The U.S. Supreme Court asked President Joe Biden’s administration to weigh in on whether the justices should decide whether a publicly funded charter school in North Carolina may have violated the rights of female students – deemed “fragile vessels” by the school’s founder – by requiring girls to wear skirts.

The justices are considering whether to hear an appeal by Charter Day School, located in the southeastern North Carolina town of Leland and operated by a private educational management company, of a lower court’s ruling that found that the dress code ran afoul of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection under the law.

The court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, asked U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar to file a brief expressing the Biden administration’s view on the litigation and whether the Supreme Court should take up the matter.

Aaron Streett, a lawyer for the school, called the Supreme Court’s decision to seek the solicitor general’s input rather than reject its appeal a “positive sign” that “indicates that the court views this as an important case that may merit further review.”

Three female students, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, filed a lawsuit that accused the school of violating their civil rights. The U.S. Justice Department earlier in the litigation filed a brief agreeing with the ACLU argument that the 14th Amendment applies to the school, which is state-chartered but privately run.

“Girls at Charter Day School have the same constitutional rights as their peers at other public schools – including the freedom to wear pants,” Ria Tabacco Mar, director of the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project, said in a statement.

Charter Day School, which enrolls students from kindergarten through eighth grade, emphasizes “traditional values” and has implemented a dress code that its founder, businessman Baker Mitchell, has said would “preserve chivalry” and ensure that girls are treated “courteously and more gently than boys.”

Mitchell, as explained in the lower court’s ruling, viewed chivalry as “a code of conduct” under which women are “regarded as a fragile vessel that men are supposed to take care of and honor.”

Charter schools are publicly funded but operated separately from school boards run by local governments. They usually are independently run as stand-alone entities but also can be managed by for-profit companies or nonprofit organizations running multiple schools, as in this case.

The school’s lawyers said the 2022 ruling by the Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals posed an “existential threat” to a conservative-backed movement to increase alternatives for parents who want their children to receive public education by expanding the numbers of charter schools.

Charter Day School argued that the 14th Amendment does not apply to it because it is a private entity, not a “state actor” like public schools operated directly by North Carolina school districts. The 4th Circuit on a 10-6 vote decided that it was a “state actor” because North Carolina delegated to the school its duty to provide free, universal education to students.

The plaintiffs argued that the dress code not only violated the 14th Amendment but also subjected them to discrimination and denial of the full benefits of their education in violation of the civil rights law Title IX, which bars sex discrimination in education. The 4th Circuit agreed regarding the 14th Amendment but did not resolve the Title IX issue.

“Courts may not subjugate the constitutional rights of these public-school children to the facade of school choice,” wrote U.S. Circuit Judge Barbara Milano Keenan in a decision joined by her fellow Democratic appointees on the 4th Circuit.

The six dissenting votes on the 4th Circuit came from Republican-appointed judges including Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson, who said the school’s “chivalric approach should neither be legally banished from the educational system, nor should it be legally imposed.”

-REUTERS

PHUTI MOSOMANE 

BASIC Education Minister Angie Motshekga and Premier of Gauteng Panyaza Lesufi are expected to visit several schools in Gauteng to assess the state of readiness as learners return to the classroom for the 2023 academic programme.

“The minister will monitor schools in Gauteng as inland schools begin the 2023 academic year,” the national Department of Basic Education said in a statement on Tuesday.

Motshekga is expected to visit Cosmo City Primary School in Diepsloot, north of Johannesburg.

She will also pay a visit to Cosmo City Secondary School, Diepsloot Primary School as well as Sunrise Secondary School in the area.

Gauteng Premier, together with MEC for Education Matome Chiloane will lead also the school reopening programme to mark the start of the 2023 academic year. 

Lesufi and Chiloane will activate the Back-to-School campaign and officiate the handover of Mapenane Secondary School in Ga-Rankuwa, City of Tshwane. 

Both will also visit Omphile Community Creche in Garankuwa Zone 2, north of Pretoria.

The Office of the Premier has also revealed that other Members of the Executive Council (MECs) will participate in oversight visits at several schools across the province to observe the first day of teaching and learning and conduct oversight visits to Early Childhood Development Centres (ECDs) to gauge their preparedness.  

