DBE’s Mathematics, Science and Technology (MST) Directorate has registered progress in terms of supporting the Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) in their quest towards promoting the MST subjects in South Africa. This week saw various provincial education officials responsible for MST subjects coming together to share best practice whilst reviewing the role played by the MST Conditional Grant in supporting MST schools and the imperatives of the sector as mandated by the National Development Plan (NDP).  This was made possible through the MST Inter-Provincial Seminar held at the Ranch Resort in Polokwane from 12 to 13 August 2021.  

The Grant was established in 2014 when the CEM Lekgotla of August 2014 decided to reconfigure the Dinaledi Grant with the Technical Secondary School Recapitalisation Grant to include the capacitation of primary schools as MST schools. Initially, the two Grants were used to support 700 MST schools. The Grant has since increased the number of beneficiaries to 1000 schools and is reviewed every three years and adjusted where necessary, in line with the priorities of the sector. Currently, the schools benefiting from the Grant stand at 1258 schools. The DBE intends to expand the Grant to reach out to as many schools as possible.

Deputy Chief Education Specialist for Physical Science at the Gauteng Department of Education, Ms Mashopa said that since her province received the MST Conditional Grant, learners in MST schools have been showing significant improvement. She suggested Government expands the Grant to support more schools. “This Grant is critical because it helps many non-fee-paying schools to access ICT resources and is currently covering approximately 200 schools in the Gauteng Province. Through the Grant, we are able to contribute towards the Inclusive Basket of Criteria, which is aimed at encouraging learners to score high marks in MST subjects.  I can confirm that learners are increasingly choosing MST subjects in the Province," added Ms Mashopa. 

Ms Elspeth Khembo, Director for MST, Curriculum Innovation and E-Learning, said that the Seminar was a success owing to the PED’s enthusiasm and full participation. “Through this Seminar, we are able to monitor the level of provincial intervention with regards to providing schools with the required ICT resources. These include, among others, tablets, MST toolkits, laptops, workshop tools and machinery, as well as smart boards. A 10% of the Grant is dedicated to the implementation of the Coding and Robotics Curriculum.  Our intention is to see the majority of MST and technical schools performing optimally. Therefore, the DBE and PEDs will continue working together to ensure that MST schools are turned into centres of excellence. In a nutshell, our main intention through this seminar is to assist PEDs to comply with the Division of Revenue Act (DORA) and Grant Framework for the effective implementation of the MST Grant. The DBE has developed the MST Strategy, which will enable provinces to establish focus schools to meet the goals set out in the NDP, which has given the sector until 2030 to assist a minimum of 450,000 learners in attaining bachelors in Mathematics and Science. The sector is also expected to increase artisans up to 30,000 by 2030,” Ms Khembo concluded.