1
Poverty and Privilege: Primary School Inequality in South Africa
Carnegie III Conference - UCT 4 September 2012
Nicholas [email protected]
www.nicspaull.com/research
Education and inequality?
Type of education
Quality of education
Duration of
education
SA is one of the top 3 most
unequal countries in the world
Between 78% and 85% of
total inequality is explained by
wage inequality
Wages
• IQ• Motivation• Social
networks• Discrimination
3
Outline
1. Rationale for the research2. Extant literature on education inequality in SA
– Two education systems not one
3. Theoretical framework: Schooling & Poverty4. Modelling two data generating processes
– Deciding where to split the distribution into two?– Do the same factors affect both systems?
5. Conclusions & Recommendations
4
Rationale
• Theoretically education can play a large role in social mobility.
• Why has it not fulfilled this role in SA?
• Bimodality in student achievement data?
Human capital is of economic importance
Cognitive skills are a better measure of human capital
than educational attainment.
Cognitive skills in South Africa are
remarkably low and highly unequal
EquityDimension
EfficiencyDimension
How can one increase the cognitive skills of South African primary school children?
Modelling learner performance in South
Africa
Conclusion
ResourcesPhysical and human resources are highly
inequitably distributed across provinces,
socioeconomic quintiles, and school locations.
PerformanceReading and mathematics
performance are highly inequitably distributed
across provinces, socioeconomic quintiles
and school locations.
Resources South Africa in regional
context: Other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa
perform better with fewer resources.
PerformanceMost South African
schools are unable to produce learners who can
satisfy the demands of curriculum.
Not all schools are equally able to
convert additional resources into
educational outputs.
Ch
ap
ter
2L
itera
ture
Re
vie
wC
ha
pte
r 3
Pre
limin
ary
An
aly
sis
Ch
ap
ter
4M
od
elli
ng
Le
arn
er
Pe
rfo
rma
nce
Ch
ap
ter
5C
on
clu
sio
n
Not all schools are born equal
5
SA public schools?
?
6
0.0
01
.00
2.0
03
.00
4.0
05
kden
sity
re
ad
ing te
st s
core
0 200 400 600 800reading test score
African language schools English/Afrikaans schools
Extant literature: Two school systems not one
Language• Grade 5 [2006]• Data: PIRLS• (Shepherd, 2011)
7
Two school systems not one
Ex-department• Grade 4 [2008]• Data: NSES• (Taylor, 2011)
0.0
05.0
1.0
15.0
2.0
25D
ensity
0 20 40 60 80 100Numeracy score 2008
Ex-DET/ Homelands schools Historically white schools
8
2 Systems
0.0
05.0
1.0
15.0
2D
ensi
ty
0 20 40 60 80 100Literacy score (%)
Black WhiteIndian Asian
U-ANA 2011
Kernel Density of Literacy Score by Race (KZN)
0.0
05
.01
.015
.02
Density
0 20 40 60 80 100Numeracy score (%)
BlackColouredWhite
U-ANA 2011
Kernel Density of Numeracy Score by Race (FST)
Race• Grade 1-6 [2011]• Data: ANA 2011
9
Dysfunctional Schools (75% of schools) Functional Schools (25% of schools)
Weak accountability Strong accountability
Incompetent school management Good school management
Lack of culture of learning, discipline and order Culture of learning, discipline and order
Inadequate LTSM Adequate LTSM
Weak teacher content knowledge Adequate teacher content knowledge
High teacher absenteeism (1 month/yr) Low teacher absenteeism (2 week/yr)
Slow curriculum coverage, little homework or testing Covers the curriculum, weekly homework, frequent testing
High repetition & dropout (Gr10-12) Low repetition & dropout (Gr10-12)
Extremely weak learning: most students fail standardised tests Adequate learner performance (primary and matric)
2 education systems
See Hoadley (2010), Fleisch (2008), Van der Berg et al (2011), Taylor (2012) as a few of many
10
Attai
nmen
tQ
ualit
yTy
pe
High SES background
High quality primary school
High quality
secondaryschool
Low SES background
Low quality primary school
Low quality secondary
school
Unequal society
10% Low
productivity jobs &
incomes
(55%)
Unemployed
(35%)
Labour Market
High productivity jobs and incomes (10%)
• Mainly professional, managerial & skilled jobs
• Requires graduates, good quality matric or good vocational skills
• Historically mainly white
Low productivity jobs & incomes
• Often manual or low skill jobs
• Limited or low quality education
• Minimum wage can exceed productivity
University/FET
• Type of institution (FET or University)
• Quality of institution • Type of qualification
(diploma, degree etc.)• Field of study
(Engineering, Arts etc.)
