EDUCATION - The African Mirror

Aug

26

2020

Zimbabwe makes it illegal for schools to expel pregnant girls

EDUCATION

FARAI SHAWN MATIASHE ZIMBABWE has made it illegal for schools to expel pupils who get pregnant, a measure women's rights campaigners said would help tackle gender inequality in the classroom and stop many girls from dropping out of school. A legal amendment announced last week seeks to reinforce a 1999 guideline that was patchily implemented and comes as school closures due to coronavirus raise fears of a rise in sexual abuse and unwanted pregnancies. Many parents of pregnant girls, or the girls themselves, decide to quit schooling due to the pregnancy, and schools do not always do enough to encourage…

Aug

22

2020

By The African Mirror

Young South Africans are shut out from work: they need a chance to get digital skills

EDUCATION

WALTER MATLI, Researcher and senior lecturer, Vaal University of Technology Most young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in South Africa continue to be denied access to information and communications technology because of poor infrastructure and the digital divide. The cost of mobile data is part of the problem. For example, compared with its fellow members of the BRICS group of nations, South Africa has the highest average price for 1GB of mobile data. One gigabyte of mobile data costs an average of US$1.01 in Brazil, $0.61 in China, $0.52 in Russia and $0.09 in India. It costs an average of $4.30…

Sep

28

2020

By The African Mirror

Case law suggests South Africa must do more about disrupted schooling

EDUCATION

MARIËTTE REYNEKE, Associate Professor in Education law, University of the Free State SINCE the first case of COVID-19 was reported in South Africa, the question of how to manage the country’s schools has been top of mind. Schools were closed in March and, as part of a phased approach, began returning from June. The risks associated with the pandemic mean the situation could change at any moment. There has been much debate about whether schools should be open at all. Some have pointed out that children’s rights – to dignity, life, equality and education, among other things – must be…

Sep

26

2020

By The African Mirror

Why the Child’s Rights Act still doesn’t apply throughout Nigeria

EDUCATION

USANG MARIA ASSIM, Senior Researcher/Lecturer, Children's Rights and the Law, University of the Western Cape NIGERIA adopted the Child’s Rights Act in 2003, giving legal consent to both the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The country’s constitution states that for an international law to take effect, Nigeria’s legislature must create a national version. But as Nigeria operates a federal system of government, the law does not automatically become applicable in all of its 36 states. In terms of the constitution, children’s issues are the…

Sep

15

2020

By The African Mirror

Millions of African children rely on TV education during pandemic

EDUCATION

NAZANINE MOSHIRI FIVE-YEAR-OLD Kenyan student Miguel Munene sits between his parents, holding their hands as he watches cartoon characters teaching him to pronounce “fish”. The television has replaced Munene’s teachers and classmates after the government shut schools indefinitely in March to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. They are closed until at least January. Many children don’t have the option to learn online - the United Nations children’s agency UNICEF says at least half of sub-Saharan Africa’s schoolchildren do not have internet access. So some, like Munene, watch a cartoon made by Tanzanian non-profit organisation Ubongo, which offers television…

Sep

15

2020

By The African Mirror

South African universities need to know why students’ suicide risk is so high

EDUCATION

JASON BANTJES, Associate Professor in the Psychology Department, Stellenbosch University AN estimated 800,000 people die by suicide globally each year. It’s the second most common cause of death in people aged 15 to 29. University students around the globe are more at risk of suicidal behaviour than the general population. It’s important to understand the reasons so that effective interventions can be planned to prevent suffering and death. An international group of experts, working as part of the World Health Organisation’s World Mental Health International College Student Initiative, has been established to investigate the high rates of psychological distress among…

Sep

11

2020

By The African Mirror

Zimbabwe’s education law now does more for children, but there are still gaps

EDUCATION

RONGEDZAYI FAMBASAYI, Doctoral Researcher: Faculty of Law, North-West University ZIMBABWE recently adopted the Education Amendment Act, 2020, to align its Education Act with the country’s Constitution. The amendment is a result of consultations about how every child could realise the right to free basic education. The Act has fairly extensive provisions to protect, respect and fulfil the right to education for all children. It addresses issues pertinent to education, including the prohibition of expelling pregnant girls from school, free and compulsory education, sexual and reproductive health issues, and the rights of learners with disabilities. As a researcher focused on children’s…

Sep

10

2020

By The African Mirror

Nigerian charity tries to salvage a slum’s schooling amid pandemic

EDUCATION

ANGELA UKOMADU and NNEKA CHILE OUTSIDE her home in the Lagos slum of Makoko, Esther Ikechukwu stacks two upturned buckets, places a handbag on top and rests a tablet against it. Her balancing act finished, the desk and the 17-year-old are ready for school. The coronavirus pandemic shut Nigeria's schools in March. Already with more children out of education than any other country, 13 million according to the United Nations, the virus threatens even more futures. Most at risk are those like Esther, growing up in Nigeria's slums with few social safety nets. Authorities say schools could soon begin a…

Oct

02

2020

By The African Mirror

Password education should be age-appropriate: here’s how

EDUCATION

KAREN RENAUD, Visiting Professor of Cybersecurity, Rhodes University SUZANNE PRIOR, Lecturer in Computing, Abertay University CHILDREN are increasingly being exposed to, and using, technology from a very young age. This has never been more true than in 2020 when the vast majority of children worldwide have used online resources to access educational resources and communicate with family and friends during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of the resources and websites used, along with the devices they are accessed on, require the use of a password to authenticate the user. However, young children don’t necessarily have the skills and knowledge required to…

Oct

05

2020

By The African Mirror

Online and in the classroom, COVID-19 has put new demands on teachers

EDUCATION

NHLANHLA MPOFU, Associate Professor, Rhodes University AS a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, schools were on lockdown in South Africa from March 2020. They only partially reopened in June, despite teacher unions’ concerns about the timing and lack of adequate protection for teachers and learners. The unions’ objections about having to work in conditions that posed a risk to health were understandable. But they have been less vocal about the teachers’ need to be equipped with the skills and infrastructure to teach during a pandemic. The unpredictability of the pandemic and the restrictions on social interaction remain in place. No…