– MEC for Community Safety Faith Mazibuko will visit Masibambane Day Care and Silver Oaks Secondary School in Eldorado Park

– MEC for Finance Jacob Mamabolo will visit Tsakane ECD and Asser Maloka Secondary School in Nigel

– MEC for Health and Wellness Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko visits Laban Motlhabi Comprehensive in Springs

– MEC for Social Development and Social Development, Agriculture, Rural Mbali Hlophe will visit Katleho-Impumelelo Secondary School in Midvaal

– MEC for Economic Development, Environment, Agriculture & Rural Development Tasneem Motara will visit Soshanguve South Secondary School and MpheThuto ECD. 

Schools in the Free State, Gauteng, Mpumalanga  and North West provinces are also set to open for the new academic year on Wednesday.

INSIDE EDUCATION

Gauteng Department of Education MEC Matome Chiloane revealed on Tuesday that over a thousand learners are still to be placed. 

“A total of 292 145 learners have applied, so far the department has managed to  place  290 751, and  1 394 have not been placed, we have successfully placed 99.52% of the learners,” Chiloane said.

Of the total number of learners still to be placed, 236 have applied for grade 1 and  1 158 for grade 8. This translates into  0.48% of the total number of learners with no school. 

The Department procured a total of 419 mobiles to address pressure of unplaced applications across the province. The procurement of self-build classroom is also used to increase placement capacity.

“We continue to encourage schools to be part of the self-build programme. In high pressure areas we are establishing satellite schools. There is a concerted effort to work with the sister departments to acquire more land to increase the number of schools in high pressure areas,” Chiloane said. 

In Ekurhuleni North District, 236 Grade 1 applicants remain unplaced in Olifantsfontein. Chiloane said the school will receive three additional mobile units to increase the school capacity.

More mobile units will be accommodated on the grounds of a local church to accommodate the remaining unplaced Grade 1 applicants. 

Meanwhile 501 Grade 8 applicants remain unplaced in the Kempton Park Area. The schools will confirm the available spaces for further placement once applicants report to schools on day one (Wednesday January 11, 2023).

The department has requested the schools to use specialist rooms to accommodate learners.

In Tshwane West District, 223 Grade 8 applicants around Akasia/Theresa Park remain unplaced. The department is in the process of building a satellite high school to accommodate the remaining unplaced applicants . 

For Johannesburg West District there are 434 Grade 8 applicants still remaining to be placed in Roodepoort. MEC said the department is negotiating to occupy facilities used by Robinhood College in Maraisburg.

“But 10 Classrooms not in use will be cleaned with minor renovations done before the end of January 2023,” he said. 

On Tuesday, MEC Chiloane revealed that the department received  8 375 late applications since 20 December 2022. From the total, 5 739 applied for grade 1, and  2 636 for grade 8. 

“Parents must know that those who applied late will be placed at any available school automatically,” he added.  

The deadline for late application is 31 January 2023, and catchup programs will be implemented at affected schools. 

 INSIDE EDUCATION 

PHUTI MOSOMANE

GAUTENG Department of Education MEC Matome Chiloane says that just over a thousand learners in both Grade 1 and Grade 8 were still due to be placed in various schools across the province. 

“A total of 292 145 learners have applied, so far the department has managed to place 290 751, and 1 394 have not been placed, we have successfully placed 99.52% of the learners,” Chiloane said on Tuesday while addressing a media briefing on placements.

Of the total number of learners still to be placed, 236 have applied for Grade 1 and 1 158 for Grade 8. This translates into 0.48% of the total number of learners with no school. 

The GDE procured a total of 419 mobiles to address pressure of unplaced applications across the province.

The procurement of self-built classrooms is also used to increase placement capacity. 

“We continue to encourage schools to be part of the self-built programme. In high-pressure areas we are establishing satellite schools. There is a concerted effort to work with the sister departments to acquire more land to increase the number of schools in high pressure areas,” Chiloane said. 

In Ekurhuleni North District, 236 Grade 1 applicants remain unplaced in Olifantsfontein.

Chiloane said the school will receive three additional mobile units to increase the school capacity.

More mobile units will be accommodated on the grounds of a local church to accommodate the remaining unplaced Grade 1 applicants. 

Meanwhile, 501 Grade 8 applicants remain unplaced in the Kempton Park Area.

The schools will confirm the available spaces for further placement once applicants report to schools on day 1.

The department has requested the schools to use specialist rooms to accommodate learners.

In Tshwane West District, 223 Grade 8 applicants around Akasia/Theresa Park remain unplaced. The department is in the process of building a satellite high school to accommodate the remaining unplaced applicants. 

