Content Disclaimer: The information used on ExpatCapeTown.com is obtained from sources that we consider to be reliable; however, no representation is made as to, and no responsibility or liability is accepted for the accuracy or completeness of the information provided. The retention rate for the first nine years of schooling, which are compulsary, is at around 95%, however the high drop out rate after the nine years of compulsory schooling is worrying. The continent of Africa and gender equality are two of UNESCO’s top. For girls to be successful, they need equal access to a quality education. The retention rate is stated to be as low as 55% of the total intake in 2003. standard 2 means grade 4 and standard 6 means grade 8. In Grade 3 a second language is introduced usually Afrikaans or English which depends on the first language offered. Zulu culture is fascinating, with a long history – and these ten facts will help you see just why! about finding the right school in South Africa. Mandela and de Klerk, who both wanted to reach a peaceful solution to South Africa’s problems, met with representatives of most of the political organizations in the country, with a mandate to draw up a new constitution. However, there are excellent public schools, often so-called former Model C-Schools, which either are mainly located in the more affluent suburbs of the cities and which are supported by various (mainly private) initiatives. Facts About Girls’ Education in South Africa. However, in more conservative areas (especially remote townships), being openly LGBTQ+ can lead to discrimination and crime. This exposes girls to the risk of violence on their travels to and from school. "South Africa's Matric Pass Rate - 1995 - 2018." The tertiary attainment is the lowest across all OECD and partner countries! Statistics suggest that crime affects primarily the poorest of South Africans. Efforts to address inequality, overcrowding and disastrous sanitary situations need to be addressed and it will certainly take a long time to remedy the lack of funding and initiative of the past. In the Black community especially, homosexuality is still frowned upon. Brash Johannesburg, city of gold and South Africa’s cultural capital, with skyscrapers of concrete and glass separated by canyon-like streets contrasting with townships on its outskirts. At around 7.1 million, South Africa has the most people living with HIV/AIDs in the world. Only 6% of all adults aged between 25 and 34 years have a tertiary education in South Africa. OECD. In Grade 6 more than 11% did not reach sufficient achievement in their Home Language, levels meaning achieving less than 40% in their first language and over 36% failed in Mathematics. Schooling is compulsory from grade 1 to grade 9 in South Africa, i.e school starts for the children in the year they turn seven and they have to attend school until they turn 15. In recent years it has achieved notoriety for the high numbers of crime and rape cases seen there as well. Numbeo ranks crime levels in Johannesburg as being very high, achieving a 91.61 out of a possible crime score of 100 as of March 2016. Information and Data Usage Notice: All data and content on ExpatCapeTown website is for your information and personal use only. In South Africa, there are 12.7 Million learners in 30,000 schools. What are the new Matric Pass Requirements." This figure is more than double the number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, the country with the second highest HIV/AIDS population. BusinessTech. In many African countries, far more boys attend school than girls. It is a vast country with widely varying landscapes and has 11 official languages, as well as an equally diverse population. Get a taste of cultural alphabet soup from archaeology to Zulu, with a dash of Corne, jukskei, kwaito and quagga on the way. Though there is still much progress to be made in ensuring gender equality in education in the country, these facts about girls’ education in South Africa can provide a model for other sub-Saharan countries. Over 4% of all pupils attend independent/private schools. Women occupy a lower social status than men and are socialized to work in the home and be mothers. The rate of crime in the townships in which millions live, particularly gender-based violence, is extremely high compared to those in the suburbs of major cities. In general, expats generally rank South Africa quite high in regards to providing quality education for their younger children. Although some recent statistics suggest that the education system is failing the majority of children, placing South Africa at the second last position on the international league table (OECD 2017), there are signs that during the last twenty-five years quite some progress was made to increase the levels of education in South Africa. 