The brain drain of teachers in South Africa: identifying the dynamics of its push factors
List of Authors
  • Adetiba, Toyin. C. , Mlambo, Victor. H.

Keyword
  • Teachers, brain drain, migration, education, South Africa

Abstract
  • South Africa over the years has been losing a considerable number of teachers and this has become a growing concern among policymakers. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to identify the factors that are responsible for enticing teachers to migration out of South Africa. Using a strict textual analysis of the relevant literature, this paper reveals that South Africa has failed to reduce the emigration of teachers due to poor salaries and working conditions, subsequently, this has seen as agents from developed countries (recently Asian countries) aggressively recruiting teachers from the country. Other factors include poor infrastructure and limited career progression opportunities. The study showed that the brain drain of teachers results in a shortage of teachers in rural areas and increased inefficiency in the public educational system. It is therefore suggested that the government should make the retention of teachers a priority through incentives such as promotion, better salaries and the upgrading of infrastructure. The study concluded that teacher emigration has been a long-existing issue in South Africa and the mere fact that there has been no clear cut plan on how to deal with it is deeply worrying, moreover, today in South African schools, the issue of security has become a focal point, the failure to guarantee the safety of teachers in schools has been seen as a new factor encouraging migration either within the country or abroad.

Reference
  • 1. Agbor, J. (2012). Poverty, Inequality and Africa’s Education Crisis. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.brookings.edu. [Accessed 23 May 2017].
    2. Anganoo, L. (2014). Migrant Teachers' Experiences of Teaching in Primary Schools in Johannesburg (Doctoral dissertation, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban). Available from: https://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za. [Accessed on 01 July 2017]
    3. Ansah, E.S., (2016). Conceptualizing African migration to south-east Asia: student, trader, businessman & future of policy in Malaysia. e-bangi, 13(1).
    4. Appleton, S. Morgan, W.J. & Sives, A. (2006). Should teachers stay at home? The impact of international teacher mobility. Journal of International Development, 18, 771-786.
    5. Bauer, N. (2015). South Africa desperate for skilled teachers. Mail and Guardian. 21 September. Available at: https://mg.co.za [Accessed 11 June 2017].
    6. Carnoy, M, Chisholm, L. & Chilisa, B. (2012). The low achievement trap: Comparing schooling in Botswana and South Africa. HSRC Press. Available from: https://edpolicy.stanford.edu. [Accessed on 11 May 2017]
    7. Chauke, P. (2014). Teacher absenteeism behind failing pupils. 02 April. Available at: http://citizen.co.za [Accessed 11 June 2017].
    8. Cole, C. (2017). 58000 HIV positive teachers in SA. IOL. 15 June. Available at: http://www.iol.co.za [Accessed 11 June 2017].
    9. Curtis, P. (2004). Commonwealth ministers move to end teacher 'poaching'. The guardian. 1 September. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/ [Accessed 10 June 2017].
    10. De Haas, H. (2010). Migration and Development: A Theoretical Perspective1. International Migration Review, 44(1), 227-264.
    11. Dirks, N. (2013). The challenges of South Africa’s education system. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.dreamstoreality.co.za/. [Accessed 17 May 2017
    12. Gater, R & Isaacs, D. (2012). Spending on school infrastructure does matter. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.groundup.org.za. [Accessed 5 June 2017]
    13. Govender, P. (2016). It’s not kids bunking – it’s teachers. 03 June. Available at: https://mg.co.za [Accessed 25 June 2017].
    14. Harris, J. R., & Todaro, M. P. (1970). Migration, Unemployment and development: A TwoSector Analysis. The American Economic Review, 60(1), 126-142
    15. Hill, J. (2014). Salary Expectations for Teaching in China. Available at: https://www.gooverseas.com. [Accessed 5 June 2017].
