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Moral values and education in South Africa

Moral values
The ethics of a society is embedded in the ideas and beliefs about what is right or wrong; it is also embedded in the conceptions of satisfactory social relations and attitudes held by the members of the society; the forms or patterns of behavior are considered by the members of the society to bring about social harmony and cooperative living, justice, and fairness.
African Cultural Values includes: Sense of community life, good human relations, the sacredness of life, hospitality, the sacred and religion, respect for authority and the elders and sense of language and proverbs.

Problem
There is a big gap between the moral values espoused by the South African constitution and those of the majority of the country's citizens.
The constitutional edifice does not reflect the views of the majority.
The majority wants to keep the old traditions.

Moral Regeneration Movement
Vision: A just, tolerant and moral society for the common good.
Values:
>Responsibility and Accountability
>Honesty and Integrity
>Equity and Equality
>Respect and Tolerance
>Environmental Awareness

Bantu education during apartheid

Education for blacks children in 1953
- Schools for blacks (run by missionaires)
- 3 hours lesson a day (two shifts of children - morning and afternoon)
- They just learned things that would make them good for what the government wanted (cheap factory workers etc.)
- One of the offensively racist laws of government
Hendrik Verwoerd: " There is no place for [the Bantu] in our community above the level of certain forms of labour... What is the use of teaching the Bantu child mathematics when it cannot use it in practice? That is quite absurd. Education must train people in accordance with their opportunities in life, according to the sphere in which they live. (justification of the government)
- Bantu education was one of the main points for the begin of apartheid, because the population was classified in intellectual groups

The developments structure of education
- S.A. has one of the highest rates of public investment in education in the world
- Each of the nine provinces has its own education department
- Two ministries of the National Department of Education:
Basic Education and Training (focused on primary and secondary school and early childhood development centers)
Higher Education and Training (responsible for tertiary education up to doctorate level, technical and vocational training, adult basic education and training)

Three bands of education today
South Africa's National Qualifications Framework (NQF) recognizes three broad bands of education:
- General Education and Training (7 - 9)
- Further Education and Training (10 - 12)
- Higher Education and Training
School life spans 13 years or grades, from grade 0, otherwise known as grade R or "reception year, through to grade 12 or "matric - the year of matriculation
General Education and Training (GET) runs from grade 0 to grade 9

Vocabulary:
embedded = verwurzelt
combat = bekämpfen
aim = zielen
sacredness = Heiligkeit
espoused = eingesetzt
edifice = Gefüge
Equity = Gerechtigkeit

Sources:
http://gibs.co.za/community/community_1/mediaportal/media-releases/do-south-africas-moral-values-match-our-constitutions.aspx
http://www.mrm.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1214&Itemid=604
http://www.blackherbals.com/african_cultural_vaules.pdf
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/african-ethics/

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