOPs. Good governance and leadership must

leadership teams and SGBs also benefitted from the

be prioritised to ensure that the SOP functions optimally

STF team’s expansive knowledge of the policies and

within the framework of legislation, policies and the grant

procedures to ensure compliance.

agreement. Secondly, the SOP needs to carefully select its team members to complement one another’s strengths and

What gives you hope for the future?

weaknesses. Orientation, training and team-building must be prioritised.

The fact that, generally speaking, our learners, teachers,

Thirdly, ideally a new SOP should partner with new

parents, principals, districts and education department

schools rather than Transition Schools. Often Transition

are open to change and embracing innovation in our

Schools have to undo decades of dysfunction and this is

schools. They recognise that the wisdom is not in some of

challenging and very much a long-term process.

us, but in all of us. PSP has managed to unlock and forge a unity of purpose where all constituents, on the whole,

Fourthly, new SOPs should have a clear vision and all

want to do things differently and better.

activities and engagements should be aimed at achieving that vision, which should be explained and agreed upon

Our key priority over the next few months is to harness

with all stakeholders. Veering from that path to success

this momentum by showcasing that our schools are

should not be an option.

producing learners who not only excel in a range of assessments,

but

also

well-rounded

individuals

Fifthly, building good relationships with funders, the PSO,

capable of contributing meaningfully to society.

the WCED and schools is of the utmost importance. The SOP should become an integral part of the school community; it should serve and not dictate, but should also demand accountability in an assertive manner.

“PSP has managed to unlock

and forge a unity of purpose where all constituents, on the whole, want to do things differently and better.”

CASE STUDY

THE SCHOOL RISING LIKE A PHOENIX FROM THE ASHES Partnering with Langa High has been one of the most rewarding and challenging aspects of our PSP journey. This story is best understood through a historical lens where the school built up a proud history of excellence when it opened its doors in 1937. Many illustrious leaders were educated at Langa High and have strong ties with the school. All of this changed when Bantu education and apartheid impacted negatively on the school, causing a range of challenges from weak leadership and poor governance, to ongoing conflict amongst staff members and mediocre learner results. The school deteriorated to such an extent that the WCED began to contemplate its ‘closure’. This is what eventually led to Langa High

Negotiations between Langa High and STF took approximately five months as Langa High had struggles with two previous SOPs. This extended period of negotiation led by the funders and PSO was critical to avoid previous problems from rearing their heads again. By June 2018, the SGB, parents, teachers and learners agreed to partner with STF to participate in the PSP programme.

A key success factor was the decision of the principal and SGB to embrace STF as part of the school rather than it being considered a School Operating Partner coming in from the outside. This set the stage to work as a team rather than the separate entities of SOP and school. STF had to reflect very deeply about our approach and methodology as the dynamics in a Transition School are very different from those of a new school. Rather than entering, boots and all, we decided to build strong relationships, trust and respect. The first few months were not easy but we eventually forged synergy and this led to a combined effort to work together to ensure the school would once more become a School of Excellence that would make everyone proud. This new sense of purpose, team effort and synergy between the school and SOP manifested itself in a dramatic improvement in learner outcomes in the 2018 Grade 12 results (78.1%) compared with 2017 (49.7%).

collaboration schools

joining the PSP in an effort to stop the school from haemorrhaging completely.

“I feel so grateful

to be in Zwelethemba High School because we get the best education. I’m also happy to have the best teachers. They develop our knowledge and they also taught us how to speak English fluently.” Sisipho mposwa, Grade 8 Learner Zwelethemba High School, Worcester, Western Cape

school turnaround Foundation’s school collaborations zwelethemba high School Zwelethemba High, situated in Worcester, is a Quintile 1 school with 607 learners. It opened its doors in partnership with STF in January 2017. It has been growing year by year. Its first Grade 12 cohort will write the NSC (matric) exams in 2021.