For Johannesburg West District there are 434 Grade 8 applicants still remaining to be placed in Roodepoort.

The MEC said the department is negotiating to occupy facilities used by Robinhood College in Maraisburg.

“But 10 Classrooms not in use will be cleaned with minor renovations done before the end of January 2023,” he said. 

On Tuesday, Chiloane further revealed that the department received 8 375 late applications since 20 December 2022.

From the total, 5 739 applied for Grade 1, and 2 636 for Grade 8. 

“Parents must know that those who applied late will be placed at any available school automatically,” he added.  

The deadline for late application is 31 January 2023, and catchup programs will be implemented at affected schools. 

 INSIDE EDUCATION 

PHUTI MOSOMANE

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa says government will intervene at the University of Fort Hare following what has been described as ‘a planned assassination attempt’ on UFH Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sakhela Buhlungu.

“This is a concerning matter, taking place at the back of ongoing investigation by the SIU which shows there is much more happening at that University. We are going to involve the ministers of police and higher education to see what interventions we are going to deploy,” said Ramaphosa on Monday. 

Buhlungu’s bodyguard, Mboneli Vesele, was killed on Friday night when shots were fired at the Vice-Chancellor’s car outside his Alice campus residence in the Eastern Cape.

Buhlungu escaped unharmed, and has since been moved to a safer location, according to the university spokesperson JP Roodt.

“The vice-chancellor is unharmed, survived a planned assassination attempt and is at a safe location,” Roodt said. 

The university said Buhlungu will not be intimidated from doing his job and to fight corruption at Fort Hare. 

Meanwhile, Universities South Africa (USAF) said it was shocked by the murder of UFH Vice-Chancellor’s security aide and driver.

“The Board of Directors of Universities South Africa (USAf) expresses its shock at the murder of the University of Fort Hare (UFH) Vice-Chancellor’s security aide and driver, Mr Mboneli Vesele – in what the University has reported as an assassination attempt on UFH’s Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Professor Sakhela Buhlungu,” it said.

The driver had just dropped off Buhlungu at his university residence at Dikeni (formerly Alice) when the car he was driving was showered with bullets.

The vehicle used to commit the murder, which is reportedly a stolen, was later found abandoned just outside the town of Dikeni. 

According to the university, this was the second attempt on Professor Buhlungu’s life after his home was fired at in March.

Shortly thereafter, the home of another senior UFH official was also fired at – all of these as the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) was beginning to investigate various counts of corruption at Fort Hare, reportedly related to cleaning and gardening tenders and fraudulent issuing of qualifications. 

“As Vice-Chancellors, we are deeply saddened by this particular development, which took place within the premises of a University Campus. Reports which indicate that this might have been an attempt on the life of our colleague, Professor Buhlungu, are hugely shocking,” USAf’s Chairperson, Professor Sibongile Muthwa, said.

 “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the violence being meted out repeatedly on the senior management at Fort Hare, and at others in several of our campuses in recent years.”

“Our hearts go out to Professor Buhlungu, his executive management team and the University community. Our condolences also go to the family, friends and colleagues of Mr Mboneli Vesele, whose life was taken in this manner,” Muthwa said. 

In May 2022,the university’s Fleet manager Petrus Roets was gunned down in his vehicle after the completion of his testimony in a disciplinary hearing against his colleague.

“The attempted assassination of the Fort Hare University Vice-Chancellor must be condemned at the highest level; his security detail did not survive. This is what happens when you take a stand against corruption,”  Free State University Professor Jonathan Jansen said. 

Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister Blade Nzimande has condemned the murder of Vesele.

“I outrightly condemn this barbaric murder of Mr Vesele and the attempt on the life of Professor Buhlungu. This attack is not only an attack on the University of Fort Hare but also an attack on the entire Post School Education and Training sector.”

“I also encourage all the Vice Chancellors (VC) and TVET College Principals to engage with my Department on all security related issues to enable us to engage with the Cabinet Security Cluster, particularly on security concerns that have an impact on the institutions’ ability to perform their duties,” Nzimande said.

The department is providing psycho-social support to Vesele’s family and university staff.

INSIDE EDUCATION

Isiaka Oladele Oladipo

Nigeria’s national men’s football team was absent from this year’s World Cup in Qatar. It is only the second time since its first appearance in the tournament in 1994 that the Super Eagles failed to qualify. Sports scientist and FIFA physical fitness instructor Isiaka Oladele Oladipo explains why the team missed out and what it must do to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

Why didn’t Nigeria qualify for the 2022 World Cup?

