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Schools slammed for ditching African languages
The Mercury
|December 09, 2025
The increasing trend of former Model C schools adopting English as an additional medium of instruction should not be seen as a milestone worth celebrating, but rather as a call to refocus on South Africa's constitutional commitment to multilingualism, the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) has warned.
This comes as the Department of Basic Education (DBE) recently briefed Parliament's portfolio committee on education regarding the progress of the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) regulations.
The update included the readiness of provinces for the 2026 academic year, reforms to Grade R and early learning, and the broader transformation of school language and admissions policies.
During the session, Members of Parliament expressed concern over the persistently low number of former Model C schools that have incorporated African languages into their curricula.
This story is from the December 09, 2025 edition of The Mercury.
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