Anger over number of unqualified teachers
A R10 000 bribe can secure qualified teachers a job
THERE has been an outcry following the revelation that more than 1 100 under-qualified or unqualified educators last year occupied teaching posts in the Zululand, King Cetshwayo and uMkhanyakude districts.
Out of 2 875 teachers lacking the necessary qualifications in KwaZulu-Natal, the three local districts recorded a combined total of 1 179.
‘Sometimes a teacher with a Bachelor of Commerce degree will be asked to teach maths, but because they have no methodology in teaching, they are considered unqualified,’ said KZN Department of Education spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi.
He said there is a high demand for education in the province, particularly in the rural areas owing to the high number of learners and schools.
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In rural areas in the past, qualified teachers would choose employment in the city and in order to keep classrooms operating, someone with a Grade 10, for example, would be hired.
But Phindile Dlamini, who holds a Bachelor of Education degree from UNISA, said she has been unable to secure a job since graduating last year.
‘The fact that there are so many unqualified teachers in the system while as a qualified teacher I can’t even get a temporary job, really angers me,’ she said.
The 38-year-old from Enzalabantu in KwaMbonambi said every door she has knocked on has produced no positive outcome.
‘In March I went to Gauteng to try my luck at 16 schools and I still have not received any response.
Instead I have been told at a number of districts that they are not allowed to hire,’ she said.
She revealed that she was advised that a payment of R10 000 could secure her a post in Mtubatuba.
‘A friend of mine said there is someone in Mtubatuba who is selling teaching posts at R10 000, but I’m a single mom and can’t afford that.’
Another source, also shocked by the number of unqualified teachers in the system, said he was also made aware of a teacher at a school in the northern region who paid R10 000 to a school principal for a job.
Mahlambi condemned the selling of teacher posts.
‘People with evidence about people selling posts should report this to the police because that is extortion, which is a crime,’ Mahlambi said.
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