Home schooling is a programme of education that a parent may provide to his or her child at home.
It is prescribed that a parent of a learner who is of compulsory school-going age should apply to the Head of the Department of Education of the province involved to register the learner for receiving education at home. This is in fact not the case. The Constitution of South Africa allows for homeschooling without registering with the Education Department. There are steps in place to try and amend this, but no new laws have been promulgated as yet. The following are compulsory phases of education:
The foundation phase (grades 1 – 3)
The intermediate phase (grades 4 – 6)
The senior phase (grades 7 – 9)
A parent of a learner who is no longer of compulsory school-going age or grade need not apply for registration for home schooling.
It is ‘prescribed’ by the Education Department that after the learner has been registered for home schooling, the parent must do the following:
Keep a record of attendance.
Keep a portfolio of the learner’s work.
Maintain up-to-date records of the learner’s progress.
Keep a portfolio of the educational support given to the learner.
Keep evidence of the continuous assessment of the learner’s work.
Keep evidence of the assessment and or examinations at the end of each year.
Keep evidence at the end of Grades 3, 6 and 9 that shows whether the learner has achieved the outcomes for these grades.
Steps to follow
It is suggested by the Department of Education that a parent must:
apply to the head of the Department of Education of the province where they live to register a child (learner) for home schooling;
submit the application form with a copy of the learner’s birth certificate;
supply documentation that outlines the unit standards the parent will facilitate (teach).
The application forms can be obtained from any provincial Department of Education.
The majority of homeschoolers in South Africa have elected not to register with the Department of Education but choose instead to register with a homeschooling defensor organisation that protects their constitutional rights.
There are a number of curricula available for purchase in South Africa, covering a variety of homeschooling methods. Some families choose the unschooling or eclectic approach.
Whichever method is decided upon by the homeschooling family, the important aspects are that the child or children get a one-on-one interaction with their educator/parent in a loving, safe and secure environment and the child is allowed and in fact encouraged to develop at his or her own pace.
Contrary to popular belief amongst professional educators in South Africa, a lack of socialisation is rarely a factor when considering homeschooling your children as they have constant interaction with the family, and very often close support groups are formed within communities enabling the child or children to interact with individuals of all ages, thus developing their own social skills whilst allowing them to actually enjoy their learning experience.”
This entry can be edited so if there is anything that you would like to add on homeschooling in South Africa please pop along to the links above and add your bit. They do make a point of saying hat absolutely no links to sites or advertising is allowed, as it is a page providing factual information.
The options for students who consider to consolidate debt loans abound. Consolidate debt loans thru the U.S. Department of Education program would be the best option. Direct Consolidation Loans allow borrowers to combine one or more of their Federal education loans into a new loan that offers several advantages.
One Lender and One Monthly Payment: With only one lender and one monthly bill, it is easier than ever for borrowers to manage their debt. Borrowers have only one lender, the U.S. Department of Education, for all loans included in a Direct Consolidation Loan.
Flexible Repayment Options: Borrowers can choose from four different plans to repay your direct consolidation loans, including an Income Contingent Repayment Plan. These plans are designed to be flexible to meet the different and changing needs of borrowers. With a Direct Consolidation Loan, borrowers can switch repayment plans at anytime.
Standard Repayment Plan: You will pay a fixed amount each month until your loan(s) are paid in full. Your monthly payments will be at least $50 for up to ten to thirty years, based on your total education indebtedness.
Graduated Repayment Plan: Your minimum payment amount will be at least equal to the amount of interest accrued monthly. Your payments start out low, and then increase every two years for up to ten to thirty years, based on your total indebtedness.
Extended Repayment Plan: To be eligible, your Direct Loan balance must be greater than $30,000 and you will have up to twenty five year to repay your loan(s). You have two payment options:
Fixed Monthly Payment Option -You will pay a fixed amount each month until your loans are paid in full. Your monthly payments will be at least $50.
Graduated Monthly Payment Option – Your minimum payment amount will be at least $50 or the amount of interest accrued monthly, whichever is greater. Your payments start out low, and then increase every two years.
Income Contingent Repayment Plan (ICR): Monthly payments that are based on a borrowers annual income, Direct Loan balance and family size, and are spread over a term of up to 25 years.
