The South African education system is attempting to keep up with the changing times, and this comes in the form of the General Education Certificate (GEC) which is currently in its pilot phase.
With many learners struggling to finish school for various reasons, through this GEC, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) is planning on developing scarce skills that are currently in demand in the labour market.
In South Africa, roughly half of learners who start Grade 1 will reach matric, while others drop out. Some reasons that students may drop out of school include needing to find work and support their families, struggling with the traditional education system, failing one or multiple grades, failure to understand their teachers and teenage pregnancy.
What Is The General Education Certificate?
This certificate, which will be awarded to Grade 9 learners, is not necessarily an exit certificate, but more so a way of assessing a learner’s first 10 years of schooling.
By Grade 12, learners are typically expected to know exactly what they want to study and what kind of career path they want to go down. But oftentimes, matric assessments come too late in pupils’ school careers. For this reason, the GEC will help students identify what they want to do earlier on in their schooling, giving them ample time to prepare for their futures.
A GEC will indicate competencies and inclinations and will also offer a more personalised view of what kind of pathways they should consider, providing them with some much needed career guidance.
Some learners may go for psychometric testing to help them decide what kind of career path they should follow based on their strengths and weaknesses, but the GEC will give every learner some of this information.
Usually, aptitude tests are only accessible to students at private schools or where parents have sufficient funds to send their child for psychometric testing. While the GEC is not an aptitude test, it does give learners some insight into where their competencies may lie.
Who Will A GEC Benefit?
The GEC will allow learners to choose alternative options, like vocational, technical or occupational paths, as opposed to the more traditional choice of attending university and studying for a degree.
While a GEC does not allow learners to apply for university, it does give them the opportunity to attend a Technical Vocational Education and Training College (TVET College), where their practical skills and interests can be put to good use.
Rather than finishing Grade 9 and moving on to Grade 10, learners will have the option of attending a school or TVET college which focuses on more technical skills like engineering, agriculture, aviation, mining or even sport.
50 technical colleges already exist in South Africa, however, the Department has encouraged more students to consider them as an option. There are also plans to expand the sector by adding 16 additional campuses and the Government has allocated 2.88 billion to this endeavour.
A traditional school environment is not for everyone, and different learners tend to have different strengths and interests and also have different methods of learning. If a more traditional pathway is not for you, then a GEC may be a helpful option.
What Does A GEC Mean For The Job Market?
With the world of work constantly evolving, the GEC aims to increase skills that are currently in high demand in the labour market. Some of these scarce skills include information technology, engineering, construction, agriculture and entrepreneurship, among many others.
With the exceptionally high unemployment rate in the country, obtaining these in-demand skills can give learners an advantage when they begin seeking employment.
A common part of a TVET College education is completing an apprenticeship. An apprenticeship allows students to gain practical work experience while studying, which typically leads to employment upon completion. In instances where it doesn't, students have still gained some valuable work experience that they can add to their CVs.
While this certificate remains in its pilot phase, the Department aims to have it administered in public schools by the 2024 academic year.
