Clarity Sought Following Department’s Contradictory Statements on CSE

By Daniela Ellerbeck, FOR SA Legal Advisor

At the meeting between the Department ofBasic Education (DBE) and religious and traditional leaders in Pretoria onThursday 23 January 2020, the DBE’s Deputy Director-General, Dr GranvilleWhittle, in no uncertain terms stated that once the pilot phase has been completed, ScriptedLesson Plans (SLPs) for Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) will beimplemented nationally in all public schools and taught to all learners fromGrades R to 12. He made it very clear that the SLPs (consisting of anEducator Guide for teachers, and a Learner Workbook for pupils) will becompulsory, and that there will be no “opt-out” for parents who areuncomfortable with the content.

At a meeting with teacher unions and school governing body associations (including FEDSAS) the very next day (on Friday 24 January 2020) however, the Department apparently stated the exact opposite – namely that SLPs will not be compulsory for teachers to use and that they (and public schools) are free to teach sexuality education from alternative sources. In other words, while the curriculum will remain the same, schools will still be free to choose the material they want to use to achieve the stated outcomes.

This assurance by the DBE clearly contradicts what was stated a day before, but is also contrary to the Minister of Basic Education’s earlier reply to a written question by Honourable Marchesi MP, wherein she stated that teachers would be subject to disciplinary action if they refuse to teach CSE.

In light of its clearly contradictorymessages, FOR SA has written to the DBE this week for clarification toascertain what precisely the Department’s final position is with regard to SLPs(whether they are compulsory or not), and whether this will be encapsulated inan official policy document.

FOR SA is currently still awaiting an answer from the Department.

[author] [author_info]Daniela is a duly qualified Attorney of the High Court of South Africa. She obtained a BCom LLB degree from Rhodes University. Daniela first worked for Médecins sans Frontières before completing her articles of clerkship at G van Zyl Attorneys, where she stayed on after being admitted as an attorney and practised, specialising in litigation. Daniela has loved Jesus since she was young and is a member of a local church in Cape Town where she is actively involved. [/author_info] [/author]

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