Scaling Up Early Childhood Development (ECD) (0-4 years) in South Africa: Towards a Job Hierarchy for ECD Provision and Supervision in South Africa, and the Fit of Low Skill Service Providers
by BIERSTEKER, L., 2008Research Report. Human Sciences Research Council
This paper is one of a series developed to inform the Scaling Up ECD Services (0–4 years) Research Project with the aim of improving child development and significant job creation Biersteker identifies the job hierarchies and career paths in ECD service provision and supervision; relates these to the career opportunities for low- and semi-skilled workers and the use of ECD for job creation and capacity building; and considers the location of these jobs, for example, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), local government, district offices, community-based organisations (CBOs) and small private businesses. She also reviews the range of pay scales and expectations: these include volunteerism, paying according to a public works stipend, and aligning with an extended pay scale (thereby treating the ECD services as a proper job rather than a special ‘make-work’ opportunity). This is followed by an analysis of the implications for training and job hierarchies under the EPWP, the potential mass expansion of ECD, and how these align with the requirements of the NIP for ECD. Finally, the paper makes recommendations to government on developing the job hierarchy, service conditions, and how job creation initiatives could better address the envisaged mass expansion of the programme.
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