The topic of Professor Howie’s lecture was: Quality Education for All – South Africa’s Quest for the ‘Holy Grail’?

‘Education for all’ has been the focus of international agencies for the past two decades. On a continent where ‘education for all’ to date has been unattainable, South Africa set itself the ambitious goal of attaining this by the internationally stipulated deadline of 2015.

In its endeavours to achieve the provision of education to all of the appropriate age and to grant them the universal right to access education, the challenge has been to simultaneously maintain and/or enhance the quality of education across all schools in South Africa. After decades of deprivation in many contexts, it is not only important to discuss and reflect on how achievable is it to offer quality education for all, but also the cost of not doing so.

Professor Sarah Howie has been involved in monitoring the quality of education both in South Africa and internationally over the past two decades. In her presentation she presents the latest information about the status of providing education for everyone in South Africa, as well on the latest quality indicators in education. She will present her perspectives on the challenges that South Africa faces regarding the quality of education and some recommendations on how these could be managed.