It was not a day’s failure. It started a while before we played the last qualifying game with Ghana.

When we drew the first leg in Ghana 0-0, we knew that we must win in Nigeria. But we lost and, with the away goal rules, we lost out. We didn’t take the away goals rules very seriously. We need to educate ourselves better on those rules. If the players are not aware of these sorts of rules, Nigeria should forget about qualifying for World Cups.

Nigeria recently got a new national sports industrial policy. One chapter is about sports and education, which will help players and coaches become better educated about the rules.

Education more broadly is an issue too. There isn’t enough emphasis on school sports. Some parents will scold their children for playing sport, saying this distracts them from their schooling. And many of even the country’s most renowned schools don’t have good sports arenas.

If we don’t have an environment that is conducive for children to play and exercise, then the future will not be rosy for our football. For a new player to get to play in the World Cup he must have put in place a minimum of 10 years’ practice. This is also true for the Olympics: you need 10 years’ training to win a medal. Some players in the current World Cup are 19; that means they have been playing football in conducive environments from age nine. Those are the things we need to think about.

There aren’t any Nigerian referees at the World Cup either. Why is this so?

This is a huge question – and it’s not new. No Nigerian referee has officiated at the World Cup. In 2014 Peter Egan Edibi was shortlisted for the World Cup in Brazil as an assistant referee but was not on the final list.

At this World Cup, there are six referees, 10 assistant referees and two video assistant referees from Africa, but no Nigerian. I studied this issue in my PhD in 2000. I discovered that sports managers in Nigeria think they can play politics to have a slot in such appointments. They don’t believe in scientific preparation for referees to reach such status.

These issues are still relevant today.

During my time as a referee, we were inspired by two great FIFA referees, Linus Mba and Bolaji Okubule. In 1983, Okubule became the first Nigerian referee at a FIFA tournament when he was picked for the FIFA Youth Championship (now FIFA U-20 World Cup) in Mexico. We saw the way they moved on the field and this instilled passion in us for football officiating. But these days we have referees who are attracted by money or just to enter the field or stadium free of charge.

As a FIFA physical fitness instructor, I’ve come across referees without passion and you see it in their low level of concentration. Football is a dynamic game with the rules changing every day. When our referees do not keep up with those rules, it is tough to select them. And the less time you get on international stages, the less likely you are to be identified for future tournaments.

We need to prepare our referees very well and developmental programmes at different age levels must be set out for such roles. Materials, equipment and modern facilities must also be in place. We are lagging behind in those areas.

What are the implications of Nigeria missing out?

Many business owners in Qatar planned for Nigerian fans during the World Cup. I’ve been to Qatar in the past and I worked a little bit in one of their best stadiums, Aspire Dome, and many there are disappointed that we are not there. So we lost opportunities to showcase our culture there. I know that many travel agents too had travel packages for fans to go to Qatar. Those business opportunities have been lost too.

We have also dropped in FIFA rankings and that could affect us in future games as we might get difficult games. We are also missing out on the money countries at the World Cup will get and our football will feel that. Even for those of us in academia, many of us plan to go into research concerning that competition, but since we are not there as a country, it’s a setback in how we conduct such research.

What should Nigeria do to qualify for the 2026 World Cup hosted by Canada, Mexico and the US?

To get to the World Cup, you have to train for at least 10 years consistently. That means we should be preparing for the World Cup that is coming up in 10 years’ time.

Let us identify those areas where we are having problems and tackle them. Let us see how our new sports policy can help us in working towards that goal. Let us have a developmental programme at each grade. Let us focus more on development of research centres in our universities, especially sports development.

It is bad that some constituencies, like school sports, were removed from the composition of Nigeria Football Federation. Nigeria School Sports Federation manages sports at primary and post-primary schools in the country. They are no longer part of the football federation.

Nigeria’s football structures need to link up with schools, from primary education to secondary education to higher institutions, and build diverse support. This will help the country to develop good players and intelligent coaches.

Isiaka Oladele Oladipo, Professor of Sports and Exercise Physiology, University of Ibadan

THE CONVERSATION

BOMIKAZI ZEKA and ABDUL LATIF ALHASSAN

WHEN it comes to teaching young children about the world, parents may feel that some topics – like politics and religion – are too tough to broach. Money is another. Parents may not feel like they know how to approach the subject, or worry that they don’t set a good financial example for their kids.