No Minimum or Maximum Loan Amounts or Fees: There is no minimum amount required to qualify for a Direct Consolidation Loan! In addition, consolidation is free.
Varied Deferment Options: Borrowers with Direct Consolidation Loans may qualify for renewed deferment benefits. If borrowers have exhausted the deferment options on their current Federal education loans, a Direct Consolidation Loan may renew many of those deferment options.
In addition, borrowers may be eligible for additional deferment options if they have an outstanding balance on a FFEL Program loan made before July 1, 1993, when they obtain their first Direct Loan.
Reduced Monthly Payments: A Direct Consolidation Loan may ease the strain on a borrower’s budget by lowering the borrower’s overall monthly payment. The minimum monthly payment on a Direct Consolidation Loan may be lower than the combined payments charged on a borrower’s Federal education loans.
Retention of Subsidy Benefits: There are two (2) possible portions to a Direct Consolidation Loan: Subsidized and the unsubsidized. Borrowers retain their subsidy benefits on loans that are consolidated into the subsidized portion of a Direct Consolidation Loan.
Having the best information before you consolidate debt loans for students could do more good to you than not having known what your benefits are. Now you can say you are well informed and thus make an informed decision when you do consolidate debt loans.
The Roosevelt Elementary School District, located in the Phoenix Schools area on the south side of the city, is in serious trouble. The primarily low-income district has been dealing with turmoil for years, and the possible takeover by the Arizona Department of Education only exacerbates the situation.
Last December, Arizona Department of Education held a meeting in one of Roosevelt’s school gyms to present the situation to all concerned. Over 200 parents, teachers and other community members were present as Arizona Schools Chief Tom Horne, flanked by 25 of his top staff members, laid out the Phoenix schools Roosevelt district’s problems. Five members of the Phoenix schools Roosevelt district board were present.
Horne, a Harvard-trained lawyer, did not mince his words as he presented slide after slide and graph after graph that illustrated the large negative numbers that concerned this Phoenix schools district. Many in attendance were visibly stunned by the enormity of the situation with which they and the district are faced.
One point that Horne hammered home to the five Phoenix schools’ Roosevelt district board members present, as well as the audience, was that other school districts were doing much better with similar resources. Three neighboring Phoenix schools’ districts have just as many impoverished families as the Roosevelt district. They have just as many students with English as a second language, who need the extra time, resources and coursework to learn English in order to succeed in the Phoenix schools. Yet, these three Phoenix schools’ districts have between 64 and 78 percent of their students performing at grade level in math for the third grade, with Roosevelt at 45 percent; and 62 and 72 percent in reading, with Roosevelt at 34 percent. The same is true in the other score measurements. In all 27 separate measurements, Roosevelt is substantially below the other three comparable Phoenix schools’ districts. That is nearly double the number of students showing academic achievement, as compared to Roosevelt. (You may view Horne’s graphs at: http://www.ade.az.gov/administration/superintendent/articles/RooseveltDistrictSpeech.pdf
.)
What really hit home for the people in attendance is that Roosevelt receives per student funding above the state average, yet no other district in the state has performed so poorly. In 2005, the Arizona Department of Education ranked 10 of the Roosevelt schools as “underperforming”. The district has only 21 schools. This was an unprecedented amount of “underperforming” schools in the Phoenix schools area.
Things must improve rapidly for the Phoenix schools’ district. Otherwise, the state will take over the district and all its schools. Horne is applying pressure to overhaul the district’s practices and replace ineffective personnel. Meanwhile, Horne has called for legislation to allow the state to take over entire districts and school boards for poor student performance.
The Roosevelt district has taken the threat of takeover by Horne to heart. This year, they have initiated many major changes, including:
o New and innovative practices;
o District educators are working together to develop a guaranteed and viable curriculum;
o Teachers at all levels are involved in curriculum mapping, which helps a teacher understand what standards to teach students and when to teach them;
o A standards-based progress report now replaces the number grade reporting system, helping teachers and parents understand the language of standards and create a consistency between district reports and the results of the statewide test; and
o A comprehensive curriculum guide was developed and implemented that includes standards and a curriculum pacing calendar.
Only time (and a very short time, at that) will tell if these changes will be enough to elevate the Phoenix schools’ Roosevelt district’s underperforming schools. If not, then the district will be under new management — the state.