Continuing Education and Training Act, 2006 (Act No. 16 of 2006)

Notices

National Norms and Standards for Funding Community Education and Training College

Part E : Funding Challenges in the CET Sector
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16.It is acknowledged that there are funding challenges in the sector, the effects of which manifests themselves in the following manner:

 

(a) Inappropriate CET college institutional infrastructure

 

Infrastructure remains a challenge for CET colleges. The majority of CLCs are hosted in schools as per the protocols signed between the Department and the PEDs. The offering of CET programmes in school facilities has resulted in lack of proper tools, equipment, security and suitable furniture to support teaching and learning for youth and adults.

 

There is a lack of appropriate infrastructure to support students with special needs and

information and communication technology, amongst others.

 

(b) Lack of diversity of programme offerings or lack of responsiveness and inability to introduce new programmes /qualifications. The CET colleges are limited in terms of programme diversification, the introduction of new programmes and innovation of responsive programmes require additional funding.

 

(c) Inadequate learning and teaching material

 

Due to limited funding the CET colleges are unable to fully comply with the National Policy on Learning and Teaching Support Materials (LTSM), which requires colleges to provide quality LTSM to all lecturers and students for the effective delivery of the curriculum. An attempt is being made to at least provide for the fundamental learning areas however the rest of the learning areas are compromised. Lack of LTSM undermines the quality of provision and improvement of teaching and learning. It has also proved to be a discouragement to both the lecturers and the students.

 

(d) Standardisation of the conditions of service for lecturers.

 

The Department inherited the AET system with lecturers who were on varied methods of employment, which ranges from permanent fixed -term contracts to temporary employment and this continues to occur to date.

 

(e) Lack of human resource capacity

 

Most lecturers within the system are underqualified, unqualified or qualified but inappropriately placed and this leads to inability of lecturers to deliver the programmes as intended for.  There is also a lack of support staff, particularly for student support services.

 

(f) Lack of capacity to manage and administer CET examination

 

At the point of AET function shift in 2015, the management and administration of the CET examinations remained with the Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) with the intention that the Department would build its own capacity within 2 years. In June 2017, the Department took a decision to extend the protocol regarding the administration of examinations by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) to 31 March 2022. This is as a result of a lack of personnel with appropriate skills for examination administrations.