Access to and the provision of preschool education: The trajectory since 1994

Abstract

This paper was precipitated by the hypothetical question, ‘If you were in charge of education in South Africa today, given the unequal socio-economic circumstances of people in the country in the past, now and probably in the future, and given the unsatisfactory quality of education provided to the overwhelming majority of learners in the country, and given the skills, values and knowledge needs of the country’s economy as well as of our society at large, would you prioritise the spending of money on pre-school education and elevate its status to become part of the fundamental right to a basic education?’