Students make unusual demand
…COSAS wants compensatory marks due to strike
BY LIBUSENG NYAKA
BLOEMFONTEIN – The South African Students’ Congress is threatening yet another blow to the education sector, if government does not offer compensatory marks during the forthcoming final examination.
In the third week of the public servants’ strike, which had not been resolved by Wednesday this week, the Congress of South Africa Students (COSAS) marched on September 1, to the Department of Education seeking urgent intervention.
The students from the province marched to the Department of Education where they handed a memorandum to the Head of Department (HOD), Stanly Malope.
The students mainly demanded to be given a 25 percent compensatory mark when entering the examination room, for the lost time.
“It is not our fault that there has been lost time due to the strike and World Cup games. We want to be given 25 percent as a compensation before even writing the examination,” said Ndoba Msimanga, COSAS National president.
Students also want the September holidays to be cancelled and continue with classes to make-up for the lost time.
Another demand raised in the memorandum was for their teachers to work extra time even after hours, when the strike ends.
The students are however, also backing their teachers and appealed to the government to give in to their demands.
“While we support the teachers, that it is within their right to demand salary increase, it becomes a problem when, as they strike, they end up coming to school and interrupting us as we prepare for the final examinations,” said provincial secretary Nkosinathi Nges.
“It is unfortunate that students find themselves caught in the trap and thereby becoming victims of the consequences. Therefore, we say president Zuma, who came from a poor background like ours, should know better and come to our rescue,” he lamented.
Nges said the public servants strike was not a surprise because that is one of the resolutions agreed upon during the Polokwane Conference of December 2007, that public servants would get a salary increase annually.
“The President should know better because he too comes from a poor background because 8.6 percent (salary increase being demanded by the civil servants) is nothing compared to what Cabinet Ministers get,” he said.
Receiving the memorandum, Malope said the Department was aware of the passion of students to get educated and promised to work on their demands as soon as possible. He however said not all of the listed demands would be fulfilled.
“We are aware of the panic situation you are in and as a Department, we are doing all in our power to ease the situation. We have a policy and structure in place to ensure that we recover the lost time. There will be different meetings in the districts,” he said.
The students, meanwhile, had threatened to boycott the examination and become unruly if their demands were not met.
They gave the Department seven days to deal with the matter.
The march came after the government put a new offer of 7.5 percent salary increase and a housing allowance of R800 on Tuesday this week. This is an increase from the initial offer of seven percent and R700 for housing allowance. The public servants were demanding an 8.6 percent salary increase and R1,000 housing allowance.
The offer was announced by government spokesperson Dumisani Nkwamba on Tuesday, August 31.
I think this argument is not good.
If they (students) are to consider their future, then they ought to know that marks are earned and not negotiated. Learning process is not about the teachers only, but mainly the learner’s responsibility.
If I were to analyse the demand, I would say, its unfounded, in that, if there is a demand for extra classes, then the sylabus will be covered, so, on what basis will extra free marks be given?
I take this is just an ordinary case where people are getting overwhelmed by their emotions and put them up front without much thought. Also, if they boycott the exams. whom will they be hurting? I guess its one of those situations where a bitter reminder has to be made that they have to consider their future and put emotions aside. Boycott can be successful, but the outcome will also not benefit them.
Therefore, it is my view that, such demands needs to be revisited and revised. I stand with the view of extra classes so as to cover all the work and start to focus on the exams.
May the good LORD bless all our brothers and sisters in their studies!