By Johnathan Paoli

As Johannesburg gears up to host the G20 Summit later this year, the city’s creative heartbeat was on full display with the launch of Babize Bonke, a bold new campaign by the Jozi My Jozi movement.

Staged along the inner-city Main Street walkway, the launch showcased art, music, and stories of resilience from local champions who are reshaping Johannesburg from the ground up.

Among the eight champions celebrated in the campaign is Dr. Taddy Blecher, education pioneer and CEO of the Maharishi Invincibility Institute.

Inside Metros reached out to the pioneer, who described the Babize Bonke platform as a chance to connect Johannesburg’s revival directly to improving security in the area and opportunity.

“Johannesburg has always been a place of resilience and reinvention. The world will be watching us later this year. What we need to show is that Joburg is not defined by its problems but by the creativity, compassion, and determination of its people. Campaigns like Babize Bonke prove that,” Blecher reflected.

Blecher’s contribution to the campaign is rooted in the philosophy he has carried for decades: that transformation is not only about physical infrastructure, but about human capacity.

The campaign emphasises making the invisible visible.

For decades, he has been giving a platform to young people from backgrounds where talent often goes unnoticed.

Many of his institute’s students come from households with little or no income, yet graduate with globally recognised qualifications, entrepreneurial skills, and employment opportunities.

This follows the launch of the Security Mastery Academy (SMA), a partnership between the Maharishi Invincibility Institute and CAP Security launched last year; which seeks to professionalise the security sector while simultaneously creating opportunities for young people to play a direct role in Johannesburg’s regeneration.

“This academy is about mastery on two levels. On one level, we’re training consummate professionals who can meet the demands of a sector critical to South Africa’s safety and stability. On another level, we’re helping individuals achieve personal mastery through holistic training, from martial arts to stress management, from leadership skills to Transcendental Meditation,” Blecher said.

The programme is structured over three years, moving from security officer training to supervisory and commander levels.

Graduates are guaranteed employment, ensuring that the pathway leads not only to skills but to livelihoods.

Jozi My Jozi has broadened its scope with a series of initiatives designed to restore safety, dignity, and opportunity across Johannesburg’s inner city.

Through the Light Up Jozi campaign, the movement is raising R300 000 to install solar-powered lights in darkened areas, expanding on the successful revitalisation of the Nelson Mandela Bridge with plans to add solar panels along key corridors.

This work ties into broader efforts to repurpose derelict buildings for job creation, open arts and reading spaces for children, and establish technology centres offering coding, robotics, and AI training for youth while providing adult skills development during the day.

Partnerships with schools are central to identifying safety concerns, career opportunities, and sport facility needs.

Early Childhood Development (ECD) is another critical pillar, with Jozi My Jozi working alongside the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust and the Education department to register and upgrade under-resourced centres in the inner city and Soweto.

The aim is to bring them up to Bronze Level standards, unlocking government funding and creating sustainable environments for children and educators.

By strengthening ECD infrastructure, the initiative seeks to empower communities and ensure that young learners receive the foundation needed for future success.

At the same time, Jozi My Jozi is addressing homelessness through collaborations with NGOs such as MES, U-Turn, and the Johannesburg Homeless Network.

This includes renovating shelters, piloting containerised housing solutions, and launching a citywide “Point in Time Count” to establish accurate data on Johannesburg’s homeless population.

Together, these efforts reflect Jozi My Jozi’s community-driven vision of a safer, revitalised Johannesburg that balances immediate social challenges with long-term sustainable growth.

With the G20 Summit set to spotlight Johannesburg in November, initiatives like these demonstrate

As Jozi My Jozi continues to rally businesses, communities, and creatives under its “coalition of the doing,” Blecher sees these initiatives as demonstrating how civil society and business are stepping up to redefine the city’s story.

INSIDE EDUCATION

The KwaZulu-Natal Transport Department has announced a province-wide clampdown on unroadworthy scholar transport vehicles after a crash on Monday in Impendle left at least 20 learners injured.

MEC Siboniso Duma said traffic inspectors, working with municipal authorities, would be tasked with removing reckless drivers and unsafe minibuses from the road.

Duma confirmed on Tuesday that the driver involved in Monday’s accident had been arrested. He was found to hold only a learner’s licence and no Professional Driving Permit (PrDP), in violation of the National Land Transport Act.

“In KwaZulu-Natal, there are many unroadworthy vehicles used in private scholar transport,” Duma said. “We will remove from our road networks reckless drivers who are behind the spike in accidents that have destroyed families and cut short the lives of innocent people.”