• Vocational training• Affirmative action
Schools Characterised by:• Little parental involvement• No accountability• Little discipline• Weak management• High teacher absenteeism
Teaching Characterised by:• Low cognitive demand• Slow curriculum coverage• Inadequate LTSM• Weak & infrequent assessment• Weak teacher content knowledge
Schools Characterised by:• Strong accountability• Well managed & organized• Good school discipline• Culture of L & T
Teaching Characterised by:• High cognitive demand• Full curriculum coverage• Adequate LTSM• Frequent assessment
Majority (80%)
Some motivated, lucky or talented students make the transition
Minority (20%)
- Big demand for good schools despite fees
- Some scholarships/bursaries
cf. Servaas van der Berg
11
Attai
nmen
tQ
ualit
yTy
pe
High SES background
High quality primary school
High quality
secondaryschool
Low SES background
Low quality primary school
Low quality secondary
school
Unequal society
10% Low
productivity jobs &
incomes
(55%)
Unemployed
(35%)
Labour Market
High productivity jobs and incomes (10%)
• Mainly professional, managerial & skilled jobs
• Requires graduates, good quality matric or good vocational skills
• Historically mainly white
Low productivity jobs & incomes
• Often manual or low skill jobs
• Limited or low quality education
• Minimum wage can exceed productivity
University/FET
• Type of institution (FET or University)
• Quality of institution • Type of qualification
(diploma, degree etc.)• Field of study
(Engineering, Arts etc.)
• Vocational training• Affirmative action
Schools Characterised by:• Little parental involvement• No accountability• Little discipline• Weak management• High teacher absenteeism
Teaching Characterised by:• Low cognitive demand• Slow curriculum coverage• Inadequate LTSM• Weak & infrequent assessment• Weak teacher content knowledge
Schools Characterised by:• Strong accountability• Well managed & organized• Good school discipline• Culture of L & T
Teaching Characterised by:• High cognitive demand• Full curriculum coverage• Adequate LTSM• Frequent assessment
Majority (80%)
Some motivated, lucky or talented students make the transition
Minority (20%)
- Big demand for good schools despite fees
- Some scholarships/bursaries
cf. Servaas van der Berg
12
Splitting the 2 systems
• If there are indeed two education systems in SA and not one, where/how do we draw the line between one and the other?
0.0
02.0
04.0
06.0
08D
ensi
ty
0 200 400 600 800 1000Student Reading Score
Poorest 33% Middle 33%Wealthiest 33%
SACMEQ I I I Sout h Af rica
Kernel Density of Student Reading Score by School SES Terciles0
.002
.004
.006
.008
Den
sity
0 200 400 600 800 1000Student Reading Score
Poorest 50% Wealthiest 50%
SACMEQ I I I Sout h Af r ica
Kernel Density of Student Reading Score by School SES (half)0
.002
.004
.006
.008
Den
sity
0 200 400 600 800 1000Student Reading Score
Poorest 25% Second Poorest 25%%Second Wealthiest 25% Wealthiest 25%
SACMEQ I I I Sout h Af rica
Kernel Density of Student Reading Score by School SES Quartiles
0.0
02.0
04.0
06.0
08D
ensi
ty
0 200 400 600 800 1000Student Reading Score
Poorest 20% Second Poorest 20%Middle 20% Second Wealthiest 20%Wealthiest 20%
SACMEQ I I I Sout h Af rica
Kernel Density of Student Reading Score by School SES Quintile
14
0.0
02.0
04.0
06.0
08
Den
sity
0 200 400 600 800 1000Learner Reading Score
Poorest 25% Second poorest 25%Second wealthiest 25% Wealthiest 25%
Two school systems not one
Socioeconomic Status
• Grade 6 [2007]• Data: SACMEQ• (Spaull, 2011)
Source: Spaull, 2011
Comparing SA & Botswana
16
Corroborating evidence?
• Teacher knowledge• Teacher absenteeism• Textbook access• Literacy/numeracy rates• Grade repetition• Parental education• Homework frequency
0.0
02.0
04.0
06.0
08
Den
sity
0 200 400 600 800 1000Learner Reading Score
Poorest 25% Second poorest 25%Second wealthiest 25% Wealthiest 25%
17
Teacher knowledgeSACMEQ III (2007) 401/498 Gr6 Mathematics teachers
SACMEQ Maths teacher test Q17
QuintileAvg
1 2 3 4 5Correct 23% 22% 38% 40% 74% 38%
Correct answer (7km):
38% of Gr 6 Maths teachers
7
2 education systems
18
Teacher absenteeism
• What is the distribution of teacher absenteeism across school SES quintiles?
0 10 20 30 40 50Days absent per year
Quintile 5
Quintile 2
Quintile 3
Quintile 4
Quintile 1
excludes outside values
SACMEQ III South Africa
19
Student competency levels
• What proportion of students are reaching higher order competency levels?