LANGA high School Langa High is one the oldest high schools in South Africa. It opened its doors in 1937 and has been serving thousands of proud learners and alumni ever since. STF has partnered with the school since June 2018. The school has grown year on

KRAAIFONTEIN high School Kraaifontein High opened its doors in January 2019 in partnership with STF. It currently has 192 Grade 8 learners and 153 Grade 9 learners. It plans to introduce Agricultural Technology as a subject in Grade 10 in 2021 to enhance learners’ career prospects and motivate them to enter the economic growth area of agri-processing.

jupiter primary School Jupiter Primary is a thriving school situated in the Southern Suburbs that serves learners from Ocean View and Masiphumele. It is a growing school with 309 learners from Grades 1 to 4. It opened its doors in partnership with STF in January 2019.

collaboration schools

year to 1 012 learners in 2020.

SPOTLIGHT ON READING

discovering our own super powers School Turnaround Foundation (STF) western cape

Andre Pretorius, Principal of Jupiter Street Primary School says: “The most important strategy we have to support our learners is our own reading strategy that we developed through Professional Development (PD) sessions in 2019. We added phonology (oral language) and alphabetic principle (multilingualism) to the standard CAPS reading strategy (which comprises phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension). We believe that CAPS is based on the assumption that all kids who enter school in Grade 1 come from middle-class homes. Hence, they start with phonemic awareness where teachers immediately get kids to unpack sounds and letters and to write, especially their names. This is not the reality in so many schools. Kids start Grade 1 without a Grade R background. Many cannot speak English because they do not do so at home. They speak Xhosa or Shona, etc. so we have to teach them how to speak and read English from the very beginning. We do not turn away kids who apply. We do not cherry pick them either. So, in term 1, especially in Grade 1, we focus on the oral language. Many of our kids do not write this term. It is all about phonology, the oral language – hearing the sound, looking at the teacher’s mouth when she speaks. Then we unpack blending, both building up and breaking down e.g. b – u – s is bus, bus is b/u/s. This is working for us. We have put our own reading strategy in place so we don’t have to wait for Superman to come and do this for us. We know what we are doing to ensure that each and every one of our Grade 4 learners will pass speaking, reading and writing with comprehension, and not become one of the 78% of Grade 4s nationally who are not unable to understand what they’re reading – in any language, including their home language – as the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2016 showed16.”

“I love teacher for teaching me sounds, like apple and bus, and to speak in English*. I love the safe playground. I love the food from the kitchen.” ShaNtel Garwi, Grade 1 Learner, Jupiter Street Primary School *Shantel couldn’t speak English when she joined the school.

school operating partner

enhancing education and educational development Anco Booysen CEO, ACORN EDUCATION

“Acorn Education was set up as a not-for-profit company in 2016 for the purpose of being a School Operating Partner in the PSP programme. Our mission is to transform the lives of each of our learners by providing a high-quality education that will help enable them to realise their potential. We have brought together a committed team of both education specialists, who train and support existing educators in our schools, and staff experienced in operations and finance to bolster the efficient running of each school. As a team, we work across all three of our schools, striving to consistently improve learner outcomes.”

Why did you decide to join a pilot of this nature?

subjects to set them up for success later on. Holistic Learner Development: Where possible, we ensure

The WCED supports no-fee schools by providing them

that extra-murals, sporting activities and counselling

with additional per learner funding. However, fee-paying

services are available to provide all-round development.

schools have access to benefits and opportunities that

Educator Continuous Professional Development (CPD):

do not exist for no-fee schools. Acorn Education was

Leadership and educator development are at the core

conceived to provide additional skills and resources

of our approach. Providing instructional coaching and

required to reduce the gap in learner outcomes between

regular professional development to our educators

fee-paying and non-fee paying schools.

ensures excellent learner results.

Acorn Education is the conduit for funding from donors

Our approach appears to be working as independent

who share our vision of providing schools in need with

learner data shows improvements. However, we feel

opportunities for growth – both educationally and

our journey has only just begun and we look forward to

operationally. Acorn Education facilitates a holistic

continuing finding innovative ways to address challenges as they arise.

as sports, enrichment and psycho-social programmes, are

now

available.