Last week, a school taxi crashed into a crèche in iMbali, Pietermaritzburg, leading to the deaths of five children. Eight others were injured.

The latest accident occurred when a minibus taxi carrying learners aged between eight and 15 plunged off the KwaKhetha Bridge in Impendle. The children were taken to various healthcare facilities, where some are still recovering.

Spokesperson Ndabezinhle Sibiya said the department would also hold urgent talks with the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) in the province to address the increasing number of accidents involving scholar transport.

In addition, the department will partner with the Vehicle Testing Association, part of the Retail Motor Industry Organisation, to strengthen roadworthy checks. All minibuses will be tested at accredited municipal or private testing facilities, aligned with their designated route permits.

“The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport remains committed to prioritising the safety and well-being of all learners across the province,” the department said in a statement.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Johnathan Paoli

The 2026 NSFAS application cycle will officially open at the University of Pretoria on Tuesday.

Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela has placed the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) at the heart of government’s plans for a smooth start to the 2026 academic year, announcing measures to stabilise student funding, expand access, and address longstanding challenges such as accommodation, fraud, and the inclusion of the “missing middle.”

Speaking at a briefing in Pretoria on Monday, Manamela stressed that readiness for the 2026 academic year meant more than administrative checklists.

“Readiness is about the lived experience of every student and family in South Africa: that when the new year begins, the doors of learning and culture truly open – fairly, on time, and without unnecessary barriers,” he said.

The minister acknowledged the turbulence of the 2025 academic year, where over 54,000 students faced blocked registrations due to a R13.3 billion shortfall.

Emergency reprioritisation allowed the government to cover the backlog, unblocking 34,000 registrations and enabling 15,000 second-semester students to continue their studies.

NSFAS CEO Waseem Carrim confirmed that all affected students are now being reinstated.

“Immediately post this briefing, NSFAS will be releasing a circular to the university sector to allow all students with blocked registrations to be confirmed as registered for the 2025 academic year,” Carrim said, adding that student accommodation providers will now also receive long-delayed payments.

Carrim praised those landlords who housed students despite the non-payment crisis but cautioned against “unscrupulous providers” who exploited the system.

To counter abuse, NSFAS has released a draft Student Accommodation Protocol that mandates placement within four hours of arrival on campus and sets clear rules for claims.

The protocol is out for comment and will be finalised before 2026.

The 2026 NSFAS application cycle will officially open at the University of Pretoria on Tuesday.

The new process promises greater efficiency through the myNSFAS online portal, real-time updates, and automatic verification with Home Affairs, SARS, and SASSA.

“NSFAS remains one of the largest instruments of social justice in post-apartheid South Africa. Through this scheme, close to a million students are supported every year,” Manamela said.

Applications for 2026 will continue to target households with a combined income of up to R350,000 for bursaries, while the “missing middle”, families earning between R350,000 and R600,000, can apply for NSFAS-administered loans. Students with disabilities qualify if their household income is below R600,000.

The minister warned against fraudulent applications, which in previous years saw up to 40,000 students accessing funds illegally.

“We are now able to check if your parents are alive, what they earn, and whether you qualify. Fraudulent applications are theft, and we will act against them,” Manamela cautioned.

Responding to questions on funding sustainability, Manamela reaffirmed the government’s commitment to fee-free higher education for poor and working-class students while also developing a comprehensive funding model for the missing middle.

“Some students were applying for both bursaries and loans, and many were migrated into bursaries. But we’ve also seen households pushed into bursary eligibility because of the rising cost of living,” he said.

The minister said discussions with the Treasury and the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation are underway to design a sustainable model, noting that the country requires about R75 billion annually for student funding, with shortfalls doubling each year.

“There should be no holy cows in this discussion. Either we renege on fee-free higher education or we commit resources. We cannot leave students on a cliffhanger every year,” Manamela said.

Accommodation remains one of the most pressing challenges. Thousands of students were left stranded in 2025, with some sleeping in libraries or overcrowded housing.

Carrim said planning for 2026 has already begun.

“We have estimated numbers of students who will require accommodation and set in place a process to ensure sufficient capacity at every institution. The new protocol will ensure that no student is left without a bed.”

Manamela emphasised that readiness for 2026 was not only about universities, which will have space for about 235,000 first-year students, but also about Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges and Community Education and Training (CET) colleges.

TVET students will continue to be fully funded by NSFAS, including tuition, registration, and allowances.

CET colleges, serving over 130,000 learners, will also be supported with lecturer training, expanded programmes, and digital tools.

