Questions/Answers

The South African Government has pledged to improve quality education and eliminate disparities. This statement requires that special attention must be given to ensure that provision is made for all learners to reach their full potential in all aspects during their schooling years. Learners from low to middle-income families face challenges regarding support on homework and full potential in all aspect during their schooling years. Learners from low to middle income families face challenges regarding receiving support on homework and sporting activities after school, thus putting them a step behind those from higher socio-economic families. Numerous reports on research conducted indicated the following: - Lack/inadequate support for learners on homework, sports, arts and culture due to Parents level of literacy, child-headed families and lack of involvement of parents in their children's learning - There is a need to extend the school time to allow learners to participate in a number of activities and remain safe - Access to our schools is not controlled Lack of sports, arts and culture facilities in township areas In order to address these issues, the Extra School Support Programme (ESSP) was initiated to provide support to learners in the targeted 1237 no-fee schools. In 2011, the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) received the Annual National Assessments (ANA) results for Grade 3 and 6 which indicated that many learners in the foundation phase were illiterate and innumerate. This report also highlighted that the hardest hit learners were from disadvantaged areas. It was also during this time that the Minister of Sports and Recreation announced the importance of learners participating in sports.

The main goals and objectives Extra School Support Programme (ESSP) is to: - To improve learner performance - safeguard schools' assets prevent dangerous weapons and drugs from entering the learning environment. Promote sports mass participation and encourage good health among learners The objectives of the programme are to: - reinforce work done by educators in the classroom -Make sure learners have caring and supporting individuals in a safe environment beyond normal contact time. -Building resilience of learners and school communities and enforce the dictum" It takes a village to raise a child". -Provide unemployed youth with work experience, education, on the job training and skills

The initiative fits within the selected category in that it Increases the access of the poorest and most vulnerable people to quality education. Unemployed youth have been a access and a chance to teach. The most vulnerable and poor have been given access to quality education.The initiative promote partnerships to mobilize and share knowledge, skills, technologies and financial resources to support the poorest and most vulnerable. For example, in order to fulfil the goal of the Project to provide a safe and secure environment for learners to perform optimally, through the Extra School Support Programme (ESSP) in collaboration with the Department of Community Safety, South African Police Services (SAPS) and Social Development’s ‘Ke Moja’ campaign, safety programmes continued to conduct raids and enforce the code of conduct to reestablish learner behaviour by learners while in school uniform. A total of 6 236 patrollers were capacitated through various workshops and deployed to priority schools in the province to enhance the safety of learners and teachers.

The initiative is improving people's lives in that it is reducing the proportion of pupils who do not complete school. It is also supporting for young people with poor chances in the training market during the transition from school to technical and vocational education and training, thus making it possible for them to acquire skills for work and participate in the economy and society. It is improving service delivery and developing human resources. For example: During the 2016/2017 financial year, 1 576 homework and sports assistants were employed through the Extra School Support Programme (ESSP).

Since the implementation of the Extra School Support Programme, we have noted an improvement in the ability of children to grasp both literacy and numeracy at our schools. We've seen an improvement in the results of the Annual National Assessments (ANA) at the schools where the programme is being applied. Children are able to read and count as a result of the programme.

The Programme is implemented by the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) as a lead Department alongside various Government Departments including Public Works, Community Safety as well as Sports and Recreation The Programme is applied in Grade 1 to Grade 7 and is implemented in a three (3 ) pronged approach, i.e. Homework supervision, Mass Sport Participation and School Safety. The three (3) pronged approach to this programme ensures a holistic quality of eduaction for thousands of school children.

The Programme assists learners who are disadvantaged to get extra support in literacy and numeracy learning areas. It, therefore, bridges the gap between learners who can afford extra tuition and those who cannot. the programme developed a structured way of dealing with homework. This also puts pressure on Educators (Teachers) to do their work and complete the syllabus. The management of the workers led to the drafting of the Disciplinary Code and Procedures for Extra School Support Programme (ESSP) strategy document which was discussed and approved by the Provincial Bargaining Chamber. Implementation of the exit strategy which includes the provision of bursaries for learners was also included.

The Extra School Support Programme (ESSP) is part of the Government's Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Social Sector Programmes and is implemented in many primary and secondary schools in Gauteng Province. It is the original initiative of the Government's Expanded Public Works Programme.

Normally there will be a total of eleven (14) ESSP Practitioners at a school level. there are six (6) homework supervisors, four (4) sports supervisors as well as four (4) Patrollers (Safety Officers) at a school. The homework supervisors help the learners with their homework in subjects such as Mathematics and English for example. The Programme focuses on providing a holistic development of learners at school while providing work opportunities to the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) participants.

