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why I have chosen to write an article on National Education Crisis Committee:

I have chosen this topic to write my article on previously at Sixth form I studied apartheid. Apartheid's effects on education and discrimination was very interesting to me as I explored the ways in which the opposition groups tackled the issues of black education and how this effected education overall for all races- lack of funding for certain groups as well as segregated education. Therefore, I am interested in further looking in to the progression of education post-apartheid and have chosen this topic to explore the national education crisis committees approach to this too.

Bibliography

Resource 1 – The national education crisis committee (from page 64-67 of ‘the influence of progressive teachers’ unions in the formation and implementation of outcomes-based education in South Africa.

The National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) (1library.net) https://1library.net/article/the-national-education-crisis-committee-necc.q595exjz

Summary: Describes the history of the national education crisis committee in South Africa at the time of apartheid. This includes when, why and how it was formed as well as its aim to improve the situation of the South African education crisis which affected black students. Strengths and weaknesses: Strengths: Explains in detail the origins of the committee and an overview of the situation. -Non-biased due to the purpose of the source being strictly informative -Expands into some of the groups the NECC communicated with. Weaknesses: -Doesn’t so much go into detail about the making of the education crisis. -Doesn’t show international perspectives. -Non-personal, strictly informative. Sources relate? Best source for the purpose of information focused on just the NECC and the history of it.

Resource 2 – The June 16th Soweto uprising

The June 16 Soweto Youth Uprising | South African History Online (sahistory.org.za) https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/june-16-soweto-youth-uprising

Summary: Describes the Soweto youth uprising: a protest that was organized against the education system (the trigger for this being the bantu education act introducing Afrikaans and English as the main languages taught in schools) which resulted in police brutality against the youth protesters and deaths. Strengths and weaknesses: Strengths: -Gives context to the education crisis that the NECC were formed to try and better. -Illustrates the political unrest and corruption. Weaknesses: -Could include more student protests therefore fully demonstrating the historical context of the situation. -Does not mention the NECC specifically (which is the topic of my Wikipedia article). Sources relate? Relates to the other sources in a contextual sense although it doesn’t include the NECC.

Resource 3 – Rethinking schools: storytelling at resistance

Education in South Africa: challenging ‘gutter education’. https://rethinkingschools.org/articles/education-in-south-africa-challenging-gutter-education/

Summary: Ten years after Soweto protest, the author: Bigelow, visited South Africa and personally evaluates the state of south Africa’s education system. Strengths and weakness: Strengths: -Again, goes into context about the education crisis in South Africa. -Quotes from key figures, specifically Hendrik Verwoerd. -Includes the NECC. Weaknesses: -Not as informative due to it being more of a personal written report about his experience. Not about the general politicized nature. -Can be more risk in terms of accuracy due to it being from someone external (who didn’t actually live in South Africa) as they may have been fed different information about the situation before going. Sources relate? -Only personal resource where the author is a primary source of the events. -Mostly goes into education not the NECC.

Resource 4 – people’s education for people’s power by oxium education

PEOPLES EDUCATION FOR PEOPLES POWER (axiumeducation.org) https://www.axiumeducation.org/post/2018/04/27/peoples-education-for-peoples-power

Summary: The source focuses on the place of school in South Africa: the struggle in the fight against apartheid. It examines ‘people’s education, the NECC and the structure of the education system. Strengths and weaknesses: Strengths: -Looks into different aspects of education as well as the before, during and after effects. -Describes the NECC’s approach to tackling the crisis and who they were concerned with in particular. Weaknesses: -Not solely focused on the NECC. -Doesn’t talk about the conferences with the NECC or any protests including boycotts. Sources relate? Goes into ‘people power’ and concepts like that. Also, talks about the NECC and its aims alike resource 1. Mentions the Soweto rising like from resource 2.

Resource 5 – South Africa blacks plan mass action: store boycotts, rent strikes are part of strategy by Michael Parks, 1986, Los Angeles times.