Consequently,

learners

from

disadvantaged backgrounds receive the same high-

What are your key learnings from the pilot?

quality, well-rounded education as learners in more affluent circumstances.

A key learning has been that deep engagement with schools, when they are experiencing a challenge,

How would you describe your journey with PSP?

has

consistently

led

superior

formulation

and

implementation of solutions to those challenges.

We believe in partnering with a school and collectively

Engaging schools collaboratively in problem-solving

design the School Improvement Plan for each school with

increases their investment in the solution. Ultimately, we

the School Leadership Team (SLT). Every year, this plan

have discovered that outcomes are far more favourable

is revised and new priorities are identified. Our approach

when reached during consultation than when a solution

typically focuses on the following areas:

is presented without initial engagement with the schools.

More time on task: We have extended school days at

Another vital lesson has been the importance of recruiting

our schools so that our educators have more time for

staff who are committed to the PSP vision and mission,

home languages and maths with our learners. All learners

particularly staff in the SLT – getting the right people

benefit from this extra time to improve their performance.

on board is a critical step for the effective running of the

Enrichment programmes: Our schools benefit from

school and improving learner results. A disciplined and

enrichment programmes that strengthen our learners’

consistent programme, supported by a strong SLT and

reading and maths skills. These enrichment programmes

competent, committed educators, are key ingredients for

ensure our learners build a strong foundation in core

bettering learner outcomes.

collaboration acorn education schools

method of schooling where additional programmes, such

What gives you hope for the future?

What advice would you give to potential School Operating Partners?

We presently have over 2 870 learners who have been given the opportunity to change the quality and/or level

A SOP should not be constrained by the way that things

of their own education. Many of our learners are starting

have been done in the past. The landscape of education

to take ownership of their own education and attend

is constantly changing; interventions must be based

after-school sessions and holiday programmes, working

on what solutions are available presently and what is

hard with their educators to improve their own outcomes.

appropriate in the current environment.

The data shows that the education support and

When facing a challenge, consider what you can

enrichment programmes are having a positive impact on

realistically influence. Implement a solution without

learner results. We are pleased that parents have noticed

waiting for the perfect conditions as they may never

the positive impact of the school on the learners, too,

arise. And when a challenge is not easily resolved,

such that applications have increased greatly: in 2020,

seek advice from other educators or partners in the

one of our schools received 1 200 applications for the

wider education sector outside of the organisation or

200 available spaces.

immediate school community. Outside points of view will only enhance your ability to resolve whatever conflict or

Finally, the scale of the interventions is only possible

challenge has surfaced. However, the final decision must

in the PSP programme due to the size of many of the

always be based on the specific conditions and available

schools, i.e. the large size of the schools allows us to

resources within the relevant school. This should guide

extend our enrichment programmes to more learners.

one’s response.

This bodes well for the positive impact of the programme on the education system in the future.

Lastly, be innovative with your methods for improving learner results, while staying mindful of the potential benefits as well as the risks. Engage with experienced experts with deep insights, but also with the educators within the school, who may have a better sense of the solution based on their experience and knowledge. A solution crafted together with the school’s input will ensure emotional and professional buy-in, will be easier to implement, and will have a greater chance of success.

“Many of our learners are starting to take ownership of their own education and attend afterschool

sessions and holiday programmes, working hard with their educators to improve their own outcomes.”

CASE STUDY

REAPING THE REWARDS OF INSTRUCTIONAL COACHING Instructional coaching is an essential part of our model. By improving the skills of educators, the model becomes more sustainable as a high level of teaching becomes embedded in the system. As learners are exposed to the best education from the moment they enter school, the necessity and cost of future interventions will diminish. The challenge of instructional coaching is that educators are not used to having outsiders watch their lessons and provide feedback for improvements. Teachers typically have well-entrenched habits and techniques for managing learners. When a SOP begins at school, teachers are faced with new, invasive expectations. Not only must they attend additional training and development sessions, but most of what they have done to date in their daily teaching may change. Every aspect, from the way lesson preparation is done, to how learners are taught and managed, is scrutinised. This increased support of teachers requires additional work,

change management process was multi-pronged and included:

Engagement, first with the principal, and then the SLT, on the benefits for the educators in terms of both

* *

Intensive practical development and mentorship in instructional coaching.