To prevent disruptions in 2026, government has established a “War Room” that will meet weekly with NSFAS, institutions, student leaders, and quality councils to resolve emerging issues rapidly.

As over 815,000 Grade 12 learners prepare for their final examinations, the minister acknowledged that only about half can be absorbed into the post-school system next year.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Johnathan Paoli

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng has called for urgent empowerment of social workers, health workers, and caregivers to report cases of statutory rape, as alarming new statistics reveal that tens of thousands of school-age girls in the province fell pregnant in 2024. 

DA Gauteng leader and official opposition leader Solly Msimanga said the figures underscored a growing crisis of child sexual abuse and statutory rape that is being ignored by authorities and too often normalised in communities. 

“Statutory rape is a serious violation, and men who commit such a crime inflict lasting harm on a vulnerable individual. The failure by law enforcement agencies to take action against men who commit this offense is deeply troubling, as it compromises the principles of consent and respect, leaving young girls vulnerable to predatory individuals who have lost all sense of morality,” Msimanga said. 

According to data disclosed by Gauteng Health and Wellness MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko in the provincial legislature, 23,691 pregnancies were recorded among girls between the ages of 10 and 19, last year. 

Of these, 18,851 resulted in deliveries at public health facilities, while 4,840 were terminated. Disturbingly, 521 of these pregnancies involved girls between the ages of 10 and 14.

While pregnancies among learners are rising, police reports of child rape and statutory rape are falling.

Gauteng’s Clinical Forensic Medical Services and Thuthuzela Care Centres recorded 474 cases reported to the South African Police Service in 2022/23, 257 cases in 2023/24, and just 242 between April and December 2024. 

Msimanga said the discrepancy pointed to a breakdown in enforcement of Section 110 of the Children’s Act of 2005, which obliges teachers, healthcare workers, social workers, and caregivers to report suspicions or evidence of child sexual abuse. 

“The failure to act enables predators to continue abusing children, while families are sometimes bribed into silence. This not only protects perpetrators but entrenches a culture of impunity,” he said. 

The Gauteng Health Department’s statistics highlight that the problem cuts across the province. 

Johannesburg recorded 7,245 cases of teenage pregnancy, followed closely by Ekurhuleni with 6,893, and Tshwane with 5,752. The West Rand and Sedibeng recorded 2,014 and 1,787 respectively.

The DA has requested further data on which schools reported the highest numbers of learner pregnancies and how many girls who gave birth managed to return to school. 

However, Inside Education reached out to the Gauteng Education Department who admitted it does not keep such records. 

Msimanga cautioned that poverty and inequality fuel the problem, with transactional sex between older men and vulnerable girls increasingly common. 

In some cases, families accept money or goods in exchange for silence.

The DA is demanding that the provincial departments of Education, Health, Social Development, and Community Safety collaborate more effectively to equip and empower social workers, health professionals, and caregivers to report statutory rape to SAPS; ensure all reported cases are promptly investigated and prosecuted; provide education to girls that reinforces their right to refuse unwanted sexual advances, even from adults in positions of authority; and strengthen partnerships with parents and community leaders to create safe environments for children. 

Msimanga added that the DA will also push for answers on the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections and HIV among the affected age group. 

The DA’s Gauteng intervention is part of a broader national probe into the child pregnancy crisis.

DA Social Development spokesperson Alexandra Abrahams recently revealed that in the Eastern Cape, 117 girls between the ages of 10 and 14 gave birth between April and July 2025, while 4,752 teenagers aged 15 to 19 delivered babies during the same period.

“These figures are only the tip of the iceberg. Pregnancies that end in termination or miscarriage, or those that go unreported, make the true scale far greater,” Abrahams said.

The DA cited the reported drugging and sexual assault of learners from Khomani Primary School in Diepkloof earlier this year as proof that some incidents occur beyond the direct oversight of teachers and parents. 

Msimanga said a DA-led administration would ensure that professionals are trained to enforce the Children’s Act, statutory rape cases are properly investigated and prosecuted, and schools are staffed only with vetted teachers and officials.

INSIDE EDUCATION

At least 20 learners were injured when a minibus taxi transporting them plunged off the Kwakhetha Bridge on the P127 road near Mpendle in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands on Monday.

The passengers, aged between 8 and 15, sustained injuries ranging from minor to serious, but all survived the crash.

It is alleged that the taxi, carrying learners from different schools in the area, veered off the road and plunged several metres down the bridge.

