Education in South Africa

How to get the right education for your expat children

Your expat guide on education in South Africa will help you to get a better picture on the following topics:

• Current situation and standard of education

• How to get the right education for your children

• The best schools in Cape Town

• School calendar for South Africa: school holidays

• Pre-school education-choices

• Universities and Colleges

• Language Schools in Cape Town

Education in South Africa: current situation

The average ratio of learners to teachers is 33:1 in public schools and 18:1 in private schools.

There are 2,000 private or independent schools in South Africa. Over 400,000 students attend private schools. 70% of these students are black.

In 2008 the retention rate for the first nine years of schooling, which are compulsary, is at 95 %, however the drop out rate after the nine years of compulsory schooling lies at up to 15% according to Naledi Pandor, Minister of Education.

Basic education and training in South Africa

This basic general school education and training is divided into three phases:

• Foundation phase: grade R (reception) – grade 3

• Intermediate phase: grade 4 – grade 6

• Senior phase: grade 7 – grade 9

Some schools offer grade 0 or R classes for children in preparation to start school for children starting in the year they turn six.

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.

Sometimes the grades are still referred to as Standards, i.e. 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. Some schools offer French instead of Afrikaans like the international schools. Xhosa is taught in Cape Town high schools usually from grade 7, but you will find Xhosa classes taught also in lower grades.

What is the standard of education in South Africa?

After 14 years of democracy the country is still fighting against the historical inequalities. Nowadays the class divide is as obvious as the racial divide was in apartheid times.

The majority of the black children struggle with substandard education. These pupils often who live in poorest conditions in rural areas or townships of the major cities.

During the last ten years quite some progress was made to heighten the levels of education in South Africa. The overcrowding and sanitary situations were addressed, so a government report (NEIMS) states that 74% of the schools are in good or excellent condition.

However there is a lot of unhappiness among the learners and teachers due to a lack of service delivery by some of the teaching staff, poor conditions in the homes of learners and lack of support of the department of education.

But there is no doubt that major improvements are planned to improve this situation and first steps are being taken.

Education in South Africa for expat children

Here is a checklist for you when looking for the right education for your expat children in South Africa.

 Check out the area where you want to live. Please always consider the travel to work and school as during rush hour it can take a considerable longer to arrive at your destination.

 Check out the schools in that area, I recommend you have a look at both public and private schools to form an opinion about the education at the schools as well as after-school activities available in that area.

 Check out the homepages of different schools and read the homepages carefully. See especially the pages about the school philosophy or “mission statement” where the school explains what they want to teach the children, which values and beliefs they hold onto and how they want the kids to achieve their goals.

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