South Africa Blacks Plan Mass Action : Store Boycotts, Rent Strikes Are Part of Strategy - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com) https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-03-31-mn-2045-story.html

Summary: Gives a basic timeline of the withdrawal of school boycotts as a method of protest in order to adopt a broader strategy of mass action due to the violence is caused. However, this was for three weeks until the government reacted to their demands. Strengths and weaknesses: Strengths: -goes into strikes and context. -Explains the black opposition groups strategy. -is an international view (American newspaper) -Isn’t a biased opinionated piece, informational purpose only. Weaknesses: -External source so accuracy can be doubted.

The National Education Crisis Committee draft article

Overview of the NECC

The NECC, also known as the National Education Crisis committee, was formed in 1986 in South Africa. The South African's English dictionary describes the NECC as "An organization formed to coordinate left-wing opposition to the government's education policies, and to devise alternative policies (NECC, 2020). In this time period, South Africa was governed by the National party: a South African political group that ruled from 1948-1994, dominated by Afrikaner and English speaking whites that were dedicating to implementing their policies of apartheid and white supremacy (Britannica editors, 1998) The NECC was known as part of the 'progressive teachers' unions and had representatives worldwide therefore meaning it was internationally relevant which was essential for aiming to end apartheid. These groups were formed due to Soweto's education crisis. Other groups included the South African Student organization and the National union of South African students.

Context: The education crisis

During apartheid, the National party used an extreme range of legislation and policies to segregate communities and ensure white supremacy. These were aimed at different parts of South African society such as land, marriage, businesses and voting. The policies and laws that were enforce onto schools in particular caused anger from the African people due to how it effected students quality of education. Before the bantu education act, state-aided mission schools made up 90% of black South African school whereas after almost all mission schools were shut down. Therefore, black South African students were forced to attend government run schools. This meant that the government could use a 'hidden curriculum': A casual mechanism by which education reproduces unequal power and relations in society. Henrik Verwoerd- a South African prime minister during apartheid, stated that the new education system was "designed to 'train and fit' Africans for role in apartheid society." This meant that they would be trained to have low-skilled jobs such as laborers, workers and servants only. The lack of teaching from this approach meant that many black students were illiterate and therefore were restricted to certain jobs. The bantu education act (Britannica editors, 1998) introduced Afrikaans into school curriculum which also angered African community and even is considered to be the main cause of the Soweto protest and boycotting of schools which arguably fueled this crisis and caused the need for a political organization such as the NECC to demand for change.

Formation of the the National Education Crisis Committee

The NECC was formed during the First National Crisis Conference held by the Soweto Parents Crisis Committee which was attended by 160 different groups (Logue, Samantha). The event was also claimed to have attracted 1,200 people and 200 organizations. This was NEUSA's attempt to bring together different groups such as student, teacher and parents unions as well as community members. This was essential at the time due to the conflicts occurring between student organizations. Older moderate teachers in the movement were growing concerned of the 'radicalization 'of the youth. However, a common historical argument to this, is that the apartheid government's police brutality made allowances for this violence from the youth. For example, the loss of 176 lives at the Soweto protest in 1976 where their series of demonstrations and protests were met with fierce police brutality. During the conference, the council aimed to achieve demands of "people's education, for people's power, in people's schools", creating a participatory and democratic education. It was a risk for the NECC to be formed at this time as the unlawful organization act meant that the National party could deem any organizations that appeared to 'threaten public order' as unlawful. This meant opposition groups such as the ANC and PAC had to work 'underground'. Therefore, this illustrates the destruction the education system was facing at the time as this risk of creating an organization therefore had to be then taken. However, the NECC's structure really began to come together in the Second National Crisis Committee when the executive positions were filled and regional offices were established.

