SA’s government despises young people, says Jansen
The government has ‘institutionalised low expectations’ in the schooling system, and black pupils suffer for it
The South African government has "institutionalised low expectations" in the schooling system and this has disadvantaged many black pupils who attend public schools, says Prof Jonathan Jansen, a former vice-chancellor and rector of Free State University. Speaking on Tuesday evening at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business about his new book, As by Fire, Jansen — who has been outspoken about the poor performance of SA’s schooling system — said that the lowering of expectations showed the government did not take young people seriously. "It’s a government that despises young people … where else in the world does 20% in maths [count as a pass?] ... We have to raise the standards. It’s unbelievable what young people can achieve when you take them seriously and raise expectations," said Jansen. The government came under fire recently for tabling a proposal that could result in key subjects such as mathematics being removed as a compulsory requirement in the progression o...
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