A move by North West and Limpopo not to renew the contracts of “educators without permanent residence permits” has left a gaping hole in education, with some maths and physical science classes having to double up to accommodate up to 66 pupils at a time.
The Limpopo provincial education department did not renew the contracts of about 254 foreign teachers when they ended in December.
And the North West education department could not say when replacements will be found for 211 foreign teachers whose contracts were terminated at the end of last year.
This comes in the wake of the recent publication of a critical skills list by the department of home affairs, which includes the teaching of science, technology, engineering and maths in grades8-12 as among the 101 jobs in short supply in SA.
Limpopo issued a circular on November 8 stating that the permanent filling of promotion posts would affect “temporary educators” appointed against these posts.
“The contracts of foreign educators without permanent resident permits appointed as temporary educators in substantive posts will not be renewed in order to comply with the Employment of Services Act.”
The employment & labour department has proposed amendments to the act in a move aimed at limiting foreigners working in SA.
It said in a statement last month that proposals would be released for a three-month public comment process before the end of March, once the cabinet approves the department’s submission.
The Sunday Times established that at just three Limpopo schools, Tshivhase Secondary, Thengwe High and Thohoyandou High, the contracts of 15 foreign teachers had not been renewed.
Thengwe High’s governing body re-hired a physical science teacher who had been teaching matric for 12 years. The school also got the Epoch and Optima trusts, which are aimed at improving excellence in maths, to pay the salary of another teacher.
A senior teacher at the school, which produced 24 distinctions in physical science in matric last year, said they had “lost experience which cannot be replaced”.
“The teachers had produced very good results over the years. We are [now] forced to teach up to 66 pupils in a matric class in physical science,” the teacher said.
A senior teacher at Thohoyandou High confirmed that the contracts of four foreign teachers, including three who taught maths and one physical science, were not renewed.
A foreign teacher who has been teaching for 13 years and has had a permanent residence permit since September 2017 said the department had not communicated with them. The department denied this.
“We should have been at least informed in 2021 by way of termination letters that there was no place for us in 2022. One would have saved some money to be able to survive. People did not put money aside because we reasonably expected to be employed,” said the teacher.
He said if the idea was to employ locals in place of foreign nationals “we don’t understand why even holders of permanent residence permits and South African identity documents were also replaced by locals”.
The teacher, who has a bachelor of education degree said: “In other provinces, if you occupy a substantive post and you have an ID, you are made permanent in 12 months or less but in Limpopo you remain a temporary teacher.”
Professor Chika Sehoole, dean of the education faculty at the University of Pretoria, said if the contracts were not renewed because Limpopo has developed capacity to fill those posts “which I doubt, then it’s understandable”.
“If they are not renewed because they are foreigners, then we are shooting ourselves in the foot. It is well known that our education system has failed to produce skills in the science, technology, engineering and maths fields.”
Professor Kerstin Jordaan, executive director at the South African Mathematics Foundation, said removing teachers with suitable qualifications and experience will have a negative impact if replacements are not found.
She said grade 10-12 maths and science teachers “are in high demand and very scarce”.
George Motsoeneng, acting president of the South African Principals’ Association, said vacant posts in Limpopo “will definitely pave the way towards learner underperformance in maths and physical science”.
“The province must promptly recruit teachers to facilitate effective implementation of the annual teaching plans in these key subjects.”
Limpopo education department spokesperson Tidimalo Chuene said the foreign teachers’ contracts clearly indicated they would end in December.
Chuene said that the contracts of foreign teachers and local temporary teachers were not renewed because the department first wants to fill all “promotion posts”. She said they could not renew any contract in January 2022 until this process was concluded.
“The department does not discriminate nor has any preference whether to employ locals over foreign educators or not. It employs people based on their meeting the minimum requirements for appointment,” said Chuene.
“They [foreign teachers] have an opportunity to contest for posts as and when they are advertised.”
Her department has appointed 61 foreign teachers on a permanent basis, she said.
Asked if the posts left vacant by foreign teachers had been filled, she said the department is still collating information from schools.
North West education spokesperson Elias Malindi said the department intends to recruit 148 new teachers, who were recipients of the government’s Funza Lushaka bursary scheme, to replace the 211 teachers.
His department did not respond to questions on how many of the 211 teachers had already been replaced.
Basic education minister Angie Motshekga ’s spokesperson, Hope Mokgatlhe, said many provinces “have discontinued the usage of foreigners in favour of South African teachers ”. “If provinces feel they have more unhired, young South African teachers to appoint, those provinces should discontinue with foreigners. Northern Cape can’t do that because people do not want to work there.”
While North West and Limpopo have not renewed the contracts of foreign teachers, the Northern Cape is “struggling to recruit and retain” maths and physical science teachers.
Spokesperson Geoffrey van der Merwe confirmed they have 392 foreign teachers.
Eastern Cape education department spokesperson Mali Mtima said the department has 402 foreign teachers, including 400 who are employed on a permanent basis and two on yearly contracts.
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