The National Education Crisis Committee and its impact on the educational crisis

The second crisis conference was in Durban in 1986. An agreement was made to stop the school boycotts for the sake of the students and uncertainty at this time. The ANC supported this idea meaning it was accepted and so students returned to school. In this conference, 'people's education' was established: the idea to liberate children rather than train them as tools for industry and commerce. The NECC structure was formed and included parent-teacher associations, parent-teacher-student associations and student representative councils. They ensured these groups were inclusive to all, provided resistance to apartheid regime and proved as an example to the government of how the education could be run equally and democratically. After the decision was made to stop school boycotts, the national party was given three months to make concessions and adhere to demands or the school boycotts would continue. This led to Botha (who was in charge of government at the time) to work with the NECC to meet as many demands as possible (Parks, 1986) However, not all demands were met as there were still government troops in black townships, the major black student organization was still banned and a number of students were still in detention. Therefore again the community was urged to strike and organizations called for further isolation of South Africa internationally, through the withdrawal of foreign investment. Educational freedom had still not been achieved and arguably wouldn't be until the 2000s, however the NECC was still vital to putting pressure on the apartheid education regime.

References

1. "NECC, n". Dictionary of South African English. Dictionary unit for South African English, 2020. Web. 11 January 2022. https://dsae.co.za/entry/necc/e05120#qp004476

2. (Britannica editors, 1998). "Apartheid, social policy" Britannica. Retrieved November 2021. https://www.britannica.com/topic/apartheid

3. (Logue, Samantha.) [The National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) (1library.net) "The information of progressive teachers unions in the formation and implementation of outcomes based education in South Africa"] https://1library.net/article/the-national-education-crisis-committee-necc.q595exjz

4. (Parks, 1986). "South Africa Blacks Plan Mass Action : Store Boycotts, Rent Strikes Are Part of Strategy" (article). LA times. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 25 November. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-03-31-mn-2045-story.html

Peer Reviews

Solar 782's peer review

It was a pleasure reading your draft wikipedia article. The clear language and structure of your article is excellent and helps the reader easily understand and access your article on the National Education Crisis Committee. I will go through the assessment Rubric now to outline where your article is great and where it could be improved.

Your introductory sentence has vast potential but currently lacks clarity and could be more concise. I would suggest merging your first two sentences and writing the definition in your own words. For example: “The National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) was an organisation created in 1986 to combine left wing opposition against South Africa’s National Party’s education policies” Your opening paragraph is strong as you touch on the Apartheid context and the importance of Soweto for the NECC’s formation which are both included later in your article. To move up to excellent I would suggest elaborating on the Committees formation and legacies so your introduction clearly states the focus points of your article. The level of detail for the ‘context: the education crisis’ section in your opening should be replicated for the other two sections. Whilst there is some fantastic information in your introduction the discussion of other groups seems slightly irrelevant. Other information in your introduction like NECC’s international relevance as part of the “progressive teachers unions” could be elaborated in the main body of your article to achieve excellence.

Your article is beautifully organised with headings and subheadings so that is definitely excellent. I would advise putting NECC in brackets in your main heading or just write it fully in your subheading to minimise the chance of confusion. The overall structure of your content outlining the context, the formation, and the legacies of the NECC is excellent and allows you to provide a wide range of information on this topic. I would maybe consider adding a section on what the NECC did and the international implications to link more explicitly to your statement on this point in the introduction. The type of language and overall sentence structure makes the article easy to understand however in some situations there are grammatical mistakes so you could improve this to achieve excellence. You could also provide Wiki links for things like the ANC / PAC, Apartheid, Soweto Uprising etc so the reader can read around the topic and there is less reliance on your brief explanation of these groups/events. It would also be awesome to include a picture in your article. I would advise a picture comparing the provision of a white only and black only school to show what the NECC were fighting against or a picture of the NECC in action.

In my view your article has the biggest scope for improvement in terms of referencing. Currently only a minority of your statements have references, excellent practice would require references for almost all your sentences. It is excellent that the majority of your bibliography includes open access websites however it may be useful to create more diversity here. Potentially you could cite from a few academic texts by South African authors too. The inclusion of dates, authors and hyperlinks in your reference list would also improve your work as it would make your sources easier to find for the reader.

Overall your wikipedia article is easy to understand due to the excellent structure and language that is deployed. I also think the use of open access sources is exemplary. Your article has the potential to reach excellence if you improve the focus of your introduction and add citations and references more often from a wider variety of sources. Well done on the first draft. Great effort. I look forward to reading the finished piece in January. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Solar782 (talk • contribs) 22:03, 28 November 2021 (UTC)

Madsal's peer Review

Positive

First of all, This is amazing! It has great structure and formatting.