020
4060
8010
0
Per
cent
5 4 3 2 1
Quintiles of School Socio-economic Status
L1 - Pre Reading L2 - Emergent Reading
L3 - Basic Reading L4 - Reading for Meaning
L5 - Interpretive Reading L6 - Inferential Reading
L7 - Analytical Reading L8 - Critical Reading
Reading Competency Levels
20
Do the ends justify the means?
BOT KEN LES MAL MOZ NAM SOU SWA TAN UGA ZAM ZAN ZIM
-10
-5
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
10 1012
52
15
31
7
-6
1416
0
17
SACMEQ III Reading scores: Mean – Median SACMEQ Standard deviation approx 100
Drowning in 6 inchesThere was a nonswimmer from Berlin,
Who loved statistics and gin,It’s little surprise that he reached his demise
While crossing a stream of average depth six inches
21
22
Modelling student performance
• Two data-generating processes. Little reason to believe there is the same underlying DGP
• Split samples – Wealthiest 25% of schools– Poorest 75% of schools
• Which coefficients are large & significant across the two regressions?
11/29 variables common
5/27 variables common
25
Conclusions & Implications
We have 2 education systems in South Africa
26
Conclusions & Implications
1. Reporting education statistics in SA– Means are uniquely misleading in SA – the average child does not exist in any meaningful
sense– Report educational statistics by quintile in addition to province– You can’t solve a problem that doesn’t officially exist
2. Modelling educational performance in SA– Modelling a single education system when there are two can lead to spurious results
3. Policy differentiation– Policies suited to one system are not necessarily suited to the other– Don’t interfere with high-performing schools If it aint broke don’t (try) fix it– LITNUM intervention in WC Blanket approach
We have 2 education systems in South Africa
Conclusions & Implications
27
Hereditary poverty
Low social
mobility
Low quality
education
Persistent patterns of poverty and privilege
28
3 biggest challenges - SA
1.Failure to get the basics right• Children who cannot read, write and compute properly (Functionally
illiterate/innumerate) after 6 years of formal full-time schooling• Often teachers lack even the most basic knowledge
2.Equity in education• 2 education systems – dysfunctional system operates at bottom of African
countries, functional system operates at bottom of developed countries.• More resources is NOT the silver bullet – we are not using existing resources
3.Lack of accountability • Little accountability to parents in majority of school system• Little accountability between teachers and Department • Teacher unions abusing power and acting unprofessionally
29
Way forward?
1. Acknowledge the extent of the problem• Low quality education is one of the three largest crises facing our country (along with
HIV/AIDS and unemployment). Need the political will and public support for widespread reform.
2. Focus on the basics• Every child MUST master the basics of foundational numeracy and literacy these are the
building blocks of further education – weak foundations = recipe for disaster• Teachers need to be in school teaching (re-introduce inspectorate?)• Every teacher needs a minimum competency (basic) in the subjects they teach• Every child (teacher) needs access to adequate learning (teaching) materials• Use every school day and every school period – maximise instructional time
3. Increase information, accountability & transparency• At ALL levels – DBE, district, school, classroom, learner• Strengthen ANA• Set realistic goals for improvement and hold people accountable
30
Education
“Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farm-workers can become the president”
– Nelson Mandela
If we looked at 200 Grade 1 children 12 years ago and then look at them again in matric, only 1 out of the 200 were eligible for a maths or science degree based on their matric marks – the correspodning figure for white children was 15 times higher.
31
References
• Fleisch, B. (2008). Primary Education in Crisis: Why South African schoolchildren underachieve in reading and mathematics. Cape Town. : Juta & Co.
• Hoadley, U. (2010). What doe we know about teaching and learning in primary schools in South Africa? A review of the classroom-based research literature. Report for the Grade 3 Improvement project of the University of Stellenbosch. Western Cape Education Department.
• Hungi, N., Makuwa, D., Ross, K., Saito, M., Dolata, S., van Capelle, F., et al. (2011). SACMEQ III Project Results: Levels and Trends in School Resources among SACMEQ School Systems. Paris: Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality.
• Ross, K., Saito, M., Dolata, S., Ikeda, M., Zuze, L., Murimba, S., et al. (2005). The Conduct of the SACMEQ III Project. In E. Onsomu, J. Nzomo, & C. Obiero, The SACMEQ II Project in Kenya: A Study of the Conditions of Schooling and the Quality of Education. Harare: SACMEQ.