Residents rushed to the scene and worked with emergency services to ensure the children received immediate care.

The injured were first taken to Gomane Clinic, before being transferred to Harry Gwala Regional Hospital (Edendale Hospital) for further treatment.

KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport and Human Settlements Siboniso Duma confirmed that the taxi driver fled the scene.

“Most disturbing is that the driver disappeared, and law enforcement agencies are looking for him,” Duma said.

“Learners are from Matomela High School, Luthando High School and Sthunjwana Primary School. They have been taken to Gomane Clinic and Harry Gwala Regional Hospital (Edendale Hospital). Unfortunately, this is the third accident involving a school learner transport in Umgungundlovu District within four days. Four learners died on Thursday, and others are still in the hospital.”

Duma said the department has called on the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) in KwaZulu-Natal to urgently convene discussions with taxi associations over the recurring accidents involving scholar transport.

According to the Automobile Association estimates, 70,000 minibus taxi crashes annually, with taxis experiencing double the crash rate of other passenger vehicles.

“I wish to announce that we have resolved to form a partnership with the Vehicle Testing Association (VTA). The association is a member of the Retail Motor Industry Organisation (RMI) and represents the private vehicle testing stations involved in the testing and issuing of roadworthy certificates in terms of the National Road Traffic Act and SABS 10047,” said Duma.

“We have agreed to work together to isolate elements that are operating vehicles without roadworthy certificates and to ensure that those issuing fraudulent certificates are arrested.”

INSIDE EDUCATION

Across the African continent in 2025, a quiet revolution is roaring to life, and it hums with the sounds of servo motors, sensor data, and student laughter. The World Robot Olympiad (WRO) competition has taken root in schools from Zimbabwe to Nigeria, South Africa to Uganda, building a movement that’s not just reshaping how kids learn, but redefining why they learn.

And it is gaining more traction. Ministries of Education, embassies, universities, and global partners like Google, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the Endeavour Foundation are investing in this grassroots momentum, recognizing that the future education – and innovation – might just look like a table full of buzzing wires and bright ideas.

More than a Tech Competition
Each year, WRO invites students from around the world to imagine, build, and compete, all through the power of robotics. It starts in classrooms: robotics workshops and bootcamps unfold across schools, where students form teams and begin designing robots that respond to the year’s theme – this time, “The Future of Robots.” In some countries, regional events pave the way to national finals. Then, the top teams earn the chance to represent their country on the global stage in Singapore in November, alongside young peers from over 90 nations.

In Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe, WRO Bootcamps have reached schools across the country, introducing coding, AI, and engineering principles through play and challenge-based learning to hundreds of students – including those from underserved and special needs communities.

“Every robotics bootcamp is a window into what’s possible when learning becomes active, inclusive, and tech-driven,” says Valentine Masicha, WRO Country Coordinator for Uganda with Mindset Coders. “In these sessions, students aren’t just tinkering with robots; they’re building confidence, learning to collaborate, and solving real-world problems with code and creativity.” For many, it’s their first time seeing how STEM can be relevant to their lives and community.

Mentorship in Motion
In each participating country, the excitement is just as palpable among the coaches who are at the heart of the WRO experience.

“Gone are the days when teachers simply delivered content”, says Victoria Nxumalo, WRO Country Coordinator for Zimbabwe and founder of Girls in STEM Trust. “WRO is revealing what relevant, future-facing education looks like in real-time: a shift from instructors to co-creators — mentors guiding discovery with courage.”

Google mentor, software engineer, and WRO lead mentor Andrew Muriithi couldn’t agree more. His thing? Train WRO coaches to accompany students from their first brainstorming session all the way to proudly representing their country at the WRO International Final. “Mentorship isn’t about having all the answers. It is about walking the journey with someone. You grow just as much as the mentee does,” says Andrew.

He continues: “Start messy, learn fast. A mentee once asked me, ‘When do I know I’m ready to build real projects?’ My answer: You don’t. You just start. And remember that every expert you admire started with broken apps and endless errors.”

This evolution mirrors global shifts in education. The World Economic Forum’s 2023 “Education 4.0” agenda singles out mentorship, creativity, and adaptable problem-solving as foundational skills in an AI-first world. Meanwhile, UNESCO’s 2024 AI Competency Framework outlines 12 essential AI competencies for students – ranging from ethical reasoning to system design – with the goal of preparing learners to become responsible, human-centered co-creators of AI.

By introducing robotics, coding, and AI as tools for collaboration and creativity, WRO is creating safe spaces for experimentation and failure – and that’s where real learning happens.

