Reference: Published by Cornelia Le Roux (The Citizen), 4 January 2023
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/back-to-school-term-dates-new-subjects-when-schools-open-2024/
The 2024 school calendar by the Department of Basic Education features reduced holidays. Explore the restructured academic year for insights.
In just 14 peaceful sleeps, school begins anew. Parents and kids alike prepare for the daily school routine amid traffic and challenges. Here’s a glimpse into the upcoming 2024 school year.
Starting on 17 January and ending on 11 December, the 2024 public school calendar spans 203 instructional days – an increase of four from 2022 and 2023.
Here’s why school vacations will be cut in 2024.
School vacations have been reduced in 2024, with the calendar allowing for only 25 days off, compared to 32 days in 2023 and 33 days in 2022.
Furthermore, school holidays have been planned to coincide with the majority of this year’s public holidays.
In 2024, schools will only be closed for two days due to public holidays, one in each of terms two and three.
In comparison, students “lost” eight days of school in 2022 and 2023.
The South African school calendar is developed in collaboration with provincial education ministries, school governing bodies, and other stakeholders by the Department of Basic Education (DBE).
According to a BusinessTech study, the department stated that executing these calendar changes was required due to the critical requirement to make up for teaching losses experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely affected teaching capacity and learner hours.
Inland and coastal schools begin on the same day.
Previously, schools in coastal areas began at a different time than those in inland provinces.
This is no longer the case, since the Basic Education Department has decided that all public schools in the country would now begin and end their school periods on the same day.
2024 term dates for public schools
- First Term: 17 January – 20 March
- Second Term: 3 April – 14 June
- Third Term: 9 July – 20 September
- Fourth Term: 1 October – 13 December
Public holidays for 2024
- Human Rights Day: 21 March
- Good Friday: 29 March
- Family Day: 1 April
- Freedom Day: 27 April
- Workers Day: 1 May
- Youth Day: 16 June
- Public Holiday: 17 June
- National Women’s Day: 9 August
- Heritage Day: 24 September
- Day of Reconciliation: 16 December
- Christmas Day: 25 December
- Day of Goodwill: 26 December
New subjects for South African schools include coding and robotics.
According to the department’s annual performance plan for 2023/24, work has begun on establishing some components of the new curricula that will be pushed out on a larger scale.
According to the DBE, coding and robotics are at the heart of a slew of new “next-gen” disciplines being tested in South Africa as the education department seeks to better prepare learners with 21st-century capabilities.
The subjects were tested in 18 schools across the country in 2023, two in each province.
The pilot for grades 4–6 and 8 was implemented in 2022, with a Grade 9 pilot following in 2023. Coding and robotics will be fully integrated into the school curriculum for grades 4 to 6 and Grade 8, with Grade 9s following suit in 2025.
The emphasis on coding and robotics will also work in tandem with the department’s goals of improving learners’ reading and comprehension.