But money talk shouldn’t be avoided. Talking about it is the first stepping stone towards financial knowledge and, ultimately, to financial independence. Holding off the conversations for too long can leave your children in the lurch later in life. For instance, in South Africa, only 42% of adults are financially literate. In Ghana the figure is 32% and in Nigeria it’s 26%. This means a large number of adults in these countries do not know or understand financial concepts.

This highlights the importance of starting the money talk conversation early to ensure individuals possess the knowledge, skills and confidence to successfully manage their finances.

Perhaps your child receives an allowance and you feel this is enough to familiarise them with the concept of saving or about the value of money. But studies have found that an allowance is most beneficial when it’s paired with guidance on savings and budgeting.

Children learn through numerous sources of influence, including school, friends and the media. But the greatest influence of their financial socialisation – that is, the values, knowledge, attitudes and behaviours that promote financial well-being – are their parents or primary caregivers. The earlier you start the conversation the better; the majority of children between the ages of 11 and 17 lack confidence in managing money.

If you’ve wondered how you can teach your children about savings and budgeting, here are five ideas to explore for children aged 10 and above.

Setting goals

Setting financial goals is an important part of learning how to manage money because it requires you to prioritise your financial needs. It also requires systems. Studies have shown that people perform better when they have written down what they need to do.

There are several free and printable online goal charts that kids can use to either tick off or colour in how much they’ve accumulated in the kitty. Goal charts or clear jars are particularly helpful for children who are visual learners as they get to “see their savings grow” over time. And just like ticking off a to-do list, it’s satisfying to measure progress and have proof that you’ve worked towards achieving your goals.

Savings

The motivation to accumulate savings becomes stronger when it’s coupled with a financial goal. As adults, we understand the need to save for a rainy day, but this concept may be foreign to a child. Instead, consider teaching the importance of saving in relation to an event a child can understand and relate to, such as a birthday or Christmas Day.

This not only gives children an incentive to save towards something they are interested in. It also teaches them financial discipline (not to dip into the kitty prematurely) and delayed gratification (they can access the money in the kitty now but will miss the opportunity to have more money available from it in future).

Savings aren’t always driven by the need to spend. It’s also important to teach kids to save for the sake of it, because we never know what tomorrow will bring and this lesson may be better understood and appreciated as a child’s financial knowledge matures.

Saving vs investment

For older children, or at an age-appropriate level (research suggests this is between the ages of 12 and 17), the conversation on savings can be elevated to introduce the concept of investing.

While saving refers to the accumulation of funds by intentionally spending less, investing is the purchasing of an asset that provides income from the asset itself. Engaging with children about knowing when to save versus when to invest can instil an important financial lesson they will benefit from in future.

Budgeting

The concept of budgeting can be taught in a child-friendly way. Take, for example, an upcoming birthday party: you can use straws (or anything similar) to illustrate that all the straws represent the total budget for the birthday party. The idea is to teach children how to work within the confines of the budget. Create a list of what is needed for the party and allow the child to allocate the straws according to the items on the list. This can be a teachable moment to show that allocating too much for one item will come at the expense of something else. If you consider it appropriate, actual money can be used in place of the straws.

You can play with this until you’ve both come to an agreement on the budget (also bearing in mind that the entire budget does not have to be spent, and what is unspent can form part of their savings). After the party, look back at the budget to reflect on what the child has learnt about the process, including their likes and dislikes. This also teaches that even a fun event involves planning and responsible spending.

Helping others

Children are often taught the importance of sharing. This lesson can extend into the realm of financial education. Money is not just a resource for spending or buying things – it can also be used to help others. By donating or contributing towards a cause that a child cares about, they’ll learn to be financially generous and empathise with those who do not have the same privileges they have.

THE CONVERSATION

GARETH DORRIAN and IAN WHITAKER

IT’S been an eventful year for space exploration, with successes including the completion of Nasa’s Artemis 1 mission (finally), the inauguration of the James Webb Space Telescope, and the completion of China’s Tiangong space station. 2023 is set to be another busy year.

Here are five of the most exciting missions to watch out for.

1. Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer

In April, the European Space Agency (Esa) is set to launch the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice), in what will be Europe’s first dedicated robotic mission to Jupiter. Juice is due to reach the planet in July 2031 after performing an incredible flight path through the Solar System. The mission will enter into orbit around Jupiter and perform numerous flybys of its large icy moons: Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.