• Shepherd, D. (2011). Constraints to School Effectiveness: What prevents poor schools from delivering results? Stellenbosch Economic Working Papers 05/11. [PIRLS]
• Spaull, N. (2011a). A Preliminary Analysis of SACMEQ III South Africa.Stellenbosch Economic Working Papers.• Spaull, N. (2011). Primary School Performance in Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa. Paris: Southern and Eastern
African Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ) Working Paper no.8.• Spaull, N. 2012 Equity & Efficiency in South African primary schools : a preliminary analysis of SACMEQ III South Africa Masters
Thesis. Economics. Stellenbosch University• Taylor, S. (2011). Uncovering indicators of effective school management in South Africa using the National School Effectiveness
Study.Stellenbosch Economic Working Papers 10/11, 1-51. [NSES]• Van der Berg, S., Burger, C., Burger, R., de Vos, M., du Rand, G., Gustafsson, M., Shepherd, D., Spaull, N., Taylor, S., van
Broekhuizen, H., and von Fintel, D. (2011). Low quality education as a poverty trap. Stellenbosch: University of Stellenbosch, Department of Economics. Research report for the PSPPD project for Presidency.
33
34
Description of levels
Range on 500 point scale
Skills
Level 1Pre-reading < 373
Matches words and pictures involving concrete concepts and everyday objects. Follows short simple written instructions.
Level 2Emergent reading 373 414
Matches words and pictures involving prepositions and abstract concepts; uses cuing systems (by sounding out, using simple sentence structure, and familiar words) to interpret phrases by reading on.
Level 3Basic reading
414 457
Interprets meaning (by matching words and phrases, completing a sentence, or matching adjacent words) in a short and simple text by reading on or reading back.
Level 4Reading for meaning 457 509
Reads on or reads back in order to link and interpret information located in various parts of the text.
Level 5Interpretive reading 509 563
Reads on and reads back in order to combine and interpret information from various parts of the text in association with external information (based on recalled factual knowledge) that “completes” and contextualizes meaning.
Level 6Inferential reading 563 618
Reads on and reads back through longer texts (narrative, document or expository) in order to combine information from various parts of the text so as to infer the writer’s purpose.
Level 7 Analytical reading 618 703
Locates information in longer texts (narrative, document or expository) by reading on and reading back in order to combine information from various parts of the text so as to infer the writer’s personal beliefs (value systems, prejudices, and/or biases).
Level 8Critical reading
703+
Locates information in a longer texts (narrative, document or expository) by reading on and reading back in order to combine information from various parts of the text so as to infer and evaluate what the writer has assumed about both the topic and the characteristics of the reader – such as age, knowledge, and personal beliefs (value systems, prejudices, and/or biases).
Source: (Hungi, et al., 2010)
[1] See Ross et al. (2005, p. 95).
35
Description of levels Range on 500 point scale
Skills
Level 1Pre-numeracy < 364
Applies single step addition or subtraction operations. Recognizes simple shapes. Matches numbers and pictures. Counts in whole numbers.
Level 2Emergent numeracy
364 462
Applies a two-step addition or subtraction operation involving carrying, checking (through very basic estimation), or conversion of pictures to numbers. Estimates the length of familiar objects. Recognizes common two-dimensional shapes.
Level 3Basic numeracy
462 532
Translates verbal information presented in a sentence, simple graph or table using one arithmetic operation in several repeated steps. Translates graphical information into fractions. Interprets place value of whole numbers up to thousands. Interprets simple common everyday units of measurement.
Level 4Beginning numeracy
532 587
Translates verbal or graphic information into simple arithmetic problems. Uses multiple different arithmetic operations (in the correct order) on whole numbers, fractions, and/or decimals.
Level 5Competent numeracy
587 644
Translates verbal, graphic, or tabular information into an arithmetic form in order to solve a given problem. Solves multiple-operation problems (using the correct order of arithmetic operations) involving everyday units of measurement and/or whole and mixed numbers. Converts basic measurement units from one level of measurement to another (for example, metres to centimetres).
Level 6Mathematically skilled
644 720
Solves multiple-operation problems (using the correct order of arithmetic operations) involving fractions, ratios, and decimals. Translates verbal and graphic representation information into symbolic, algebraic, and equation form in order to solve a given mathematical problem. Checks and estimates answers using external knowledge (not provided within the problem).
Level 7 Concrete problem solving 720 806
Extracts and converts (for example, with respect to measurement units) information from tables, charts, visual and symbolic presentations in order to identify, and then solves multi-step problems.
Level 8Abstract problem solving > 806
Identifies the nature of an unstated mathematical problem embedded within verbal or graphic information, and then translate this into symbolic, algebraic, or equation form in order to solve the problem.
Source: (Hungi, et al., 2010)
[1] See (Ross, et al., 2005, p. 95).
36
Teacher knowledge...
Q6: 53% correct (D)
Q9: 24% correct (C)English Q9: 57% correct (D)