The nurturing of world-class citizens who possess the skills of the future does not start at matric, but at the foundational phase, says MEC Matome Chiloane
The Nkone Maruping Primary School was a hive of activity last week as hundreds of stakeholders converged in Braamfischerville, Soweto, for the Gauteng Department of Education’s (GDE) maiden Early Childhood Development (ECD) Open Day.
GDE senior officials, led by MEC Matome Chiloane, met with other key role players in the sector such as municipalities; government departments; local leaders; ECD practitioners; principals; NGOs; service and training providers; and associations working to share information and best practice on improving the sector.
Practitioner and principal of Junior Stars in Orange Farm in southern Joburg, Nosipho Solontsi, was inspired by the Reggio Emelia Alliance stall.
“I don’t have anything that speaks to the sciences and environment that my children can interact with to learn more about these subjects. I love that I can do a display using natural things we can collect as a centre to teach our children
“I will be picking up stones, leaves, twigs … it will be a gamechanger for my children,” she said.
Solontsi’s centre is fully registered. “It is a little centre with only 24 children, but I tell my parents that here at Junior Stars we are building stars,” said the 34-year-old.
The message from the GDE – under which the ECD sector falls since its migration in 2022 from the Department of Social Development to Basic Education – is clear: for the sector to function efficiently, all stakeholders need to put their shoulders to the wheel.
The exhibitions were a diverse mix of authorities such as municipalities and government departments, as well as service providers and non-profit
organisations which assist with renting out toys at affordable rates to training providers.
Sne Nompula of Cotlands was ready and willing to share the different services her organisation provides to the ECD sector, including a toy library that a centre can rent for only R150 a year.
“We provide it as service to disadvantaged creches that cannot afford to buy their toys. For a small fee, a centre can borrow toys,” she said.
ECD centres were encouraged to work with the department to ensure that they are compliant with regulations governing the sector, including registering with the department. Because ECD centres provide such an important service of shaping the minds of South Africa’s future, the department committed to assist centres to ensure they meet the basic requirements to operate.
In his keynote speech, MEC Chiloane emphasised the critical role the sector plays, saying: “The nurturing of world-class citizens that possess the skills of the future does not start at matric, but at the foundational phase of our children’s education.
“The first six years of a child’s life are crucial because the brain is developing the most.
“The ECD sector lays the foundation because whatever the child learns during the first years of their life will have a lasting effect on them,” Chiloane told the hall, which was packed to the rafters with some attendees listening from outside the big open doors.
The MEC added that, through the ECD system, children with learning difficulties could be identified early and provided with much-needed intervention to ensure they have a firm educational foundation.
“With all difficulties, the earlier you identify them, the higher the success of treatment for them. If you can see early on that your child is struggling, early treatment will help resolve the issue before it becomes more serious.”
MEC Chiloane stressed that ECD shaped children’s identities. “The more positive experiences a child has early on, the more they will develop a positive outlook on things and be more optimistic despite their situations.ECD will also help them to develop confidence and great self-esteem,” he said.
Chiloane said ECD affected children’s success at school and had a major impact on future learning abilities in school.
Gauteng has more than 10 000 ECD centres and only 20% of them are registered, and the department wants to change that.
Director for ECD at the department, Phumelele Tloubatla, said one of the reasons the department hosted the Open Day was to bring all stakeholders under one roof and to convey the message that the department wants to help ECD centres to comply, not to shut them down.
“We are aware of the different challenges faced by the sector and we want to assist them where they are so that they comply with the Children’s Act and the norms and standards for ECD centres,” he said. “We will create a plan and provide assistance to help them to fully comply over a period of time,” she said.
Tloubatla said there were different registrations under which a centre could operate, depending on resource and space constraints.
She said the ECD sector was so important it was even identified as the first strategic goal of the Gauteng Department of Education. “We take the development of our young citizens seriously,” she said.
Social worker, Lindeni Sekhokoane, from Randfontein in the West Rand Local Municipality, was also there to answer any questions on by-laws and the role her municipality plays in assisting with compliance for registration.
She said in her visits to centres she was accompanied by a town planner and a health and building inspector to provide comprehensive feedback.
“When it comes to compliance, we have the children in mind. We want to ensure safety of the children and we want children to be stimulated. We also want children to have access to ECD centres in their area. Our aim is not to shut down any ECD centres but to say how can we help you to comply within a certain period of time,” she said.
“Lack of good ECD education exposes children to different dangers in society,” she said, explaining that the municipality is a partner in ensuring good ECD education.
- If you would like assistance to register an ECD centre in Gauteng contact Head Office Enquiries: ntheki.kgukutli@gauteng.gov.za or mantwa.mogashoa@gauteng.gov.za
