The Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA, 2020) reveals that the debate over class size has been waged in Alberta for decades. It came to the fore in 1980 during the Calgary public teachers’s strike and  was the subject of a recommendation of the Kratzmann Report (The Kratzmann Commission was created to investigate the 1980 Calgary strike and to make recommendations). The issue of class size has again become the subject of debate thanks to the many attempts in South Africa and other many countries in particular during the covid 19 lockdown regulations around reopening of schools and to reform the public education system.

Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 2011 confirmed that smaller classes are often perceived as allowing teachers to focus more on the needs of individual students and reducing the amount of class time needed to deal with disruptions. Yet, while there is some evidence that smaller classes may benefit specific groups of students, such as those from disadvantaged backgrounds, overall the evidence of the effects of differences in class size on student performance remains debatable.

The recommended learner-teacher ratio and class size for primary and secondary schools in South Africa are 40  learners per teacher and 40 learners per class respectively, (DoE, 2010). This ratio is already dismissing the beliefs of OECD as classes are big with 40 learners in one class. With other schools  (both primary and secondary ) in the public education sector in SA, the ratio is 50 learners in one class. In a situation as this, an educator is never guaranteed of learning outcomes achievement to every learner. Learners who need individual attention never gets it. Struggling learners are completely left out!

South African teachers are currently teaching under lockdown and under strict covid 19 regulations that have seen the court of South Africa forcing trimmed number of learners in classes. The teachers who are currently teaching are finding joy in dealing with small classes. These teachers are able to deliver content and cover aspects such as individual attention as needed. Teachers are happy that their classes are controllable. But most importantly learners are not overcrowded anymore and they find learning very meaningful with no struggles. In the absence of large numbers in the classroom, learners are able to engage the educator without feeling embarrassed  by the overwhelming presence of 40 plus learners in the classroom.

South African education, in particular public schooling have always overlooked the need to trim class size into an environment that benefits the academic success of a child. This has also denied educators an opportunity to teach with ease – without having to attend to noise makers and “classrooms clown”. The education department failure to make this a reality (class size trimming ) has been doing the damage and still continues to do so. Learners learn better where they don’t feel overwhelmed to contribute in the classroom etc. Teachers’ view of class size has always been clear. Teachers believe that smaller classes “provide better quality and richer environment for learners, while making teaching more enjoyable for the teacher.”

This publication is of the view that the education ministry of SA need to prioritize in trimming the class size for the obvious benefits of the teaching and learning process. The attempts to overlook this call would be unconstitutional as the constitution of the republic of South Africa (Section 28) reveals that a child’s interests are of paramount importance in every matter concerning the child. At Simnandi Solutions (Pty) Ltd we believe that the class size trimming is in the best interest of the children of South Africa as the research has shown the benefits directed to the learners. And this interest has always been the best interest of many children who are now adults and this best interest was never delivered to them as they underwent overcrowded classes. This publication argues that the lockdown regulations finally handed children this right, and thus it should be kept even after the covid 19 has surfaced.