3.5.3 What Can South Africa Learn from the Red Dot on the Map? A Comparative Study

South African learners continue to perform dismally in international studies, bringing into question the quality of its education. Meanwhile Singaporean students are top scorers in these competitions. Few comparative studies between different nations and Singapore have focused their comparisons on gifted education. This paper reports on a comparative study between Singapore and South Africa education systems. Our analysis is shaped by three frames: (a) political context, (b) curriculum structure, and (c) loose coupling. The results show that both countries had similar challenges at the point of independence from colonial rule; however, they responded differently to those challenges. The lessons of Singapore are lessons that South Africa can learn.

Author(s):