Many learners in South Africa have struggled at school due to the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw multiple school closures occur throughout the past year. This has resulted in the learner dropout rate tripling to about 750 000 during the Covid-19 pandemic, this is according to the latest NIDS-CRAM survey which looked at the impact of the pandemic and the lockdown on South African households.
Education Researcher at the Department of Basic Education, Nompumelelo Mohohlwane says that these numbers could potentially affect South Africa's technical skills base which is needed to grow the economy.
There are many reasons why learners were not able to return to school such as having to take care of their families because family members were unemployed due to the pandemic, parents fearing their children's health and safety and a lack of resources.
"The biggest predictor of drop out from earlier in life is your academic foundations, such as learning to read and learning to do math in primary school. If that is not achieved on time that creates this vulnerability to dropping out," says the Director of Research and Monitoring for the Department of Basic Education Dr Stephen Taylor.
He says the increase in drop outs over the past year is because this vulnerability has been worsened by the pandemic.
Mohohlwane says that these findings have shown how the school closures, rotational learning and phased reopening of schools have impacted school attendance. She says it supports the department's call for the return of full-time attendance at schools.
"It's a number we're tracking and it's part of what has informed our call to go back to traditional timetabling with full attendance from term 3," she told CapeTalk.
Dr Taylor says that it is imperative that the quality of learning and teaching is improved so that learners can find an interest in learning which will keep them attending school on a regular basis.
He says that teacher training for all teachers even those who are already qualified would contribute well to improving the quality of education.
The department has recently announced an exit certificate which could improve the career path of learners in school.
Dr Taylor says that the introduction of the general education certificate at the grade 9 level could improve the way learners are channeled into the different career and learning pathways.
In the recent Human Resource Development Council (HRDC) summit, Deputy President of South Africa, David Mabuza, urged the government to address the issue of learners dropping out of school before finishing their matric year because it threatens the country's path to economic recovery.
We must address the issue of young people who drop out at various points of their schooling, as the implications of delaying this response explain a cohort of young people robbed of practicing their natural talents.