“WRO is the perfect launchpad for hands-on, trial-and-error learning,” Andrew explains. “In a world shaped by AI, it’s not just about getting it right. It’s about learning how to rethink, rebuild, and keep going. The problem-solving mindset these young people develop is exactly what the future needs.”

Meet the Makers: A Winning Team Up Close
In Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe, one WRO team captured the attention of judges, diplomats, and tech leaders alike.

Team FutureSight, winners of Zimbabwe’s National Championship in the Senior category, developed an AI-powered voice assistant for the blind. This smart, voice-controlled tool helps visually impaired users with daily tasks like reading, object recognition, and navigation. But what makes it truly special is its localisation: the team is adapting it to support local languages, ensuring accessibility for users who are often left behind in global tech developments.

“We wanted to build something that mattered,” said one team member. “Something that could make life better for people around us, not just win a trophy.”

This truth echoes in research, too: African youth often innovate with their community in mind, not a market. They consistently prioritize social impact over profit, seeking to solve real-world challenges like food access, clean energy, or equity in education (HSRC, 2024). This African mindset of ‘profit for purpose’ aligns powerfully with the spirit of WRO, where every robot tells the story that true innovation is transformational, not just transactional.”

With Africa’s workforce and innovation agenda at stake, Google and UNECA teamed up in 2024 to accelerate WRO’s spread across the continent, as Bahta Mamo Bekele, UNECA Program Coordinator and National Coordinator for WRO in Ethiopia, explains: “The WRO’s approach is fundamentally about building a vibrant African innovation ecosystem from the ground up. It empowers young people to tackle their communities’ most pressing challenges with their own hands and minds, giving them a voice that resonates far beyond their schools and cities. At the UNECA, we are witnessing this digital upskilling in action. It is inspiring a new generation of problem-solvers who are ready to own their narrative and shape the continent’s future.”

A New Era of Hands-on Learning
A growing body of educational research (e.g., OECD Future of Education 2030, Harvard Project Zero) confirms that interdisciplinary, collaborative, and values-based learning better prepares students for AI-rich futures than traditional subject silos.

More than a robotics competition, WRO is the new blackboard, the new lab coat, the new field trip. It becomes a testing ground for the kind of thinking machines can’t do: empathy, ethics, adaptability, and purpose. Yes, kids learn to code. But more importantly, they learn to connect ideas, people, and technology in meaningful ways.

“This is where education truly meets innovation in its truest form, robotics challenges becoming the new interdisciplinary classrooms, where math, science, and language meet creativity, cross-cultural teamwork, design thinking, and resilience. The skills forged here aren’t just nice-to-haves. They’re essential in an AI-powered world,” says Karen Bebelaar, WRO Program Manager.

And WRO Africa isn’t just nurturing future engineers, although it does that too. It is cultivating a generation of ethical innovators, systems thinkers, and global citizens who can lead with both skill and conscience.

Inclusion as a Power Engine
The smiles beaming from the Jangwani and Benjamin Mkapa schools in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania are spreading more good news backed by peer-reviewed evidence: educational robotics is a power mix of fun that significantly supports cognitive, social, and emotional development among learners with special needs.

A 2025 scoping review of 33 peer-reviewed studies confirmed significant gains in cognitive, emotional, and social development among learners with special needs engaged in robotics-based learning. One 2023 ERIC-reviewed study even showed that just eight weeks of robotics lessons led to improved mental planning and group interaction for children with Down syndrome.

But robotics isn’t just bridging gaps, it is opening new frontiers. Students with special needs actually help redefine what innovation looks like, their lived experiences bringing essential perspectives often missing from mainstream tech design.

“When children with disabilities build, code, and compete, they bring new ways of thinking to the table. Their contributions go beyond inclusion: they challenge design norms, foster empathy among peers, and drive user-centered innovation,” says Eva Shana, WRO Country Coordinator for Tanzania at the University of Dar es Salaam. Recent studies in inclusive tech design even highlight that co-creating with learners who have disabilities leads to more accessible, socially attuned technologies for all (GSSRR, 2023).

What’s in a WRO?
Far more than they imagined back in 2004, for sure.

What started as a robotics contest has evolved into a launchpad for equity, creativity, and human-centered innovation. In 2020, only 5 of the 90 participating countries were African. Last year, thanks to the unwavering support of partners like Google, UNECA, Irish Aid, Endeavour Foundation, Camden.education, and a growing network of local changemakers, 9,000 young people across 14 African countries took part in WRO activities – and with momentum building, even more are expected in 2025.