Data on individual learner results were shared with educators and strategies were discussed and agreed

Acorn teacher coaches modelled different behaviours within the classes, which included simple tools to

professional growth and improved learner results.

Acorn Education instructional coaches engaged one-on-one with educators and explained the process of instructional coaching as well as the benefits.

on to address individual learner challenges.

make educators’ lives easier. The immediate results served as a motivation for the educators to learn new skills and make them more effective in the classroom.

Over time, educators’ misconceptions and fears surrounding instructional coaching were addressed.

The result is that instructional coaching has been taken up by the principals and SLTs, who now coach the educators reporting to them. This has allowed for the increased frequency of instructional coaching sessions, which could not have been achieved if the Acorn Education coaches were the only coaches in the school.

collaboration schools

especially for the SLT who will need to observe and review lessons of educators who report to them. Our

“If I tell you what we achieve

with our learners, you simply wouldn’t believe me – and that is because we have the support from our School Operating Partner, Acorn Education. People often say it is because we have more funds, and yes, to have extra funds is definitely a benefit, but what I value more is the support and training we receive from Acorn Education. One day, I am sure, the extra money will no longer be available, but then we will still have the knowledge, skills and values. In short, I believe that the Collaboration Schools model is the only way to fix a broken education system, and fix the inequality that exists within our system” Renate Van Der Westhuizen, Principal Apex High School, Eerste River, Western Cape

acorn education’s school collaborations Apex High School

high school that opened in January 2018 and has partnered with Acorn Education since its inception. It currently has 920 learners. The school will have its first Grade 12 cohort by 2021.

Forest Village Leadership Academy Forest Village Leadership Academy (Eerste River, Western Cape) is a no-fee primary school comprising of around 1 350 learners. The school opened in 2016 and partnered with Acorn Education in April 2018.

Apex Primary School Apex Primary School (Eerste River, Western Cape) opened in January 2020, and has partnered with Acorn Education since it began, starting with Grades 1 to 4, and aiming to grow to Grade 7 by 2023.

collaboration schools

Apex High School (Eerste River, Western Cape) is a no-fee public

school development partner

BUILDING capacity in school operating partners Jonathan Molver Country Director, Ark EPG South Africa

Ark EPG South Africa has partnered with the WCED and local funders to identify and develop local SOPs who can effectively partner with and support schools in some of Cape Town’s most challenging communities. The objective is to develop strong organisations capable of running excellent schools.

Ark

is a UK-based charity that runs 38 schools

the ultimate goal being a number of operators capable of

in England and supports a range of

delivering highly-effective support to a number of schools.

educational ventures focused on curriculum and teacher

Our support offer is then a combination of workshops/

training. Ark has achieved recognised impact in the

programmes for all operators where there is significant

education sector both in the UK and internationally. Our

overlap in need – this has largely been the categories

goal at EPG (Ark’s International venture) is to make sure

of Leadership Development, Teacher Development and

that all children are able to go to school and learn. We

Governance, the spine of effective schooling – and then

do this by working with governments to help shape and

bespoke support to operators’ individual development

strengthen their education systems.

needs.

In South Africa, we have partnered with Government and

Our work in the UK on Leadership Development, Teacher

local funders to identify and develop local operators who

Training, and running highly-effective schools in some of

can effectively partner with and support schools in some

the most disadvantaged communities positions us well

of Cape Town’s most challenging communities.

to do this development work here. Great leadership, and great teaching, both hold universal principles applicable

The objective of our work here is to develop strong

regardless of context. There have, however, been some

organisations capable of running excellent schools –

contextual lessons to learn and challenges to overcome.

with a strong commitment to improving the quality of

We believe we have learned these lessons by immersing

teaching, leadership, and improving learner outcomes for

ourselves fully in the schools in which our operators work,

children. We build capacity in operators through intensive

by listening well to the people we work with, and then

support, so that they are able to provide intensive and

adapting what we believe to be universal best practice to

relevant support to teachers and principals.

some of the uniquely South African challenges.

