Reconstructing rural education: Planning for equal access to rural schools in the North West Province

Abstract

The eighteen former apartheid education departments in South Africa now fall under the authority of a single ministry. However, the full integration of various education authorities at the district and local levels within a unified delivery system that maximises non‐racial access to rural schools, has yet to be accomplished. A study was initiated in the rural Marico and Lehurutshe regions of the North West Province to investigate how equitable access to rural schools on a non‐racial basis could be achieved, and to identify practical constraints on systems of delivery. Over 100 schools in the study area were mapped using Geographical Information Systems technology. It is clear that the characteristics of the education system inherited from the apartheid past will impede the reconstruction of rural education. In order to plan accurately for compulsory schooling, planners will need more detailed population data on out‐of‐school students. They will also have to take into account local geographical features an...