    16. Jones, M (2013). SA teachers badly paid: research. News24. 3 May. Available at: http://www.iol.com/news/ [Accessed 11 May 2017].
    17. Jones, M. (2012). Teachers leaving SA in their thousands. IOL. 5th June. Available at: http://www.iol.co.za/news / [Accessed 11 May 2017].
    18. Kpedekpo GMK. (1976). Essentials for Demographic Analysis in Africa, Longman, London.
    19. Lulamile, F & Ntshobane, S. (2014). Teacher’s shortage at rural school huge disadvantage for pupils. 16 January. Available at: http://www.pressreaeder.com [Accessed 116 May 2017].
    20. Macupe, B. (2017). Research: More than 50 000 teachers at public schools are living with HIV. 10 March. Available at: https://mg.co.za [Accessed 25 May 2017]
    21. Magubane, K. (2016). The exodus of teachers from SA is not slowing down. BusinessDay. 23 March. Available at: https://www.businesslive.co.za [Accessed 05 June 2017].
    22. Majola, X. (2016). Matric failure rate highest in 'rural' provinces. 08 January. Available at: https://mg.co.za [Accessed 11 May 2017].
    23. Matthew, S. (2017). South African schools have 5‚139 teachers who are unqualified or under-qualified. Timeslive. 06 June. Available at: http://www.timeslive.co.za [Accessed 11 June 2017].
    24. News24. (2013). SA teachers set absentee record. 08 January. Available at: http://www.news24.com [Accessed 11 April 2017].
    25. News24. (2004). Teacher 'poaching' on agenda. News24. 02 August. Available at: http://www.news24.com/news/ [Accessed 11 June 2017].
    26. News24. (2012). Teachers may strike over working hours. News24. 09 January. Available at: http://www.news24.com/news/ [Accessed 11 June 2017].
    27. Nkosi, B. (2012). Teachers unprepared for curriculum. Mail&Gurdian. 17 August. Available at: https://mg.co.za [Accessed 09 June 2017].
    28. Palamuleni, M.E., (2019). Estimates of inter-provincial migration in South Africa, 1996-2011. e-Bangi, 16(7).
    29. Rashid, M.F.A., Ghani, I.A., Ngah, I. & Yasin, S.M., (2014). Evaluation of migration decision-selectivity factors in metropolitan area: A case of Klang Valley Region, Malaysia. e-Bangi, 11(1).
    30. Reprobate. (2012). The great expectations of South African education. [ONLINE] Available at: https://reprobate.co.za. [Accessed 4 June 2017].
    31. Rondganger, L. (2016). Teacher brain drain detrimental for SA’s children. IOL. 24 October. Available at: http://www.thenewage.co.za. [Accessed 10 June 2017]
    32. SACE, (2011). Teacher Migration in South Africa: Advice to the Ministries of Basic and Higher Training. Pdf. South African Council for Educators. Available from: http://sace.org.za/. [Accessed 12 June 2017]
    33. Salmon, T. & Sayed, Y. (2016). Teacher governance reforms and social cohesion in South Africa: from intention to reality. Education as Change, 20(3).
    34. Singh, S. (2013). Zimbabwean Teachers’ Experiences of Xenophobia in Limpopo Schools. Love thy Neighbours, p.51. Available from: http://alternation.ukzn.ac.za. [Accessed on 12 June 2017]
    35. Smith, E & Smith Jr. (2008). Using secondary data in educational and social research. New York City. McGraw-Hill Education
    36. Smuts, M. (2016). Why Spending Has Not Improved South Africa's Education. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.za. [Accessed 2 July 2017].
    37. Spaull, N. (2013). Absentee teachers are a thorn in our side. 10 March. Available at: https://mg.co.za [Accessed 25 May 2017].
    38. The New Age, (2016). Teacher resignations could affect delivery of curriculum. The New Age. 4 April. Available at: http://www.thenewage.co.za. [Accessed 10 June 2017]
    39. Tshamano, L. (2017). Rural areas need qualified teachers. 22 February. Available at: http://www.thenewage.co.za [Accessed 15 May 2017].
    40. Vegas, E. (2007). Teacher labor markets in developing countries. The future of children. Available from: https://scholar.google.co.za. [Accessed 15 June 2017]
    41. Weyss, B. Allly, N & McLaren, D. (2016). School funding: South Africa can learn from the world. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.groundup.org.za. [Accessed 1 June 2017].
    42. Williams, C. (2017). Teaching English in East Asia: A Teacher’s Guide to Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Learners. Springer. Available from: https://books.google.co.za. [Accessed 25 April 2017]