In Nigeria, strategic partnerships with state ministries and institutions are mainstreaming robotics across schools nationwide. The impact? Over 2,000 teachers trained and more than 20,000 young people from all walks of life engaged in WRO 2025.

“With WRO, students, coaches, and experts alike are being prepared today for the challenges of tomorrow. More than a competition, WRO is a launchpad raising solution-driven young people who can think differently, innovate locally, and function globally,” says Abisola Obasanya, WRO Nigeria National Organiser.

Some 4,000 miles further south, the sentiment is shared by WRO South Africa National Organiser Danie Heymans, who has just wrapped up 13 Provincial WRO events with Township Robotics, bringing key 21st-century skills to schools in historically underserved areas.

“In a world racing to automate, quantify, and scale, these fearless, ready-to-learn youth with their purpose-driven mindset remind us what real innovation looks like. And it looks a lot like Ubuntu*,” concludes Heymans.

*Ubuntu is an ancient African word rooted in humanist African philosophy and can be roughly translated as “humanity to others”, or “I am because we are”. It comes from the Zulu proverb “Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu”, meaning “a person is a person through other people”.

The story was first published by World Robot Olympiad (WRO)

By Charmaine Ndlela

KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) education authorities have ordered an urgent investigation into allegations that teachers at Thubalethu Secondary School in Pinetown molested female pupils, in a case that has triggered national concern over rising reports of sexual abuse in South Africa’s schools.

Education MEC Sipho Hlomuka said he is “outraged” at the reports and ordered immediate action.

“Any acts of abuse or misconduct by educators fundamentally undermine the trust, care, and responsibility that define the teaching profession,” he said.

The department condemned the alleged conduct as “abhorrent behaviour”, adding: “The protection, safety, and well-being of learners remain our highest priority.” 

“Investigators will be deployed to the school to establish the facts, strengthen accountability and ensure those guilty, face the law and disciplinary processes. As the department, we will not sit idle while the integrity of our schools is compromised and the safety of our learners is threatened,” Hlomuka said.

He emphasised that schools should be “a centre of learning, care, and growth – not places of fear”. 

The department urged pupils, parents, teachers and community members to report abuse through official channels or directly to police.

“The department will not tolerate any violation of learners’ rights. Any educator who exploits their position of trust will be removed from the system and subjected to criminal prosecution without hesitation,” it said.

The allegations come against a backdrop of mounting national concern.

The Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) said it received 114 cases of sexual misconduct in schools in the past year, with 39 teachers found guilty. ELRC spokesperson Bernice Loxton urged the government to act firmly.

Other recent cases include the suspension of a principal and three teachers at Tiyelelani Secondary School in Soshanguve in September 2025, and allegations in the Northern Cape where pupils at Bothithong High School were allegedly given stipends by teachers in exchange for unprotected sex. 

Equal Education and other groups also expressed outrage, saying the incidents reflect a wider pattern.

Sexual violence in schools has been described by UNICEF and advocacy groups as systemic. A seven-year-old girl’s alleged sexual abuse at Bergville College in the Eastern Cape earlier this year sparked nationwide protests.

Union voices echoed the call for accountability.

“We don’t support such behaviour. Let those allegations be investigated and the law should take its course. This act is an illegal, criminal act and unprofessional. We are a union representing teachers, we don’t condone such,” said South African Democratic Teachers Union spokesperson, Nomusa Cembi.

Data from the South African Council for Educators (SACE) showed 111 cases of sexual abuse referred in 2024/25, up from 82 the previous year. KwaZulu-Natal led with 25 cases, followed by Eastern Cape and Free State reporting 12 cases, respectively.

Childline CEO Dumisile Cele called for guilty teachers to be placed on the Child Protection Register.

“Teachers found guilty of such atrocities should have their names added to the Register within the Children’s Act,” said Cele. 

Education officials have said measures are in place to tackle the scourge.

Western Cape Education MEC David Maynier’s office reported seven sexual assault cases in 2024/25, down from 15 the year before, with six teachers dismissed and one suspended without pay.

National crime statistics reflect the wider challenge. SAPS recorded 80 rapes at educational institutions between January and March 2025, with 54 victims being learners. Overall, 13,452 sexual offences were reported nationally during the period.

KZN education spokesperson Mlungisi Mtshali said the province treats such cases with urgency.

“That’s why we must not make a mistake in this issue. When we charge the perpetrator, we must have all the information at hand. We can only suspend educators for three months while we investigate the matter,” he said.

