The Department of Basic Education (DBE) has accused the Democratic Alliance (DA) of carrying out a sustained misinformation and disinformation campaign about the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) bill.
What The DA Said About The BELA Bill
The DA labelled the bill as regressive and flawed following the Gauteng BELA bill public hearing.
They say parents in the province reject the bill while expressing their concern about the perceived threat to their parental rights, particularly the freedom to choose homeschooling as an educational option for their children.
It was also implied that parents indicated that they were concerned about the bill's intention to diminish the powers of School Governing Bodies (SGBs) while giving excessive powers to the MEC and the Head of the Department.
The overwhelming rejection from concerned parents emphasises the need for a thorough re-evaluation of the proposed legislation, particularly towards homeschooling regulations and the stripping of SGBs’ power to determine their language and admission policies.
Education Department Responds
The DBE said the DA’s labelling of the bill was a desperate attempt to delay much-needed transformation in administrative aspects of the basic education sector.
In fact, the views of the few individuals who attended the public hearings do not represent the majority of views expressed around the country.
The education department added that parents who objected to aspects of the bill related to admissions and language policies want to perpetuate the status quo as far as diversity in schools is concerned.
It is important to note that the BELA BILL is making amendments to certain sections of the South African Schools Act of 1996 to respond to administrative challenges and to continue with the transformation agenda of our education system.
Homeschooling has been a contentious issue with the BELA bill with some homeschooling practitioners accusing the DBE of attempting to infringe on parents' rights.
The DBE says the BELA bill aims to establish a comprehensive registration system for children educated at home.
Under the proposed legislation, parents will still have the freedom to select a curriculum for their children, provided it meets internationally recognised standards and does not fall short of the quality offered in public schools.
Furthermore, the BELA Bill introduces measures for the intervention of the Head of Department (HOD) in matters concerning language development and admission policies.
The DBE said these interventions are not aimed at usurping the authority of SGBs but rather ensuring compliance with national legislation.
Mr. James Ndlebe, Chief Director for Planning and Implementation Support said that unchecked powers of SGBs could impede equitable access to education.
The Bill provides for intervention steps that the HOD should take when confronted with language or admission policy that is discriminatory without imposing his authority unlawfully.
The DBE stresses the importance of these interventions for achieving transformation within schools and promoting mother-tongue instruction.
Ndlebe believes that the bill addresses broader societal challenges, acknowledging historical ethnic divisions in school planning and advocating for inclusivity in access to education.
It should be noted that this is not a battle against a particular language grouping. It is a country-wide challenge where schools are built along ethnic groups. Now that the there is a racial and ethnic mix in all communities, some children are still unable to access schools in their neighbourhoods because they have been designated to serve a particular ethnic group
