Knowledge mobilisation in education in South Africa

Abstract

The legacy of apartheid education presented enormous challenges to the government at South Africa‟s transition to democracy in 1994. Eighteen racially separated departments of education for different race groups had to be integrated. A new assessment, qualification and certification structure and new accountability and support structures were required. In terms of financing wide disparities in the per capita allocation for students of different race groups had to be addressed. The curriculum was outdated, both in terms of formal knowledge, but also in terms of the racial and gender biases it contained. The infrastructure of most schools and many higher education institutions was in a dismal state and required considerable capital investment. Through a series of discussion documents, white papers, green papers, bills and laws, the massive task of transforming education was undertaken in the years following transition. Resting upon the crucial South African Schools Act of 1996 for schools, and the White Paper of 1997 for higher education, a unitary, non-racial system of education provision was created, with one national and nine provincial departments responsible for overseeing the delivery of education.