Everything is neat and organised. It is easy to read and the language used is not complex that even a child would be able to understand what is being said.

You have clearly engaged in the task and know what the NECC is as is shown clearly throughout your work.

Good bibliography and referencing.

Improvements to progress

Some constructive notes to improve on to further progress is when you type things like 'hidden curriculum' I didn't know if you were quoting or if this was just a statement you wanted to put more emphasis on (If so, remove the apostrophe if it's not a quote so it won't confuse the reader).

Also, there are some areas where you have used a statistic but haven't shown where you have got it from.

Some minor grammar mistakes are present, but I am sure that will be fixed.

Some words are casual so try to use formal words throughout.

When referring to British English speakers and white supremacy you don't know to specify with 'white speakers' when you then follow up by stating the English speakers are pushing white supremacy because you are stating an obvious known factor and you are just using up your words.

Try to make use of some information from your previous bibliography and input it into your current work.

Overall a very good piece. Keep up the good work!

Madsal (talk) 14:33, 25 November 2021 (UTC)

my peer reviews:

jamesbright2 peer review

Ppmoi peer review

my response to peer reviews

peer review 1:

Comments I'll address and how I'll do so:

• I will ensure I have sufficient detailed references and will correct my grammar errors.

Peer review 2

Comments I'll address and how I'll do so:

• I will improve my introductory sentence and ensure each paragraph is as strong as the first.
• Again, I will improve my referencing by adding more reference to my statistics and terms the reader may be unsure about as well as increasing the information in these references such as dates and author.
• Maybe including a picture in my article.

Comments I won't address and why:

• discussion of other groups because although it could be more concise, it is contextual to my topic.
• Potentially adding another section on what the NECC did. That is the base of my article already so I shouldn't need to cover it individually.

The National Education Crisis Committee Final article

Overview of the NECC

The National education Crisis Committee (NECC) was formed in 1986 and was an organization that combined left wing opposition against South Africa's National Party's educational policies. (NECC, 2020). During this time period, South Africa was governed by the National party: a South African political group that ruled from 1948-1994, dominated by Afrikaner and English speaking whites that were dedicated to implementing their policies of apartheid and white supremacy (Britannica editors, 1998). The NECC was acknowledged as part of the 'progressive teachers' unions and had representatives worldwide. Therefore, the NECC was internationally relevant which was vital for aiming to end apartheid. The groups in the 'Progressive teachers Union' were formed due to Soweto's education crisis. Other groups included the South African Student organization (Evans, 2009) and the National union of South African students.

Context of the education crisis

During apartheid, the National party used the creation of new legislation and policies to segregate communities and ensure white supremacy. These were aimed at different segments of South African society such as land, marriage, businesses and voting. The policies and laws that were enforced onto schools in particular caused fury from the African people due to how it effected students quality of education (Bigelow, 1987). Before the bantu education act, state-aided mission schools made up 90% of black South African school whereas after almost all mission schools were shut down (SAHO, 2011). Therefore, black South African students were forced to attend government run schools. This meant that the government could use a hidden curriculum: A casual mechanism by which education reproduces unequal power and relations in society. Henrik Verwoerd (SAHOHV, 2011) - a South African prime minister during apartheid, stated that the new education system was "designed to 'train and fit' Africans for role in apartheid society." This meant that they would be trained to have low-skilled jobs such as laborers, workers and servants only. The inadequate quality of teaching meant that many black students were illiterate and therefore were restricted to certain jobs. The bantu education act (Britannica editors, 1998) introduced Afrikaans into school curriculum which also angered African community and even is considered to be the main cause of the Soweto protest and boycotting of schools. This fueled this crisis further and provoked the requirement for a political organization such as the NECC to demand for reformation.

