Matric class of 2020 is just under two weeks before they commence the final examination of the National Senior Certificate (NCS). The department ensured that they ‘’salvage’’ the academic year and brought back learners to school. Some amongst the matric learners decided not to come back as they felt that the pandemic disrupted their academic goals for 2020. Those who came back are now preparing to write for the last time in their lives in their basic education schooling careers. We call this period ‘’the last year of time wasting’’ simply because these learners were wasting time since 2008 to date – they were wasting time officially and in an organized manner.

Matric class of 2020 began their schooling career in between 2008 and 2009 and others began before 2008 but finally they are here now (Matric). Since 2008 to 2020 it has been nothing but a total waste of time and waste of parent’s financial resources. The matric class of 2020 spent 12 years and more, for some of them, within the public schooling system, what did they learn? Did those who have always aspired to become lawyers visited the courtroom and heard judgements on cases at the local magistrate courts? Were they introduced to the Constitution of the country as the subject since the Constitution is the heart of what makes law and lawyers thereafter? Were they, at any point during their life in school since 2008 to 2020, introduced to the legal studies, family law etc? All these 12 years at school, were the law aspiring learners accommodated by the school curriculum (set of subjects) on what they aspire to become in life? Was the curriculum allowing these learners to be explicitly exposed to the law career as they aspire to become lawyers, judges, attorneys, etc? If not, what were these learners doing at school for 12 years and more? Do you now understand the ‘’the last year of time wasting”?

Matric class of 2020 consists of learners across the country in different public high schools who aspire to become parliamentarians, head of government ministries, presidents, political leaders etc. Since 2008 to 2020 under the public education system (NCS) these learners have never done any of the relevant subjects to the above-mentioned careers – subjects such as; Politics, Leadership, Governance, Public and international relations, Professional ethics, etc. Remember, these are the subjects that prepare and align a learner with a desired career in politics. Unfortunately, there’s no public high school in South Africa that offers subjects as these. Seeing that theses learners never did relevant subjects to their desired careers, what were these learners doing at school since 2008 – 2020? Do you now understand the title ‘’ the last year of time wasting’’?

Schooling system is meant to prepare learners for the future. Schooling system is meant to align and help a learner cultivate and polish the desired life aspirations that dwell within them. Education systems are meant to bring technicalities, discipline, and skills onto the existing desire the learner possesses. For instance, if a learner has a remarkable desire of becoming a Professional Chef, the education system should give that learner culinary studies, both theory and practical education with relevant subjects. Is that what learners under NCS have been getting and doing at school? Do you now understand the time wasted by the learner at school doing nothing related to culinary studies? Do you now understand how broken and how irrelevant the curriculum in south African schools is? That is why we believe Matric 2020 is the last year, for Gr 12s, to waste time doing what is not relevant towards their future.

Who is to be blamed for this education crime committed against young people in south Africa? The education department of south Africa is responsible for all of this. They have failed, since 1994, to bring about necessary transformation in education. It has been over 24 years since they took power, education in south Africa remains the same or probably worse now. Even after university, if you are lucky to go there, you are inclined by student loans debts just after graduation. You remain home as a graduate without a job because the market is not hiring. If the market is hiring, they hire people with the skill and experience, not you who possess university theory of Accounting with no practicals. Even when you are employed by default, you serve the affairs of your superiors at the workplace and these superiors happen to be white arrogant people. Even if they are not white arrogant people per se, what you do there is to serve and be a worker for the rest of your life because school never taught you how to own and run your own organization/firm/venture within the parameters of the career path you chose. For instance, an engineer needs to know how to venture into engineering business as the owner. A lawyer should understand the importance of running a law firm of his own. An accountant must understand the credibility and significance of running an accounting firm rather than being a mere employee in someone else’s company or firm. All this type of education begins at the basic education level and you grow up with it to the higher education level. In that sense, education allows to groom employers rather than employees and that helps with job opportunities for others. That is why we believe Matric class of 2020 are on their last year of time wasting and they are now going to experience another struggle of life that will explicitly depict the cruelty of life at its best.

To show you the sorrows the education system has brought to the life of young people, there are those (former Matrics) who must ‘upgrade/rewrite’ etc this year (2020). If you look at the subjects they must rewrite or upgrade, these are subjects that have nothing to do with what learners aspire for in life. Some of these learners have to rewrite/ upgrade English Subject, Literature, and creative writing (Paper 2 and 3). If you analyse deeply you learn that a learner interested in engineering does not really need this paper except for language for communication. You then ask yourself if it is necessary for an aspiring engineer to follow Shakespearean literature and drama. One wonders if an engineer really needs to be a creative essay writer and formal and informal letters. All these aspects of language English subject are not relevant for a leaner who wants to tap into engineering, accounting, physiotherapy, etc. The question is: why are learners forced to do subjects that are not helpful and relevant to their desired career paths? That alone is a conclusive proof that education in South Africa is answering a question nobody asked – learners never asked for this. Thus, who is the education system serving, is it serving itself or the public? The time is not wasted in the streets in South Africa, the time is wasted in schools in South Africa – schools are like prisons where  intelligence is locked up and delayed for 12 years and as a result destroyed in the name of ‘’You cant do math, you are a failure, you cant do literature, you are a failure’’.

The Simnandi education group has a solution to all these problems. Our group has a proper alternative to the current curriculum system and is open to discuss it with those interested in changing the education system of our nation. Personalized Education Curriculum System (PECS) seeks to reverse the current curriculum irrelevancy into curriculum relevancy. The PECS is designed to save learners from the monstrous curriculum that forces them to undertake subjects they won’t need in the future. PECS is a transformative education curriculum system that, through its nature of design, will put an end to the whole confusion around curriculum debates. PECS will further sort out the pass requirement standards once and for all. PECS seeks to bring back the value and the dignity of our education system. PECS ensures that learners taste the glimpse of the workplace experience while still at school. That is what makes our curriculum unique and highly relevant to inspire the education community of our nation, South Africa and the whole of Africa. And that is how we believe the education system can be fixed

Know more about PECS: https://simnandisolutions.co.za/personalized-education/ – Click on PECS Powerpoint presentation

Please answer these 3 questions and submit: https://simnandisolutions.co.za/pecs-questionnaires/