A knowledge economy, as punted by government, needs innovative ideas to flourish, says Democratic Alliance shadow communications minister Marian Shinn.
She questioned the gap in president Jacob Zuma's State of the Nation Address regarding ICT skills and development.
“Where is the realisation that we need to have a crisis intervention strategy to boost the teaching of maths and science to broaden young minds and inform new, marketable projects and services?
“Instead, we got a sick joke about how much education had improved. That was, indeed, a tragic moment in the whole speech.”
Zuma said in his address that government's intensive focus on education is paying off. “We are pleased that the matric percentage pass is on an upward trend. We will continue to invest in producing more teachers who can teach mathematics, science and African languages.”
Dirk Hermann, deputy executive head of Solidarity, says the trade union welcomes the president's plans to invest in big infrastructure projects, but is worried about the emphasis on empowerment instead of the development of South Africans through education.
According to Hermann, it is good that Zuma congratulated the matriculants who excelled in the examination of 2011. “Nonetheless, South Africa's education problems have unfortunately been underplayed. Especially, the low pass rate in physical science and mathematics is worrying.
“These subjects are essential for further studies in scarce professions, and if one looks at the low pass rates, it is not surprising that SA's skills problems only increase year after year.”
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