Formation of the National Education Crisis Committee

The NECC was formed during the First National Crisis Conference held by the Soweto Parents Crisis Committee which was attended by 160 different groups (Logue). The event was also alleged to have attracted 1,200 people and 200 organizations. This was NEUSA's pursuit to merge different groups such as student, teacher and parents unions as well as community members. This was essential due to the conflicts occurring between student organizations. Older, moderate teachers in the movement were growing concerned of the 'radicalization 'of the youth. However, black opposition groups would argue that the apartheid government's police brutality made allowances for this violence from the youth. For example, the loss of 176 lives at the Soweto protest in 1976 where their series of demonstrations and protests were met with fierce police brutality (SAHO, 2013). During the conference, the council intended to achieve demands of "people's education, for people's power, in people's schools", constructing a participatory and democratic education. It was a risk for the NECC to be formed at this time as the unlawful organization act allowed the National party to deem any organizations that appeared to 'threaten public order' as unlawful. This meant opposition groups such as the ANC and PAC had to work 'underground' (Stevens, 2019). This illustrates the destruction the education system was facing at the time as this risk of creating an organization therefore had to be then taken. However, the NECC's structure really began to come together in the Second National Crisis Committee when the executive positions were filled and regional offices were established.

National Education Crisis Committee and its impact on the education crisis

The second crisis conference was in Durban in 1986 (Logue). An agreement was made to stop the school boycotts for the sake of the students and uncertainty at this time. The ANC supported this idea meaning it was accepted and so students returned to school (Evans, 2009). In this conference, 'people's education' was established: the idea to liberate children rather than train them as tools for industry and commerce. The NECC structure was formed and included parent-teacher associations, parent-teacher-student associations and student representative councils. They ensured these groups were inclusive to all, provided resistance to apartheid regime and proved as an example to the government of how the education could be run equally and democratically. After the decision was made to stop school boycotts, the national party was given three months to make concessions and adhere to demands or the school boycotts would continue. This led to President Botha having to work with the NECC to meet as many demands as possible (Parks, 1986). However, not all demands were met as there were still government troops in black townships, the major black student organization was still banned and a number of students were still in detention. Therefore again the community was urged to strike and organizations called for further isolation of South Africa internationally, through the withdrawal of foreign investment (Britannica editors, 1998). Educational freedom had still not been achieved and arguably wouldn't be until the 2000s, however the NECC was still vital to putting pressure on the apartheid education regime.

References

1. "NECC, n". Dictionary of South African English. Dictionary unit for South African English, 2020. Web. 11 January 2022. https://dsae.co.za/entry/necc/e05120#qp004476

2. (Britannica editors, 1998). "Apartheid, social policy" Britannica. Retrieved November 2021. https://www.britannica.com/topic/apartheid

3. (Evans, 2009). "South African Students Organization". Black past. Retrieved December 2021. https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/south-african-students-organization-saso/

4. (Bigelow, 1987). "Educating in South Africa : Challenging 'gutter education'". rethinking schools. Retrieved 20 November. https://rethinkingschools.org/articles/education-in-south-africa-challenging-gutter-education/

4. (SAHO, 2011) "Bantu education and the racist compartmentalizing of education". South African history online. SAHO. 2011. Retrieved December 2021. https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/bantu-education-and-racist-compartmentalizing-education

5. (SAHO HV, 2011). "Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd". South African History Online. Retrieved 30 December. https://www.sahistory.org.za/people/hendrik-frensch-verwoerd

6.(Logue, ) [The National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) (1library.net) "The information of progressive teachers unions in the formation and implementation of outcomes based education in South Africa"] https://1library.net/article/the-national-education-crisis-committee-necc.q595exjz

7. (SAHO, 2013). "The June 16 Soweto Youth Uprising". Retrieved 30 December https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/june-16-soweto-youth-uprising

8. (Stevens, 2019). "The turn to sabotage by the Congress movement in South Africa". past & present. Retrieved 20 november. https://academic.oup.com/past/article/245/1/221/5580560

9. (Parks, 1986). "South Africa Blacks Plan Mass Action : Store Boycotts, Rent Strikes Are Part of Strategy" (article). LA times. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 25 November. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-03-31-mn-2045-story.html