2
CONSTRUCTION WORLD
OCTOBER
2014
nies and bodies in South Africa to improve
the numeracy of future engineers are by no
means enough to address the very serious
bigger problem.
What the report (flawed or
not) found
The country came last, 144
th
out of 144 coun-
tries, for maths and science teaching. It was
placed 140
th
for the quality of its education
system, 117
th
for internet access in schools, and
133
rd
for quality of primary education.
South Africa was placed 93
rd
for tertiary
education enrolment rate (as gross percentage),
118
th
for primary education enrolment rate (net
percentage), and 133
rd
for business costs of
crime and violence.
South Africa was 56
th
out of 144 countries
on the WEF's global competitive index.
After the report was released, the Demo-
cratic Alliance said that it confirmed that
maths and science, and teaching in general,
were in crisis. The DA’s spokesperson, Annette
Lovemore went as far as saying that “all types
of artisan and every category of engineer are
now imported; we are simply not producing
these skills through our own education system."
Government cognisance?
Basic Education Minister, Angie Motshekga
tasked a team of experts to examine media
reports and research that criticised the
>
COMMENT
EDITOR
Wilhelm du Plessis
ADVERTISING MANAGER
Eugene Botha
LAYOUT & DESIGN
Lesley Testa
CIRCULATION
Karen Smith
TOTAL CIRCULATION:
(Second Quarter ’14)
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PUBLISHER
Jenny Warwick
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Tandym Cape
She graduated in 2008 from the University of
Cape Town with a BSc (Eng) Civil degree and
has since been recognised as a born leader and
had exposure to various aspects of HHO Afri-
ca’s core business. She has completed various
technical courses and is enrolled in the CESA
Business of Consulting Engineering course as
part of the ongoing training and growth – for
HHO Africa and the industry in general.
Makgalemele was promoted to the posi-
tion of principal engineer in March 2014 and
an empowerment shareholder in HHO Africa.
Sadly, Makgalemele’s meteoric rise – which
gives impetus to empowerment – is an isolated
enclave of hope. The World Economic Forum
(WEF) recently released a global competitive
report that found that South Africa has the
worst maths and science teaching in the world.
Yes, there are problems with the report: no
standardised tests were conducted to assess
the quality of maths and science education
in the countries surveyed and secondly the
ranking was derived from an annual ‘Executive
Opinion Survey’ carried out by the WEF that
draws on interviews with various unidentified
‘business leaders’. As such it was rejected by
the Education Department.
The fact remains: there are serious prob-
lems with our maths and science teaching –
subjects that form the foundation upon which
a successful career such as that of Makgalemele
can be built. The efforts by various compa-
At the recent Consulting Engineers
South Africa (CESA) awards for
excellence, Makotsene Makgalemele
from HHO Africa, won the Young
Engineer of the Year award.
national senior certificate pass requirements
(currently only 30%). According to the 188-page
report it was recommended that the depart-
ment considers making mathematics a
compulsory subject.
A national campaign to educate people
about the value of mathematical literacy and
mathematics was suggested.
An improvement in overall numeracy is not
going to happen overnight. For many years to
come, Makgalemele (and those before her) will
be an example of what could be.
Wilhelm du Plessis
EDITOR
Twitter: @ConstWorldSA
