Varsity students can’t read

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Balstrome

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SA gets dumb and dumber
Nkululeko Ncana and Werner Swart Published:Aug 12, 2009

THE shocking state of South Africa’s education system was laid bare in Parliament yesterday.

Most of the country’s first-year university students cannot read, write and comprehend, according to a report presented by education management body Higher Education SA to the portfolio committee on higher education.

The education body chairman, Theuns Eloff, told the committee the outcomes based curriculum has failed to produce competent pupils.

Eloff said: “As university managers we are concerned that the ability of learners from high school to read, comprehend and write is declining … and they are bad spellers.”

He said universities that conducted competency tests in English and Afrikaans — the dominant languages of instruction — have reported a decline in standards.

Among the universities that participated in the study were Pretoria, Free State, North West and Rhodes.

Eloff told The Times: “One may say we must do the tests in indigenous languages, but we have always done it in the two languages for black students in the past as well and the outcome was a higher level of understanding then.

“One of the unintended consequences of the OBE [outcomes based education] is that we stopped having comprehension tests and reading and spelling.

“You don’t learn to spell and comprehend, and that is nonsense.”

Eloff’s remarks come hard on the heels of a recent report, compiled by a panel of educationists led by University of the Free State vice chancellor Jonathan Jansen, which concluded that the country’s schooling system was “dysfunctional”.

The panel reported that there was “confusion” among teachers about outcomes based education .

Professor George Euvrard, Dean of Education at Rhodes University, said he has noted with concern the competence levels of students arriving at varsity, and has found that many are “significantly unprepared”.

Euvrard said: “It’s asking an enormous amount of lecturers. They are prepared to teach at a certain level and when they deal with students who [don’t have basic skills] it can be quite frustrating.”

He said the problems experienced by universities with first-year students was an indication of the need for the education department to go back to the drawing board.

“I agree there is a lower standard and students are less prepared. It probably suggests it [OBE] needs to be reworked,” he said.

Euvrard said universities are having to extend their teaching programmes to ensure that students reach the standard required for entry into the work force.

“We spend time making up for the deficits,” he said.

DA MP Wilmot James said university resources are being used to deal with under-prepared students and the result is that those resources are being diverted from where they should be.

James, a former University of Cape Town academic, said: “If we had a system where students in universities are qualified to be there in terms of skills and expertise, we would have a much better university system.”

Eloff said the problem was compounded by the belief that the country’s further education and training colleges are inferior. This, he said, has resulted in universities being flooded by students who otherwise would be in these colleges.

He said academic staff in most universities can no longer cope with the increasing numbers.

“So we have serious understaffing in some subjects. By and large we have too few staff members to cope, and this is aggravated by the fact that we now have more students who need more attention, and we are struggling,” Eloff said.

In an apparent contradiction of recent calls for the broadening of access to higher education for the poor by Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande, Eloff said some universities were considering capping student numbers to improve the quality of teaching.

The growing numbers of students have made this impossible for lecturers, many of whom are expected to publish scholarly articles in areas of their expertise.

Higher Education SA’s figures show that student enrolment has been growing by 6.6% a year 1995, resulting in a current student population of about 800000.

Eloff said the decline in university funding has hampered universities’ ability to address shortages of staff.

Nzimande last night declined to comment, saying he had not yet seen the report.
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http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=1048324

Nzimande last night declined to comment, saying he could not yet read the report. ???? :p
 
The problem lies with our school system.

My eldest was in grade 6 and only after having him tested independantly that we realised he was reading at grade 2 level!

I promptly stopped paying my schoolfees and is waiting for them to summons me for it.

The problem is the same as what the cops are battling with....statistics.

Teachers are passing students even if they do not master their subjects. Because it makes them look better on paper.:D
 
Schools was better in my day, we were learnt to spell and comprehend at least; now these poeple want to cap varsity; its bad!
 
True, its changed a lot since we attended school.

Its a disgrace how the standards fell here.

Kids are off school a lot more these days, no corporal punishment, overcrowded classrooms, unqualified teachers.....

Dreadfull to think where it might end up.
 
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rebel998 said:
The problem lies with our school system.

My eldest was in grade 6 and only after having him tested independantly that we realised he was reading at grade 2 level!

I promptly stopped paying my schoolfees and is waiting for them to summons me for it.

The problem is the same as what the cops are battling with....statistics.

