ACCESSIBLE, INCLUSIVE EDUCATION FOR ALL.

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa states: “everyone has the right to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice in public educational institutions where that education is reasonably practicable.” This is a petition for the support of full parallel-medium as language of instruction and in essence to ensure that all students are able to achieve academic success in a language of their choice at Stellenbosch University. This petition adopts the aim of parallel-medium, meaning all classes be made available in English and Afrikaans, as well as significant investment in the development of isiXhosa and other South African languages as academic languages so that they can also become mediums of instruction.

The goal of the petition is to gather maximum amount of signatures BEFORE Sunday 29 November 2015 at 17:00 from Stellenbosch University students and staff to convince Stellenbosch University management to finally decide on a policy which will open the doors of learning for all students at Stellenbosch University on 30 November 2015.

This petition also acknowledges that the implementation of parallel-medium can be regarded by some as an expensive investment. However, according to recent documents by Stellenbosch University management the implementation of parallel-medium is estimated at R 162 million per annum. To bring this into context with Stellenbosch University's budget: Every year an annual report is compiled in which the university's financial growth and its allocations of funds are specified. These specified funds are grouped into restricted funds and unrestricted funds which are at the disposal if council wishes to make specific strategies available such as bursaries etc. According to the Annual Report 2014, on page 94, the total unrestricted funds as explained above is at a total value of R 430 199 000. The total funds for Education and General which include restricted funds is valued at R 1 486 931 000. Therefore, even without the restricted funds there is still money available to accommodate full parallel-medium at Stellenbosch University. The council of Stellenbosch University can ensure that parallel-medium at Stellenbosch becomes a reality if they prioritize this project and put the needs of the students first.

Sign and share this petition to ensure that everyone at Stellenbosch University can acquire an education without being excluded!

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