After four years of moon flybys, Juice will then enter into orbit around Ganymede, the largest moon in the Solar System – becoming the first spacecraft ever to reach orbit around the moon of another planet. The icy moons of Jupiter are interesting as they are all believed to host oceans of liquid water beneath their frozen surfaces. Europa, in particular, is regarded as one of the most likely abodes in the Solar System for extra-terrestrial life.

Juice will be equipped with ten scientific instruments including ice-penetrating radar to study the internal oceans. This use of radar is a practical first step in mapping the sub-surface oceans, paving the way for more exotic future missions involving submersible vehicles – some of which have already been put forward. The launch window runs from April 5 to April 25.

2. SpaceX Starship

Although no date has been announced by aerospace company SpaceX at the time of writing, the first orbital test flight of the super-heavy Starship spacecraft is highly anticipated to occur in early 2023. Starship will be the largest spacecraft capable of carrying humans from Earth to destinations in space (the International Space Station is larger, but it was assembled in space). It will be the most powerful launch vehicle ever to fly, capable of lifting 100 tonnes of cargo to low Earth orbit.

Starship is the collective name for a two-component system consisting of the Starship spacecraft (which carries the crew and cargo) and the Super Heavy rocket. The rocket component will lift Starship to some 65km altitude before separating and returning to Earth in a controlled landing. The upper Starship component will then use its own engines to push itself the rest of the way to orbit.

Several short test flights of the Starship portion of the system have been made with varying degrees of success. But the upcoming flight will be the first time the whole system will be used to reach space as one. This first orbital flight was originally scheduled to launch in September 2022, but has been delayed several times.

3. dearMoon

The long-awaited dearMoon project, which will take members of the public on a six-day trip around the Moon and back, is due for launch on Starship and was originally planned for 2023. The exact date will depend on the successful test of Starship, but has been on the books since 2018. It will be the first true deep space tourism launch.

Financed by business entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa, a competition was set up to select eight members of the public (and an unknown number of crew) to join Maezawa on the trip – all completely paid for. The winners and criteria used have not been disclosed, although it is suspected the guests may be established or aspiring artists.

This mission will mark a big change in the way we think about space, as previously only astronauts picked using incredibly stringent criteria have been able to go into deep space (note: we are not counting brief 10-minute jaunts up to 100 km). A full trip of several days poses extreme risks, both in terms of health and engineering.

The success or failure of the dearMoon mission could affect whether deep space tourism becomes the next big thing, or it is relegated back to being a pipe-dream.

4. Asteroid explorer returns to Earth

The Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security – Regolith Explorer, mercifully more commonly known as OSIRIS-REx, is a Nasa mission to near-Earth asteroid Bennu. A key goal of this robotic mission was to acquire samples of Bennu and return them to Earth for analysis.

OSIRIS-REx is now fast returning to Earth with up to a kilogram of precious asteroid samples stored aboard. If all goes well, the capsule will detach from the spacecraft, enter the Earth’s atmosphere and parachute to a soft landing in the deserts of Utah on September 24. Asteroid sample return has only been achieved once before, by the Japanese Space Agency’s Hayabusa 2 mission in 2020.

Bennu is an approximately diamond-shaped world just half a kilometre in size, but has many interesting characteristics. It is believed to have broken off from a much larger asteroid in the first 10 million years of the Solar System. Some of the minerals detected within it have been altered by water, implying that Bennu’s ancient parent body possessed liquid water.

It also has an abundance of precious metals, including gold and platinum. Finally, Bennu is classed as a potentially hazardous object with a (very) small possibility of Earth impact in the next century.

5. India’s private space launch

While SpaceX is the most prominent private space launch company, there are many others developing their own series of launchers around the world. Skyroot Aerospace, which successfully launched its Vikram-S rocket in November 2022, is soon to become the first private Indian company to launch a satellite.

The rocket itself reached 90km in altitude, a distance that would need to be improved upon to get a constellation of satellites into orbit. Skyroot’s first satellite launch is planned for 2023, with a goal of undercutting the cost of private space launch rivals by producing its 3D-printed rockets in a matter of days. If successful, this could also provide a route for cheaper launches of scientific missions, enabling a faster rate of research.