Teachers are passing students even if they do not master their subjects. Because it makes them look better on paper.:D
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If your child can't read you got nobody else to blame than yourself. Blaming the school LOL
 
So, this problem has 2 solutions.

1: Rework the failing schools system (thereby admitting that gov made a mistake with obe)
2: Rework the varsity system so that you can get your degree without understanding what you studied (and improving the number of graduates in the process, making gov look good)

Anybody wana bet on what solution gov is gona go for?

Oh, please don't complicate the matter by pointing out the obvious: If you lower the standard at varsity you won't have worldwide recognised degrees, that is beside the point. :D
 
Pilgrim said:
2: Rework the varsity system so that you can get your degree without understanding what you studied (and improving the number of graduates in the process, making gov look good)

Anybody wana bet on what solution gov is gona go for?

Oh, please don't complicate the matter by pointing out the obvious: If you lower the standard at varsity you won't have worldwide recognised degrees, that is beside the point. :D
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I dont think thats the complete issue. Some varsity's budget depends on the number of people register for the course. Sure, if you cant read, you'll epic fail the exam - but the varsity doesn't care, it got what it wanted out of the students - money.

I've seen it before. They've made classes for first year first semester easy, and then nail the hard stuff in the 2nd semester to remove the riffraf from 2nd year where the real studying begins.
 
That is why you do a comprehension test before you get admitted when you fail they send you a letter stating the Varsity is full and you should try the next year. They are not allowed to tell you that you are to fsuking stupid and should go back to primary school.
 
Would these students that cannot read, write or comprehend, be the same ones that have been trashing CPUT? :/
 
a certain level of loss needed to be accepted here... just start clean from grade 1 and increase the level.. it will take 10 years but will work.... those who fell by the wayside unlucky...
 
Pretty sad that these 'students' use MXit language, and Wikipedia as references. :rolleyes: I remember when we lost a point for each spelling/grammar mistake we made. We could read and write back then...and it's not even so long ago.
 
The ability to read well and comprehend is a skill that will serve you throughout your life, opening doors, easing the way, making you coherent and gaining you respect.

It is a skill that naturally makes learning easier, it is a skill that leads to other skills.

It is the base skill from which further learning transpires.

Factors that influence the base skill are:

- parents who cannot read and thus cannot help the child
- parents who can help, but do it wrong by getting upset and impatient with the child
- parents who can read, but don't and don't have books at home

I have met many people over the years that can read and write, but most only on a basic skill level, I have met many people that have degrees that are as thick as tar, those that can read and write but cannot comprehend the information they read, though they can memorise it.

Reading and the comprehension thereof is the first step to an enlightened existence, the more information you can process and understand, the more broadminded, informed and cosmic being you become.

The alternative is : narrowmindedness, lack of the facts and understanding, inability to communicate coherently and thus a mind ready to be indoctrinated, swindled and swayed comes into existence.

Education really is the key to a better life for all of us.
Voters who can read and comprehend will vote with their intellect.

I don't blame the education system for this lack in basic skills.

Parents it is your child, if your child needs to practice their reading and writing, make sure they do.

Did you know that most people with exceptional reading skills, were reading before they went to school ? Yes, the parents taught them.

That classrooms are crowded are true, that teachers are often overworked is true, but the onus on getting your child off on the right foot, rests in your court, put in the extra work and time with your child in grade 1 & 2 and you will be able to relax the rest of the way whilst your child proceeds to grade 12 and beyond without an educational hitch.
 
Eish and this same government wants us to do NHI. What an utter gigantic F-up that is going to be.
 
School systems are failing. Varsities are forced to transform and let people in who are not suppose to be there because of there lack of education.

Sad state of affairs as its bringing the Uni's rep down :(
 
wrathex said:
I don't blame the education system for this lack in basic skills.

Parents it is your child, if your child needs to practice their reading and writing, make sure they do.

Did you know that most people with exceptional reading skills, were reading before they went to school ? Yes, the parents taught them.

That classrooms are crowded are true, that teachers are often overworked is true, but the onus on getting your child off on the right foot, rests in your court, put in the extra work and time with your child in grade 1 & 2 and you will be able to relax the rest of the way whilst your child proceeds to grade 12 and beyond without an educational hitch.
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I agree,its way too easy to outsource your child's education,the rat race has become more important.If your child fail,you as a parent failed.

And Mila i don't know why you bothered with that pointless remark...this is not a color issue.
 
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