26,000 of these are public schools, while 15,000 of these state schools are primary schools. Girls face sexual harassment and assault in schools from both fellow students and teachers. https://businesstech.co.za/news/government/350805/the-big-changes-coming-to-south-african-schools/. – The Huffington Post, https://borgenproject.org/wp-content/uploads/The_Borgen_Project_Logo_small.jpg, 10 Facts About Girls’ Education in South Africa, How the Media Misrepresents Senegal as Poor and Helpless, Fighting Malaria with Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes, Facts About Girls’ Education in South Africa. There are only 450 special schools for learners with special needs. HSBC ExpatExplorer 2019. https://www.expatexplorer.hsbc.com/survey/country/south-africa Accessed 20 November 2019, "South Africa - Education at a Glance 2019. But South Africa is not just about scenery and wildlife, fabulous as it is. In Grade 9 tests, 37% of the learners achieved better than 50%, in Mathematics only 3.4% of all learners achieved marks higher than 50%! You may not copy, redistribute, sell or make the data available to a third party for any commercial or public purpose without having received prior written agreement by ExpatCapeTown.com. The United Nations Educational and Scientific Cultural Organization (UNESCO) works to ensure that every person has access to a quality education. The gender gap is small in South Africa. A is for Archaeology. For official information on the Covid-19 situation, please follow this link. The standard of education in South Africa varies from region to region and school to school. Information contained herein is subject to change at any time without notice. The OECD average stands at 38%. The average results for Annual National Assessments (public schools, latest data from 2013) in Grade 4 were: Home Language 49%, Mathematics 37%. Please note: Sometimes the grades are still referred to as Standards, i.e. One of South Africa’s Oldest Clans ; The Zulu people were originally a clan in what is now known as Northern KsaZulu-Natal. Crime levels have been attributed to poverty, problems with delivery of public services, and wealth disparity. Most of the private schools are located in Gauteng and the Western Cape. Various programs have been developed to work to improve girls’. Have a look at the special page on the various types of schools in South Africa and about finding the right school in South Africa. The information used on ExpatCapeTown.com is obtained from sources that we consider to be reliable; however, no representation is made as to, and no responsibility or liability is accepted for the accuracy or completeness of the information provided. The financial burden to the local governments as well as to the pupils' families, who often belong to the previously disadvantaged population, is high. There are only 450 special schools for learners with special needs. Xhosa is taught in Cape Town high schools usually from grade 7, but you will find Xhosa classes taught also in lower grades. Successful girls and women are critical to furthering the development of developing countries such as South Africa. This basic general school education and training is divided into three phases: Some schools offer grade 0 or R classes for children in preparation to start school for children starting in the year they turn six. Though South Africa has made progress in reducing racial discrimination since the. Many schools in South Africa could be described as 'dysfunctional' but according to the Department of Education the schooling system is finally 'changing for the better'. In South Africa, However, these enrollment rates hide the large racial disparities that exist in South Africa’s education system. The average ratio of learners to teachers is 29:1 in public schools and 18:1 in private schools. Technogirls is a project that works to support girls in pursuing careers in math, science and technology — typically male-dominated fields. Girls are also at a disadvantage in attaining quality education because of the patriarchal nature of South African society. Image Credits: If not otherwise noted © shutterstock and own images, After School Clubs and Extramural Tuition, Bradley Prior. The current state of education in South Africa is a worry to many a parent. Naturally, LGBTQ+ travelers are safer expressing their sexuality openly (barring any graphic PDA) in big cities where it's more prevalent. Parent24. South Africa is more than a cultural melting pot, it’s a big warm potjie of culture, full of different ingredients and yummy surprises, and developing its rich flavour over centuries. Most of the statistics we accessed, however, suggest that South African pupils lack basic skills and knowlegde compared to their peers around the world and that the education standards in South Africa are, in general, very poor. You may not copy, redistribute, sell or make the data available to a third party for any commercial or public purpose without having received prior written agreement by ExpatCapeTown.com, Current Situation of Education in South Africa, School Terms and School Holidays in 2019 and 2020, Education and Schools Directory 2019/2020. Due to a lack of financial support smaller schools in rural areas have to close and a lack of sufficiently educated and motivated teachers as well as a lack of facilities places a huge strain on the system. Accessed 20 November 2019, Education Statistics in South Africa in 2014. Private schools working on a different curriculum than the state's highly controversely discussed CAPS-curriculum, generally have better retention rates and higher education standards - and they provide a different set of final exams in the final years of schooling such as IEB or Cambridge exams. Some basic Education Facts. “The Borgen Project is an incredible nonprofit organization that is addressing poverty and hunger and working towards ending them.” More. Though there are many challenges among these facts about girls’ education in South Africa, GEM, Technogirls and UNESCO are making strides in the right direction. There are 1,600 private or independent schools in South Africa. We're happy to advise you! Girls and women are four times more likely to be. Johannesburg is South Africa’s largest city, with an estimated population of over 4 million people, and it’s also the capital of