We have developed a rubric to support the systematic

For example, the extent to which many schools are

and structured development of operators. It outlines

tremendously

the key functions of an organisation, the key aspects of

under-resourced

requires

thoughtful

creativity when reconsidering the role of a principal as

education delivery at a school level, and key operational

an instructional leader. With lean staff structures and

functions at a school level.

bloated responsibilities, it can be difficult for principals to

Within each of these categories, there are three phases

focus almost solely on improving the quality of teaching

of development – Planning, Execution and Scale. Each of

and learning by providing on-going training, support and

these phases of development consists of multiple criteria,

feedback to their teachers. Instead of repurposing the

which school operators self-assess on a six-month cycle.

role of the principal, we have had to train senior leaders and heads of departments to do this work as well.

The goal of the self-assessment process is to conduct a thorough review of the organisation and the support it

As a result of this adaptation, and others, we believe

currently provides, in order to determine the development

we are seeing the early signs of promising progress in

priorities for the next half of the year. Our role, once

learner outcomes - the fruit of improved teaching, which

development priorities have been agreed on, is to

is a result of strengthened school leadership, facilitated

provide bespoke support to each of the operators – with

by strong operator support.

financials

Finances in Context: A pathway to Sustainability Anthony Hall Finance and Operations Manager, Public School Partnership

Between 2016 and 2019, approximately R191 million was spent on the PSP programme. This equates to around R7 500 per learner, per year – or a 40% increase on a provincial department’s typical contribution to these schools over the same time frame 17 .

terms of overall expenditure, some of the costs

activities can unlock the potential in SA’s most challenged

incurred were in the Research and Development

schools, then it could be argued that PSP releases not

(R&D) phase of the programme; the investment in

only its own value, but could also unlock the financial

developing SOPs as new organisations; and the high

value of government’s much larger budget that is already

programme overheads attributed to only a small number

directed here. Van der Berg et al. outline how grade

of schools participating. However, much of the cost is

repetition costs the national government R20-R29 billion

attributable to the hands-on personnel costs that are

per annum, or 8%-12% of total national budget allocated

required on a school-by-school basis, irrespective of scale.

to basic education and the cost of dropout to a learner, in terms of lost earnings, sits around R90 000 by the time

There’s no denying then that this has been a resource-

they are 21 years old, or R1.7million over their lifetime20.

intensive exercise, with limitations to the scale at which

This excludes the government cost of welfare to these

either private philanthropy, or even government could

members of society, or the societal value of having youth

expand across 1 000+ schools or one million learners.

progress to meaningful pathways beyond school, and

Brian Levy et al. highlight how South Africa is somewhat

into rewarding and productive vocations.

of an outlier among developing countries, given the comparatively high budget expenditure on education as a

Let us be clear: If children do better at school and fail

percentage of GDP, and its comparatively poorer scores

fewer times, society is far better off. Those children

by learners in standardised assessments such as TIMMS

will contribute more to the economy, and the education

(Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study)

department will save money not having to re-teach the

and PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy

same child the same curriculum more than once, because

Study)18. This raises the critical question of which factor

they keep failing. We may not be able to channel the

should be addressed first in underperforming schools:

broader economic benefit back into the system in the

quality or price?

short term, but if we are smart, we could redirect the

There is a case to be made for this level of expenditure:

shorter-term fiscal savings back into an ever-expanding

intervening in poorly performing schools that have

network of well-functioning schools serving poorer

been systematically underfunded for decades requires

children. While the goal is to create quality education

more funding than in functional schools, given the many

at a sustainable price point, we must not forget the

prerequisite building blocks, namely the remediation

huge differential between the ‘average’ and the poorest

governance

schools, and how the latter are constantly having to walk

requirements, as well as incentives to attract and

up a steeper gradient. The project’s commitment is to

motivate staff, and infrastructure improvements. If PSP’s

‘every child, regardless of socio-economic status’.

