Education and training in South Africa is a sector that has pockets of excellence alongside a host of schools and colleges that are in crisis, resulting in educational outcomes of an unacceptably low level. BMIT’s Technology in Education 2020 report examines this landscape, reporting on the challenges and seeking the solutions that could be found in technology.

This report begins by broadly outlining the structure and size of the education and training sector in South Africa, both public and independent, school and post-school, provides estimates of the scope of ICT spend by the sector, and then looks at how technology is being utilised in education and training, citing case studies. The major education players in South Africa are profiled.

 

Methodology

BMIT has conducted an assessment of this vertical industry with extensive secondary research input from, among others, the following:

  • BMIT databases and other secondary sources, including SARS reporting of the number of VAT-paying companies and South African national government departments’ publications and budget documentation, in particular, Statistics SA databases and reports and documents published by the departments of Basic Education and Higher Education and Training and their agencies.
  • Enterprise ICT spending patterns, based on BMIT’s end user surveys and derived models
  • Top-down industry revenue figures tied back to BMIT’s in-depth reports on IT and telecoms market segments, which in turn are informed by primary research (vendor interviews) and analysis of operator reporting.

Research Components

Among the key components of the research, are:

  • Number of business customers in the sector
  • Vertical sector spend on IT and telecoms, and how this will change in future
  • Overall ICT spending levels and growth trends including forecasts to 2023
  • Resultant ICT revenues and forecast growth rates segmented by IT and telecoms, each broken down further by category type

 

Table of Contents

Methodology and Research Components

Abbreviations

SOUTH AFRICAN EDUCATION SECTOR OVERVIEW

  • Education Industry Dashboard
  • Education, training and lifelong learning
  • National government departments responsible for education and training
  • South African education landscape – number of persons engaged in education and training
  • South African education landscape – number of persons engaged in distance learning
  • South African basic education landscape – schools from ECD to Grade12
  • South African basic education schools, learners and educators, 2019
  • Geographic distribution of ordinary schools, public and independent, special needs schools, and colleges in South Africa
  • South African higher education landscape – all post-school education and training
  • Post-school education and training (PSET) system of governance in South Africa
  • South Africa post-school education and training (PSET) universities and colleges enrolments
  • Total PSET education and training enrolment, including both institutions and work-based training
  • Universities in South Africa, in all 9 provinces
  • Courses studied at South African public universities
  • Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) comprises vocational, occupational and artisan education and training as offered by TVET Colleges
  • Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges
  • Geographic distribution of public TVET colleges
  • Government funding for education and training in South Africa: 2020 Budget
  • Funding school education
  • Number of education companies and/or entities
  • Independent school numbers
  • Employment in the education sector overall

TOP EDUCATION AND TRAINING COMPANIES

  • Top companies major private education groups in SA
  • ADvTECH
  • ADvTECH PSET colleges
  • ADvTECH’s plan for future focused education
  • Curro schools and campuses
  • Curro history and growth
  • Private education groups: In addition to the ADvTECH group and Curro Group schools
  • Private PSET education groups

EDUCATION CHALLENGES & ISSUES

  • Improvement in years of education
  • NEET – persons not engaged in work or studies
  • South African low educational outcomes – challenges and solutions
  • South African low educational outcomes – Binding constraints 1 & 2
  • South African low educational outcomes – Binding constraints 3 & 4
  • Overage learners
  • Repetition rates in DBE schools
  • Poverty and education fees
  • Schools communication systems and connectivity
  • Schools with a computer centre
  • South Africa’s overall PSEST challenges
  • Change drivers affecting HEIs
  • South Africa’s university gross enrolment ratio (GER)
  • South Africa’s university throughput and dropout rates
  • Distance education success rate at South African public universities
  • Distance education throughput rates at South African public universities
  • Funding at universities
  • Challenges for university students
  • TVET challenges
  • The complexity of the influencers and inhibitors on ICT in education

