Pretoria - The Department of Basic Education (DBE) and TEACH South Africa have signed an agreement that would see an increase in more maths teachers in the country, the department said on Monday.
Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga pointed out that many schools did not have qualified mathematics teachers, especially in the rural areas.
She said the new partnership would see TEACH South Africa placing TEACH ambassadors in schools to address the “shortage of qualified mathematics teachers in the system”.
She said this partnership “forms part of the DBE’s national strategy to address the shortage of mathematics teachers, as well as ensuring the promotion of mathematics as a subject necessary for the growth of the South African economy”.
TEACH South Africa is an organisation that “recruits and selects top performing young graduates in the field of Mathematics, Science and English from universities across the country and places them in disadvantaged and rural schools for a minimum period of two years”.
Since it started in 2009, the organisation had placed 382 TEACH ambassadors in eight provinces, and in 228 schools, impacting about 25 000 pupils.
Acknowledging the challenges in placing highly qualified teachers in schools that needed them, Motshekga said: “We come from a past where not all learners have had the opportunity to take mathematics as a subject in school, hence the shortage of qualified mathematics teachers today. We need to work hard to ensure that all learners, no matter their social-economic background have every opportunity available to take up careers of their choice without any limitations.”
TEACH South Africa Executive Director Richard Masemola said: “This large placement enables us to achieve a greater impact across the country. We are proud to partner with the Department of Basic Education to improve the quality of education for children irrespective of their economic background by increasing the pool of quality mathematics teachers in South Africa.”
African News Agency