learners,

organisation

change

and

What then is the role of the philanthropic funder? Philanthropic contributions can often yield pockets of innovation and quality for identified sets of learners, but this on its own is less likely to improve a complete system for millions of learners. However, the role of philanthropy can also be to trial systemic change – the ‘R&D’ aspects of systems reform that is messy, untried, and even controversial. Philanthropy can inspire confidence in others to join in, particularly once evidence of success is demonstrated. Indeed, the PSP definition of success is true partnership – when government actors opt in, and chose to direct existing resources, personnel and infrastructure in new ways, and when communities are empowered to demand a new model, and make it their own.

financials

Public School Partnership’s pathway to sustainability 1 PSP’s work right now 2020’s works has focused on documenting key learnings

will need to cost the project, under a handful of forward-

to date in a format that is compelling and supports

looking scenarios and project configurations. We’ll need

advocacy. We will need to quantify the outcomes, both

to quantify in economic terms, the benefits to learners,

in terms of learning outcomes, as well as the objective

but also the fiscal savings to education departments, and

advances in the building blocks that sit behind the

the economic savings to Treasury over each learner’s

learner’s exam scores. Given the identified learnings, we

lifetime.

2 Widening the net by attracting third-party funders who value the ability to track progress and costs The two sets of audiences here are:

internally, whether it be from local landowners, businesses

1) Socio-Economic Development (SED) and Corporate

or individuals – either for free, or for figures that are often

Social Investment (CSI) funding from corporates, especially

a fraction of what is available to centralised procurement

those with a geographical base associated with particular

or tender processes. These avenues are traditionally the

schools that might participate.

domain of NGOs, localised fundraising initiatives and

2) The parents and community around every school

donations in kind, such as computers, books, or feeding

who have the social capital to raise a parcel of funding

scheme initiatives.

3 Adoption by mainstream governmental structures Given the work in Step 1, powerful advocacy work will be

accordingly, in the shared pursuit of increasingly efficient

required to capture the efficiencies, and to ensure these are

outcomes for learners. PSP’s work in 2020 has made

reinvested into provincial education budgets. The ultimate

headway in this journey, while staying true to the model of

collaboration will unfold when governmental actors are

new governance; supporting an increasingly refined set of

compelled to adopt new practices inside existing structures

collaborative activities implemented by SOPs; and pursuing

of school management, and redeploy existing budgets

the project’s next chapter of rollout at scale.

CONCLUSION

WHAT NEXT? Growing from pilot to evidence-based programme Khayakazi Namfu Programme Director, Public School Partnership

We’re

excited by what we have jointly

more. Beyond the reach of philanthropy and corporate

achieved at the end of year four

social investment, we need Government and Treasury to

of the pilot programme (2019), with learner outcomes

get behind the programme, both publicly and financially.

suggesting that the majority of partnership schools

Not only will this reinforce the sustainability of the model

are on a positive trajectory (see page 20). We are now

for improved learner outcomes, it will lead to significant

focusing on building the evidence base to underpin PSP’s

economic savings for Government, too: with an improved

next steps and future expansion, with the aim of making

education system, far fewer children are likely to repeat

Public School Partnerships one of the available options

grades – a situation that has costs us billions of rands

for school improvement across the country.

over the years19. There are also long-term benefits of having a more educated populace, with knock-on results

An independent monitoring and evaluation (M&E) process

for employment figures, democracy and the stability of

is currently underway to cap off the pilot and distil the

the country.

many lessons we’ve learnt to further refine the model and make it more effective. The evaluation seeks to address

We began this pilot based on the core belief that every

the following questions:

child has the right to high-quality education regardless of

Are PSP schools on a fundamentally different

socio-economic status, and every parent and educator

trajectory towards quality education relative to

should be empowered to provide it. We believe that PSP

comparable no-fee public schools, as measured by

is a viable option for provincial education departments

learner outcomes?

to address consistent underperformance in schools,

What are the key lessons that have been learned

How should these lessons inform programme design

provided the right structures are in place. Hearing from people like Miss Mgemane, a teacher at a Collaboration

over the initial pilot phase?