ICT SECTOR SPEND

  • IT category segmentation
  • Telecoms category segmentation
  • Estimated total ICT spend on all education in South Africa
  • Estimated ICT spend on education by government
  • Estimated total ICT spend by all education departments
  • Total ICT spend by the two national education departments
  • ICT spend by the national department of basic education
  • ICT spend by the national department of higher education and training
  • ICT spend by ICT category, for the two national education departments
  • SITA spend by the DBE
  • SITA spend by the DHET
  • Provincial school education departments’ ICT spend: 2016/17 to 2018/19
  • Provincial school education departments’ ICT spend by ICT category, for 2018/19

SA GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES

  • Budgeted spend by government on education in South Africa
  • COVID-19 interventions by DBE and DHET
  • COVID19 lockdown for education and training
  • DBE interventions to ameliorate the COVID19 lockdown
  • COVID19 resources for basic education
  • DHET interventions to ameliorate the COVID19 lockdown
  • DHET interventions to ameliorate the COVID19 lockdown
  • DHET’s slogan adopted for Covid19 in the academic sector
  • Department of Basic Education initiatives
  • Basic education funding priorities
  • Effect of Covid19 on the Basic education budget
  • Basic education departmental ICT objectives
  • Basic education departmental ICT plan
  • Shift in presidential focus towards ICT in education
  • DBE’s action plan
  • DBE’s action plan, strategic areas
  • DBE’s action with regard to coding and Robotics
  • DBE’s action with regard to vocational and technical education
  • DBE’s action with regard to ICT provision
  • Universal Service and Access Obligations (USAO) for schools
  • Connectivity provided to DBE schools through USAO and USAASA
  • Devices deployed to DBE schools
  • Devices deployed to schools through the PEDs
  • ICT plan for special public schools
  • Progress with e-content provision for Basic education
  • E-content provided by provincial education departments
  • Plans for future e-content developments
  • Plans for teacher ICT training
  • E-administration in DBE – SA SAMS and LURITS
  • EMIS progress
  • Technology-enabled education or e-education
  • ICT in education policies
  • Government bodies regulate and facilitate education
  • Government initiative – Operation Phakisa for ICT in Education
  • Data Driven Districts
  • E-education infrastructure through the National Infrastructure Plan, the PICC and its SIPs
  • SA Connect national broadband policy is designed to be the basis of school connectivity
  • E-rate
  • TV White Spaces in South Africa
  • TV White Spaces Ecosystem in South Africa
  • TV White Spaces and Covid19 – CSIR
  • TV White Spaces and Covid19
  • Google For Education and SchoolNet South Africa
  • Department of Higher Education and Training initiatives
  • Post-school education and training funding priorities
  • Policies that drive post-school education in South Africa
  • Education Central Application Services (CAS)
  • TENET, SABEN and R7.5m support from Teraco
  • Innovation hubs in TVET colleges
  • Imbali Education Precinct
  • Use of ICT in PSET sector
  • Artisans

TECHNOLOGICAL DISRUPTON

  • The Ever-Growing EdTech Market
  • Macro-Trends Driving Growth in EdTech
  • Investors are betting on EdTech
  • Global EdTech Unicorns
  • Old trends, new and improved solutions
  • Immersive technologies gain investor interest
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Robotics in education is maturing
  • Blockchain in Education
  • Online learning
  • Educational Apps

LOCAL CASE STUDIES

  • Curro’s Online School
  • The Treasure Box, by the Western Cape’s DCAS
  • Sasol’s Lockdown Digital Classroom and digitised textbooks
  • Ambani Africa
  • Siyavula
  • InspireAfrica
  • Snapplify
  • WorksheetCloud

INTERNATIONAL CASE STUDIES

  • Strategic Positioning Analysis Wireless Technology Risk, TV White Spaces Case Studies
  • Data Analytics: Breaking down academic siloes
  • 17Zuoye: Digital Learning Platform
  • Squirrel AI: Adaptive Learning
  • There’s an app for everything
  • Gooru: Personalised Learning
  • Custom gaming technology for conflict-affected children
  • ConnectHomeUSA: Bridging the digital divide

 

 

Deliverables and format

  • PDF PowerPoint format
  • Clients are also entitled to a presentation/workshop in Johannesburg (may be combined with other topics at BMIT’s discretion)

Further information

For further information and details on how to subscribe to this research please contact Anita Mathews on 011 540 8000 | 082 466 2317 | anita@bmit.africa