Gauteng province. If you want to help and make a difference in the life of South African children, here are some great initiatives to support: More info on Living in Cape Town with Kids, Return from Education in South Africa to ExpatCapeTown Homepage. The majority of pupils still live in poorest conditions in rural areas or the growing townships of the major cities. Girls from rural disadvantaged communities are given priority in the selection process. In many African countries, far more boys attend school than girls. llll Volunteer in South Africa: Top 10 programs for your volunteer work 2021 Volunteering in South Africa is your chance to experience all the different colors of the 'Rainbow Nation'. MyBroadband. Despite this fact, millions of women and girls worldwide lack the same access to quality education as men and boys, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Crime in South Africa includes all violent and non-violent crimes that take place in the country of South Africa, or otherwise within its jurisdiction. International expats rated the options in South Africa for getting a good private education, quality childcare and exceptional after-school-activities among the highest in the world - in 2014. Some schools offer French instead of Afrikaans like the international schools. 5 January 2019. https://mybroadband.co.za/news/government/290732-south-africas-matric-pass-rate-1995-to-2018.html Accessed 20 November 2019, Ayesha Fridie. " accessed 20 November 2019, "Compare South Africa". © 2008-2020 ExpatCapeTown.com All rights reserved. These initiatives not only improve girls’ education in South Africa, but they also provide an example by which other developing countries can improve their education systems for girls. In fact, in the 2019 OECD report, more women achieve an upper secondary or post-secondary education than men. Volunteer with elephants at an elephant sanctuary or with big cats in the wild. June 16, 2016, marks the 40th anniversary of the Soweto Uprising (also called the Soweto Rebellion) in South Africa. Major developments such as the introduction of mandatory early childhood education have been implemented already and an increased expenditure per pupil will improve the situation as first steps already have been taken. 10 Facts About Zulu Culture . AP Images. It is bordered by Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Swaziland and Lesotho (which is completely surrounded by South Africa). The average ratio of learners to teachers is 29:1 in public schools and 18:1 in private schools. South Africa, however, is unique. 28 October 2019. https://www.parent24.com/Learn/Matric-past-exam-papers/what-is-a-matric-pass-20160106. Cape Town (Afrikaans: Kaapstad [ˈkɑːpstat]; Xhosa: iKapa;) is the second-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg, and also the legislative capital of South Africa.. Colloquially named the Mother City, it is the largest city of the Western Cape province and forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality.The Parliament of South Africa is situated in Cape Town. The graduation rate of students at public universities is very low. This deemphasizes the importance of receiving an education. South Africa is located at the southern tip of Africa. Brand South Africa reporter. More recently, the 2019 expat survey scores are not as high anymore, but for learning South Africa still ranks 21st out of 33 countries. Violence against girls in school is a serious issue in South Africa. South Africa's education system is facing major challenges. Students in these schools often do better than students in most public school. Girls who are selected become interns in various companies and enter a mentoring and skills development program with scholarship opportunities. From high school students, who started schooling in 2003 and could have written their final Grade 12 exams in 2015, only about 45% finished high school. "The Big Changes coming to South African Schools." Girls cannot learn well under these circumstances. South Africa - South Africa - Postapartheid South Africa: Mandela was elected president of the ANC in 1991, succeeding Tambo, who was in poor health and died two years later. Among undergraduate students the graduation rate stands at a low 15%, at 20% for Master students and 12% for doctoral students in 2013. However, there is a big divide depending on the provinces as well as the different school districts and even various schools in these districts. 3 November 2019. Education is a basic human right and key to improving people’s quality of life. 26,000 of these are public schools, while 15,000 of these state schools are primary schools. Information contained herein is subject to change at any time without notice. In South Africa, primary school enrollment rates are roughly equal: from 2008-2012, the primary school enrollment rate for boys was 89.7 percent; for girls, it was 90.9 percent. https://www.oecd.org/education/education-at-a-glance/EAG2019_CN_ZAF.pdf . Primary school is attended in grades 1 to 6, while high school goes from grade 7 to grade 12, when the children will have their matric exam, that is matriculation, A-levels or baccalaureate or Abitur. Many schools are far from children’s homes, forcing children to walk long distances to school. All data and content on ExpatCapeTown website is for your information and personal use only. These occurrences cause girls to fear going to school, and some to stop going altogether. The cities are amazing and highlight the country’s diversity. In South Africa, there are 12.7 Million learners in 30,000 schools.