Clearly, interest in the space sector remains high. With many bold advances and launches due in 2023, we are entering a new phase akin to the “Golden era” of space launches in the 1960s and ’70s.

THE CONVERSATION

Registration for the Department of Basic Education’s Second Chance Matric Programme will close on 8 February 2023.

The programme is aimed at those who have not met the requirements to pass the National Senior Certificate (NSC) or the extended Senior Certificate (SC) examinations.

The programme is also open to those who want to improve their results.

In reply to questions regarding the programme in the National Council of Provinces in October last year, Minister Angie Motshekga revealed that at least 400 000 learners have been assisted through the programme to “achieve their subject passes towards their NSC or SC qualification”.

“The programme plays an important role in retaining learners beyond the formal schooling programme. Learners who are disappointed by their failure or poor performance at the end of their schooling career, are able to continue with their studies at their own pace.

“They are able to register for one, two or more subjects, and write the examinations either in May/June or October/November. The face-to-face centres keep learners motivated, as they prepare for their examinations. Learners migrate within provinces, seeking job opportunities and the SCMP allows learners to continue with their studies, irrespective of the province they have relocated to,” she said.

Subjects that learners can register for include:

Accounting

Agricultural Science

Business Studies

Economics

English First Additional Language

Geography

History

Mathematics

Mathematic Literacy

Physical Sciences

Life Sciences

“The programme offers face-to-face support, online support and a wide range of learning support materials. The programme facilitates the development of learning and teaching support materials (LTSMs) that is based on diagnostic reports, so as to ensure that the support materials focus on common areas of poor performance emanating from previous examinations.

“The LTSMs are government-owned, printed and distributed to learners at no cost to the learner,” Motshekga said.

To register for the programme online go to www.eservices.gov.za or visit any Department of Basic Education office with an ID document and statement of results.

Community Education and Training

Those who are older and/or those who have not had the opportunity to complete matric due to various reasons and those who do not qualify for higher education can register at Community Education and Training (CET) colleges across the country.

According to the Department of Higher Education, Science and Innovation website, the colleges are supported by some 200 community learning centres.

“These colleges…target post-school youth and adults who wish to raise the base for further learning, improve their skills for employability and/or progression to opportunities in the TVET colleges and university education.

“In essence, community education and training…offer(s) programmes that contribute to improving community cohesion and social capital, and responsive to the geographic and sectoral needs and challenges,” the department said.

The colleges offer training and academic learning opportunities, including the General Education and Training Certificate for adults (GETC), courses in computer literacy and applied agriculture.

In his budget speech last year, Minister Blade Nzimande said at least R200 million has been committed to support CET colleges which are critical to closing South Africa’s skills gap.

“In addition to academic skills and occupational programmes already on offer, CET colleges will offer two new accredited programmes which are Entrepreneurship and Digital Skills programmes.

“Nine Hundred CET college lecturers will be trained in accredited training programmes. We will also accredit 35 pilot community learning centres, which will be an addition to the 15 community learning centres accredited in 2021/22,” he said.

More information on CETs can be obtained on the department’s website. – SAnews.gov.za

The Department of Basic Education says it is on track to release the Matric 2022 results on 20 January.

The Class of 2022 sat for their final school examinations from October 31 to December 7 last year.

The department explained that results for the matric class of 2022 are currently being processed.

“When the results are released, we urge [learners] to collect their results at the centre where [they] sat for the 2022 National Senior Certificate examinations,” the department said.

For learners who will return to school this year, the academic year will kick off on Wednesday for learners attending school in Gauteng, Free State, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the North West.

In the coastal cluster – Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Northern Cape and Western Cape – learners will have their first day of school on 18 January.

Meanwhile, Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Minister Blade Nzimande, has condemned the murder of Mboneli Vesele who was a bodyguard of University of Fort Hare Vice Chancellor Professor Sakhele Buhlungu.

This after an alleged attempted assassination of the vice chancellor on Friday.

“I outrightly condemn this barbaric murder of Mr Vesele and the attempt on the life of Professor Buhlungu. This attack is not only an attack on the University of Fort Hare but also an attack on the entire Post School Education and Training sector.

“I also encourage all the Vice Chancellors (VC) and TVET College Principals to engage with my Department on all security related issues to enable us to engage with the Cabinet Security Cluster, particularly on security concerns that have an impact on the institutions’ ability to perform their duties,” Nzimande said.

The department is providing psycho-social support to Vesele’s family and university staff. – SAnews.gov.za