THE proposed reintroduction of school assessors would take the Western Cape’s education system "back to the archaic times", South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) provincial secretary Jonovan Rustin said.
The Western Cape government is considering the reintroduction of school assessors with sweeping powers to evaluate all aspects of education in the province.
The draft Western Cape Provincial School Education Amendment Bill, which is open for public comment until Friday, proposes the establishment of the Western Cape Schools Evaluation Authority with sweeping powers to interview staff, pupils and members of school governing bodies, on issues ranging from the curriculum to social and cultural development.
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The proposals might conflict with existing authorities, as well as the existing "whole-school evaluation" system, Rustin said.
Jaco Deacon, the deputy CEO of the Federation of Governing Bodies of South African Schools, said his organisation "had serious concerns" with the inspection unit.
Jessica Shelver, spokeswoman for Western Cape education MEC Debbie Schafer, said the proposed evaluation unit was aimed at providing increased transparency and accountability.
The model was still in development "and the tools and criteria will be discussed with stakeholders in the near future", she said.
Meanwhile, the Western Cape education department is gearing up for a face-off with Sadtu over systemic testing for mathematics and literacy scheduled for October. Sadtu has said its members would boycott the tests, which were a waste of time and money, and discriminated against teachers working in poor schools.
The provincial department has said the tests are intended to improve teaching and will benefit poorer schools.
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