School in Cape Town, that PSP has given hope to the parents and learners who had lost hope cements our

post-2021?

conviction that a model of this kind delivers far more

Preparing for the next phase also requires unpacking

than just better-managed, higher-performing schools – it

the financial sustainability of the model. Ultimately,

can inspire a sense of optimism and ownership that has

there is a limit to the scalability of this programme with

long been lacking in communities when it comes to the

the current group of funders, and possibly one or two

schooling of their children.

“I think Collaboration Schools

is the best the thing that has come out of South Africa. It has a positive impact because our learners who come from poor backgrounds can have access to free quality education… It has given hope to the parents and learners who had lost hope.” Miss Mgemane, Grade 3 Teacher Jupiter Street Primary, Ocean View, Western Cape

Frequently ASKED QUESTIONS

What is the role of the funder group? The funder group is committed to using their philanthropic funds, networks and people strategically to help make the pilot a success. Their role includes: a. Assisting with the identification and development of SOPs; b. Providing strategic vision and oversight; c. Contributing financial support in terms of start-up costs, operational costs, etc.

Is PSP a way to privatise education?

Do parents really have a choice in terms of their school’s participation in the pilot?

No. Public school operators will always be non-profit organisations accountable to provincial government for their performance. Actually, both Government and Cosatu

Critics of the pilot project scoff at the idea that parents

have already accepted that some publicly-funded services

might turn down extra funding and suggest that there’s

can be provided by either employees of the State or the

really no choice being offered at all. That is a patronising

private sector. Over 70% of the work of the Department

view. After nearly five years of working in these schools,

of Social Development is contracted to NPOs, and low-fee

our experience is that parents know what they want and

independent schools may obtain a per capita subsidy of

agonise over the risk of their children being let down

up to 60% of the equivalent allocation in public schools.

yet again by empty promises. Interestingly, parents at

PSP is the opportunity to build genuine and sustainable

the most politicised schools have opted for a ‘fifty-fifty’

partnerships that bring new expertise into government

relationship on the SGB, making it clear to the School

schools without the profit motive distorting public

Operating Partners that they will be equally accountable

provision.

for the failure or success of the school. This process has involved parents more actively and given them more hope than exists in thousands of dysfunctional

Do teachers who work at PSP schools lose their benefits?

SGBs across the country. The national Department of Basic Education is currently considering amendments

No. If they’re already employed in existing schools, they

to the Schools Act to tackle these weaknesses. This

stay on the Departmental payroll. In new schools, the

experiment shows how SGB competence and democratic

provincial government pays the school the equivalent of

accountability can be built at the same time when

their salary and benefits.

provision is made for local flexibility.

endnotes

1. Cohen, M. 2017. SA spends higher proportion of budget on Education

few underperformers who achieve a score of below 30%, and a handful

than US, UK. Fin24, 5 January 2017. Available at: https://www.news24.

of top achievers who score above 70%, with most learners being

com/fin24/economy/sa-spends-more-on-education-than-us-uk-and-

concentrated in the middle.

germany-20170105

12. Newer schools don’t offer a 2016 comparison, and high schools only write the systemic assessments once in Grade 9.

2. Initial funders comprised the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, the DG Murray Trust, Zenex, Millennium Trust, First Rand Empowerment

13. One World Network of Schools is a non-profit organisation working

Fund, Omidyar Network and Elma Philanthropies. Zenex exited in 2017,

to improve learner’s education by developing the next generation of

with the Maitri Trust joining the group in 2019.

school leaders.