No

The main goals and objectives for the Extra School Support Programme is to create a safe teaching and learning space, Safeguard the school's assets, prevent dangerous weapons and drugs to enter the learning environment, Increase knowledge and improve learner abilities and skills.Part-time workers can be recruited and trained to provide homework assistance as well as sporting activities to school children. Key elements that could be transferred or are adaptable to other contexts include: -Space and time to do homework -Active involvement of the school -Possibility of getting help with schoolwork from adults or other learners -Emotional support from caring adults -Fun with other children by getting involved in games -Strengthen and develop physical and team building skills through participation in sporting activities -Learn life skills through participation in a range of informal and structured activities that teach children how to cope with everyday situations -The importance of offering a multi-faceted programme. As the needs of vulnerable learners are varied and complex, it is necessary to offer a variety of services such as play activities, homework supervision, meals, life orientation, skills training.

The initiative is sustainable in that the Extra School Support Programme (ESSP) participants are receiving accredited training in various skills such as people management, Information Technology and Office Management as well as Early Childhood and Development (ECD) training. The ESSP participants are on a 12-month contract and are hired based on merit. Criteria for the appointment of the ESSP's Homework supervisors and Sports supervisors include having a Grade 12 qualification. The candidate must be able to speak, write and read the language of training and must be available for four (4) hours a day.

The initiative is a continuous intervention and project and will remain sustainable as long as there is a need for homework supervision for the vulnerable and disadvantaged school children. The ESSP seeks to increase after-school support for learning and increase safety in schools. The programme will ensure that learners have caring and supportive individuals available beyond normal contact time.

Yes

The initiative was evaluated using the logic model to establish whether the programme goals and objectives have been well formulated and whether programme activities, outputs, outcomes and indicators were met. The Programme was evaluated using randomly selected targeted underperforming primary and secondary schools in priority and rural areas that benefited from the implementation of the Extra School Support Programme in all Districts in the entire Province.

To increase the safety in schools during the 2012-2013 financial year, the project appointed 6 041 patrollers as security personnel at 1 300 schools. In implementing the School Safety Strategy a total of 1 408 schools have been linked to Police Stations across the province and Safety Committees have been established in each of the schools. During the 2015/2016 financial year, a total of 1 766 sports assistants, 2 033 homework assistants and 5 753 patrollers were provided to the prioritised schools.The Extra School Support Programme, which employs and trains homework assistants, further strengthens other intervention programmes that are implemented in schools.

The “Action Plan to 2019: Towards the realisation of schooling 2030” and the Delivery Agreement for Outcome 1: Improved quality of basic education by clearly identifying the key achievements of the last fifteen years, delineate the current challenges faced the education sector and present a coherent set of targets, measures and indicators. The agreement identifies required inputs and clarifies the roles and responsibilities of the various delivery partners in achieving the set targets. It spells out who will do what, by when and with what resources.

The programme is implemented by the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) alongside various government departments such as Department of Public Works and Community Safety. The Department of Public Works runs the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP). The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) has its origins in Growth and Development Summit (GDS) of 2003. At the Summit, four themes were adopted, one of which was ‘More jobs, better jobs, decent work for all’. The GDS agreed that public works programmes ‘can provide poverty and income relief through temporary work for the unemployed to carry out socially useful activities’.The Programme is a key government initiative, which contributes to Governments Policy Priorities in terms of decent work & sustainable livelihoods, education, health; rural development; food security & land reform and the fight against crime & corruption. The core function of the Gauteng Department of Education is to strive for quality basic education for all learners in the province. We believe that education is the key to being responsive to the needs of economic growth and social transformation. A crucial issue for the coming year is increasing the number of Grade 12 learners that achieve university entry with bachelor passes while improving the quality of education throughout the schooling sector, with a special emphasis on the improvement of Mathematics in the Intermediate and Senior Phases. The department trains homework supervisors. The Gauteng Department of Community Safety works to ensure that Gauteng is a safe and secure province. Its responsibilities include monitoring policing agencies, implementing crime-prevention initiatives, managing traffic, educating citizens about public safety and improving the relationship between communities and law enforcem​ent agencies. The department trains safety officers (patrollers).

The Programme maximised learner participation, access and development in Arts and Culture activities as well as to sporting codes that schools were not previously exposed to, such as Rugby, Cricket, football and netball.