South Africa's approach to school safety: can it succeed?

Advances in Early Childhood and K-12 Education, 2019

This chapter provides an overview of the crisis surrounding school safety in South Africa in general and in Mamelodi East in particular. It outlines a case study of the context and crisis in primary schools there, laying bare the brutal truth of bullying, vandalism, and gangsterism in these schools. Research into senior primary, high, and primary schools led to an empirical investigation which included interviews with school principals. This confirmed a reality that is being ignored: the current education system is in fact creating more opportunities for violence, bullying, and impoverishment. While resources such as the National Safety Programme exist, their translation into real measures and interventions remains questionable. Amongst other interventions, a more relevant Afrocentric curriculum and training for teachers is recommended. All stakeholders in education, community, home, and industry need to be held responsible for this dire situation and to take collective action.

South African Journal of Education, 2023

There is growing concern regarding the inadequate infrastructure in South African schools leading to unsafe environments for teachers and learners. This qualitative single case study involved interviews with 18 participants, including 6 high school principals and 12 mathematics teachers that were sampled purposively and conveniently. The interviews were transcribed and thematically analysed. Additionally, school premises were observed, and field notes were recorded. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theoretical Framework guided the study. The findings highlight the urgent need for attention to school infrastructure. Educators expressed a lack of knowledge regarding school safety policy procedures, which hindered their effective implementation. Poor safety conditions were found to be detrimental to teaching and learning. We emphasise the necessity for policymakers, principals, teachers, and stakeholders to gain a deeper understanding of safety aspects in South African schools, particularly regarding infrastructure deficiencies. Recommendations include providing training sessions on school safety policy procedures for principals and teachers. Additionally, newly appointed teachers should receive induction on school safety policies during their initial days at a new school, addressing the identified absence of such inductions.

Qeios, 2023

The attainment of objectives within the school system is contingent upon the presence of a favourable environment (Ajani, 2022). The escalation of school violence in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, which has resulted in the disruption of academic activities, has raised concerns among education stakeholders regarding the crises in schools. Numerous instances of violent incidents resulting in fatalities and damage to both human life and property have been documented (Mahaye, Dlomo & Ajani, 2022). The occurrence of multiple established incidents has resulted in a lack of stability within schools, thereby creating an environment that is not conducive to effective teaching and learning. The present study investigates diverse factors contributing to educational instability in KwaZulu-Natal, drawing upon data derived from published literature and the authors' firsthand involvement as education administrators. The study's findings show that crime and violence are primarily responsible for school instability. Typically, incidents of violence and criminality in educational settings are the result of internal factors involving both learners and school staff members or maybe the result of external forces coming from members of the local community. Multiple strategies have been identified to mitigate instances of violence in the school setting, to foster a secure and favourable atmosphere for educational activities. In addition, several proposed measures have been put forward to ensure the stability of schools in the KwaZulu-Natal province. These include moral guidance, heightened security measures, the cultivation of emotional intelligence, instruction in philosophy, specifically African philosophy (Ubuntu), and the enhancement of teacher welfare packages.

2002

Ngogi Emmanuel Mahaye, 2019

Incidents that disrupt academic activities have continued to be on the rise in schools in KwaZulu Natal (KZN) province. There have been reported cases of violent acts which led to the deaths of learners, teachers and other school administrators. These incidents cause instability in schools and render the school environment non conducive for teaching and learning. This paper was designed to highlight the various causes of school instability in KZN using data obtained from published articles and personal experience as an education administrator. It was also designed to make recommendations on the possible ways that school instability can be matigated in KZN province.The results showed that violence and crime are the major factors that lead to school instability. It was found that violence in schools can be caused internally by learners and teachers or it can be caused by external persons such as community members. The paper presented the various ways through which violence can be reduced in schools in order to ensure that the school environment is safe for teaching and learning. It was recommended that moral instruction, enhanced security, development of emotional competence, teaching philosophy and improving the welfare packages of teachers are some of the various ways that school instability can be mitigated.

Qeios

The aim of this academic paper was to investigate educators’ perceptions of how learners’ rights to safety affect disciplinary procedures in secondary schools in the Umbumbulu Circuit of KwaZulu-Natal. The study adopted a qualitative approach, where semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 10 purposively selected educators. The thematic analysis technique was employed to analyse the data. The main findings of the study indicated that educators had their own perceptions of how learners’ rights to safety affect the way they attend to disciplinary issues when a learner has transgressed. The educators’ perceptions of learners’ rights to safety affect disciplinary procedures for many reasons, including poor understanding of relevant education laws and policies. The results also showed that teachers think that the legislation guiding teaching and learning, as well as disciplinary procedures, is marred with contradictions, which make discipline management not only difficul...

Proceedings of NAPPS Southwest Delegates Conference, 2016

2009

Education law and policy currently focus on broader physical aspects of safety and security at schools, as well as, for example, on pedagogical insecurity such as is caused by discriminatory teaching, but law and policy have yet to pay attention to the overall and far-reaching pedagogical safety and security of learners. By means of a descriptive study, quantitative in nature, we explored teacher and learner responses to a questionnaire in order to determine to what extent teachers accommodate diverse pedagogical needs in the classroom. The significance of this article lies in its exploration of pedagogical safety and security in a South African context that extends education law literature beyond the established knowledge base on physical safety and security. The research found (1) discrepancies between teachers' approaches towards teaching and accommodating learning needs, (2) deficient equipment of teachers to meet the pedagogical needs and fundamental rights of learners, and (3) lack of accommodation of learners' preferred learning styles.

Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education

This study analysed secondary TIMSS 2019 data for respondents from South Africa and proposed a model containing ten constructs; nine independent variables (socio-economic status and eight variables about safety aspects in schools) and one independent variable (mathematics achievement). Qualitative data was also collected using interviews and field notes. The HLM model identified the following significant predictors to learners' mathematics achievement: learners whose family members were frequently insulted; who were victims of theft; who were forced to do things they didn't want to do; who were physically hurt; living in impoverished areas; enrolled in schools with a shortage of or inadequate instructional space; enrolled in schools where physical injury amongst learners is a problem; disrespecting property. Findings from the thematic analysis indicated that participants believed that schools' safety concerns are associated with learners' mathematics achievement and that difficulties in developing and implementing school safety policies are due to a lack of training.

Journal of Social Sciences

As part of its legislative mandate to provide 'Quality Education for All' in the country, the Department of Basic Education in South Africa is committed to the creation of a safe and secure learning environment for all learners. To create such environment, the Department has developed a national policy on school infrastructure called National Education Policy for Equitable Provision of an Enabling Physical Teaching and Learning Environment. The policy has come up in response to international conventions on the rights of the child to education; constitutional and legal imperatives relating to the issue; and the national school infrastructure realities. In addition to these, consideration has been given to international studies that continue to show a positive relationship between learning outcomes and the physical environment in which teaching and learning take place. This study seeks to shed light on the implications of this policy for school-based management by reviewing literature on school infrastructure from the academic, legal, theoretical and practical perspectives. The implementation of this policy, as this study reveals, has serious practical implications for school-based management of infrastructure. Key management issues relating to policy implementation and its implications are discussed.