3. PSP’s pilot phase runs from 2016 to 2020.

14. The Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI) is

4. In the Collaboration Schools model in the Western Cape, SOP members

part of the DBE’s schooling 2025 plan, which aims to improve learning

sit on the SGB and have voting rights. In the Partnership Schools model

outcomes and bring better access to education by eliminating the

piloted in 2018 in rural schools in the Eastern Cape, the SOP is not part of the

backlogs in schools infrastructure. The programme includes provision of

SGB. However, there is a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between

basic services such as water, sanitation and electricity.

the provincial department of education, funder group and SOP, which gives

15. Axium created the Nobalisa programme so that local members of

the SOP increased access to the school and a sense of authority.

the community can provide literacy/numeracy support in Grade 1-3

5. Howie, S. et al. 2017. Progress in International Reading Literacy Study

classrooms. For more information visit: https://www.axiumeducation.

2016. South African Children’s Reading Literacy Achievement. Summary

org/nobalisa

Report. Pretoria: Centre for Evaluation and Assessment.

16. Howie, S. et al., 2017. Progress in International Reading Literacy

6. Van der Berg, S. 2020. COVID-19 school closures in South Africa

Study 2016. South African Children’s Reading Literacy Achievement.

and their impact on children. Available at: https://theconversation.

Summary Report., Pretoria: Centre for Evaluation and Assessment.

com/covid-19-school-closures-in-south-africa-and-their-impact-on-

17. DGMT/WCED. 2018. An illustrative analysis of expenditure across

children-141832

Collaboration Schools.

7. The tests were introduced in 2001 and later updated in 2011 with the

18. Levy, B., Cameron, R., Hoadley, U. & Naidoo, V. 2018. The Politics and

help of the Centre for Evaluation and Assessment (CEA).

Governance of Basic Education - A Tale of Two South African Provinces. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

8. Moore, G.F. et al. 2019. From complex social interventions to interventions in complex social systems: Future directions and unresolved questions for intervention development and evaluation.

19. Van der Berg, S., Wills, G., Selkirk, R., Adams, C. & van Wyk, C.

Evaluation. Vol. 25(1), p23-45.

2019. The Cost of Repetition in South Africa. Working Papers 13/2019, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.

9. It is important to note that the addition and removal of schools over the past four years resulted in a different basket of schools each year,

20. A ReSEP (Research on Socio-Economic Policy) report, published

and this must be considered when doing year-on-year comparisons at

in May 2019 by the Economic Department at Stellenbosch University,

a programme level.

puts a conservative estimate of the number of learners repeating in our public schools at over 1 million per year. “This implies that the cost of

10. New schools that joined the PSP programme in 2019 and wrote the

having repeaters in the public education system was around R20 billion

systemic tests for the first time were excluded from this table as there

(in 2018 prices and based on the official data). At these costs, repetition

is no previous baseline. New schools include Jupiter Primary, Apex

could absorb between 8% and 12% of the national budget allocated to

Primary and Kraaifontein High.

basic education in 2018/2019.” For the full report, visit: https://www. ekon.sun.ac.za/wpapers/2019/wp132019

11. Ideally, a distribution curve mimics the bell-curve where there are

Editorial project management: Daniella Horwitz Copy editor: Esther Etkin

Design and layout: Penny Waterkeyn

Front cover image (Disa Primary): Koa Photography Photographs provided by Acorn Education, Common Good, Axium Education and School Turnaround Foundation

KHAYAKAZI NAMFU, Programme Director khayakazi@publicschoolpartnerships.org +27 21 670 9870

Produced by DGMT / Cape Town / November 2020 DGMT is a South African foundation built on endowments from Douglas George Murray and his wife, Eleanor. DGMT is committed to developing South Africa’s potential through public innovation and strategic investment. Our goal for South Africa is a flourishing people, economy and society. Towards this end DGMT currently distributes about R160-million per year and leverages and manages a similar amount of funding through joint ventures with other investors. 1 Wodin Rd Newlands Cape Town 7735 +27 (0)21 670 9840 www.dgmt.co.za