He added that the department has a dedicated unit, including external investigators and social workers, to handle complaints.

“We are ensuring the school environment is enabling, supportive and offers a safe space for learners, educators and school staff,” Mtshali said.

INSIDE EDUCATION

By Lizélle Pretorius

As a full-time teacher completing a PhD part-time, I made a decision early on: do research that speaks to the daily realities of teachers and teaching. And so, the idea came from a lived experience – the day I asked one of my grade 11 learners (an A student) about the interpretation of a poem. His response?

Ma’am, please just write the answer on the board so we can study it for the exam.

I am sure that many teachers can relate to that request, which is typical of education framed by a “chalk and talk” approach.

“Chalk and talk” refers to a classroom environment where the teacher does most of the talking. There’s an over-reliance on textbooks and a focus on recall and rote learning. This is your typical “one size fits all” approach to teaching. Learners are mostly motivated to learn to pass their final year exams.

In South Africa, where I work, that’s contrary to what the national curriculum states. The critical outcomes of the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement say learning has to be active, focus on critical thinking and reasoning, and go beyond memorising.

But that’s the exception rather than the rule in South African classrooms. There is a mismatch between policy and practice.

A US study weighed the pros and cons of active learning vs direct instruction. Ultimately, active learning is essential to promote curiosity, take ownership of one’s learning journey, and develop important social skills.

The goal of my research was simple: to help teachers include active learning activities in their regular classroom routines. I called my intervention the “altered flipped classroom”. The idea originates from the “flipped classroom”, an active learning approach to make the best use of face-to-face time with learners.

Altering the flipped classroom

The flipped classroom makes use of pre-recorded lessons that learners view before coming to class. In class, teachers support them to do their “homework”.

The flipped classroom has been researched in depth and the advantages to learning are impressive. These include improved learning performance and the development of skills such as critical analysis, problem-solving and collaboration. One study discovered that the flipped classroom helped low performers to keep up with their peers.

In South Africa, only 21.48% of public schools have access to the internet for teaching and learning. Because of this limitation, I had to “alter” the flipped classroom by excluding the technology component.

For example, instead of relying on online resources, learners can be given a visual representation of a poem along with a few guiding questions to prepare at home for the next day’s lesson. In class, they could then share their responses with a peer or the whole group.

This simple adjustment can enable meaningful contributions and include participation from all learners in a class.

Teachers take on the challenge

I invited Grade 8-11 teachers in public and private schools in the Western Cape province to participate. Thirty-one teachers attended the online training, and nine took part in the study. Their teaching experience ranged from first-year to over 30 years.

They also received a teacher manual which included the background of the flipped classroom, its underlying theories, and practical examples of how to start. Teachers were asked to flip their classroom for three consecutive lessons and to keep a research diary to capture their experiences. These were also discussed during online interviews.

The aim was to explore what had been holding them back from active learning methods. It turned out that they experienced internal and external pressures. Teachers had to overcome possible judgement for “teaching differently” and faced uncertainty regarding the changing of roles. They also experienced fear of having less control, and noted their old habits and mindsets of teaching.

Voices from the classroom

The teachers in my study were concerned about what colleagues or management might think:

If someone walked into my class, it would have seemed like … the kids were playing around, not working, but they were. It just … looked different.

Teachers had to face their own deep-rooted habits and mindsets, which mostly centred on control. This appeared to come from their well-established teacher identities, shaped by their beliefs, assumptions and experiences with regard to their own teaching and how they were taught.

One teacher emphasised the need to move from “a conservative in a box kind of teacher”. One said “my classroom is my stage”; another “felt territorial about {her} space”.

Some teachers recognised the need for change. One said, “I feel like we can break that habit” and another, “We cannot do it the way we have always done it”. They started to become aware of old habits that influenced their practice:

It’s so like hammered into me that you have to be in the front, you have to teach.

From passive learning to purposeful growth

Ideally, teachers will challenge themselves to question the chalk and talk comfort zone and the system that reinforces it.

If nothing changes, learners are being set up to be dependent on their teachers.

The teachers reported many advantages for active learning, such as increased motivation and learners taking responsibility for their learning.

Teachers should be encouraged to go beyond the boundaries of traditional teaching. Learning experiences have to include opportunities to develop thinking, skills and values. Apart from knowledge, these are essential when entering the workforce or when studying a post-school qualification.

Change is not always easy, but it is necessary.

THE CONVERSATION

Some students watched the video in the middle of class. Others pulled out their phones as they walked out of school and found themselves watching the videos over and over. Some teachers interrupted lessons to discuss the horrific news.

Almost instantly after Charlie Kirk was assassinated Wednesday at Utah Valley University, the news — captured on video in grisly detail — sent shockwaves through classrooms everywhere. Because no matter teens’ political opinions, everyone knew Kirk.

In high school classes in Spanish Fork, Utah, chatter spread fast Wednesday, as students learned of the shooting and began to wonder if Kirk would live or die. A cellphone ban meant many students didn’t learn of Kirk’s fate until the final bell — pushing tough conversations in class to the next day.

“By the end of the day, I was worn out,” said English teacher Andrew Apsley. He discussed the shooting with each of his four classes Thursday at Landmark High School, about 15 miles south of UVU.

In the current political climate and with new cellphone bans, schools have tried to push social media and controversial topics to the sidelines, saying classes should focus on basic academics. Kirk’s shooting upended all that.

Graphic footage of Kirk’s shooting on the Utah college campus was available almost immediately online, captured by cellphones from several angles.

The videos, in slow motion and real-time speed, show a direct view of Kirk being shot, his body recoiling and blood gushing from his neck. The videos were easy to find on X, TikTok and Instagram.

Many teens say they feel traumatized by what they saw.

They couldn’t escape the videos popping up on their social media feeds or being passed to them by friends and classmates.

Some teens posted warnings that urged people not to click on the Kirk videos, saying they wished the visuals had come with trigger warnings.

Apsley’s 19-year-old child received a gruesome video of Kirk’s death in a message from a friend. His child has autism and has difficulty processing emotions, so the video was “pretty traumatic,” Apsley said. That incident became a teaching moment for Apsley’s students.

“I know we want to be first. I know we want to be the one to share the information that other people rely on,” Apsley recalled telling his classes. “But at the same time, not everyone is well-equipped to handle something as graphic and violent as that.”

Students tuned in everywhere, highlighting the global reality of social media.

In Canada, Aidan Groves was in a college writing class when he saw a headline on Reddit that Kirk had been shot. He had not shared Kirk’s political views, yet “my heart sank, and I was immediately on edge,” said Groves, a student at Southern Alberta Institute of Technology in Calgary. He quickly swiped through comments, feeling overcome by horror and dread.

Even so, he left his classroom to watch the video.

Groves, 19, grew up watching his dad play video games with violent imagery, but he was struck by the video’s immediacy and the crowd’s frantic reaction.

When Groves returned to class 10 minutes later, everyone was distracted by the news of the shooting. Students passed around their phones. Some of his classmates expressed shock. Others who weren’t fond of Kirk’s views cracked jokes.

Through it all, the professor carried on with his lesson.

A similar scene played out in a now-viral video taken in a classroom at the University of North Texas, where a student filmed her class watching the video on tablets and cell phones they passed around the room. Some students have amused looks on their faces, and the student filming the video chastises those making light of it.

“Why are we cheering for someone getting shot? No matter what political beliefs are, we should not be cheering that someone got shot,” the student tells her classmates. A University of North Texas spokeswoman confirmed the video was filmed in one of its classrooms.

“I’ve never seen anybody die, and immediately everybody in this crowd had just witnessed that,” he said.

Whether students admired Kirk or not, teenagers across the world knew him from his social media presence.

A right-wing activist and close ally of President Donald Trump, Kirk’s savvy use of social videos, capturing his pithy responses to questions from liberals, raised his profile at speaking events on college campuses and online, especially among young men.

San Francisco teen Richie Trovao didn’t agree with all of Kirk’s ideas, but admired how the activist “really stood on his beliefs.” Trovao, 17, had thought about getting politically involved himself, but the assassination has given him second thoughts. He worries that speaking his mind could put him at risk.

The high school senior was on Discord when a friend messaged that Kirk had been shot. Trovao didn’t believe it at first, so he went to X to confirm, and a video of Kirk’s death autoplayed. His stomach turned.

“I never thought I would see something like that happen to someone who’s just basically an influencer,” Trovao said. Especially shocking: Some social media comments seemed to celebrate Kirk’s death.

Reaction to the video has highlighted the political divide and polarization that exists among American youth, said Connecticut high school senior Prakhar Vatsa. That was the main topic of discussion among classmates in his AP Government class after Kirk’s death.

Raised in an era of easy access to violent imagery, Vatsa, 17, said he wasn’t too affected when he saw the video while scrolling social media, because he isn’t too sensitive to gore.

“It was a bit traumatizing, but I’ve seen worse,” he said.

AP