Faced with a pile of school prospectuses and your bank account, you need to make one of the most important decisions in your child's life — where do you send him or her to school?

Following the upheaval of the education system after the demise of apartheid, decisions about educating your child have become more complicated.

Do you send your child to one of the many new independent schools? Do you opt for a state school? Do Model C schools still exist? And what if you're not happy with any of the above options?

Technically...

Technically, according to the South African Constitution, all schools must admit students without any form of discrimination. However, most schools work on a feeder area system, which means that they give preference to students who live in the area immediately surrounding the school. Independent schools tend to have stricter admission requirements than state schools.

Currently all students (at both state and independent schools) write the state matriculation examinations. The Matriculation Board stipulates the matriculation endorsement requirements which enable your child to study further at various tertiary education institutions.

Some independent schools offer a further year of study so that your child can complete his or her internationally recognised A Levels. The American International School of Johannesburg offers an International Baccalaureate diploma programme, which is recognised by many universities around the world.

State schools

When it comes to state schools, the options are varied. On the one end of the scale you have schools which are completely state-funded and on the other end of the scale you have former Model C schools which receive very small state subsidies.

The former are often found in townships and poorer areas. Generally the school fees, if there are any, are very low but the student to teacher ratio is also much higher (sometime 50:1) and the facilities tend to be much poorer.

Former Model C schools, on the other hand, tend to have a lower student to teacher ratio (30:1) and offer more facilities and extra-mural activities. These schools receive a smaller state subsidy, which means that the school fees are naturally much higher. Generally, the governing body of the school employs additional teachers so that the student to teacher ratio is kept low.

Although all state schools follow the same curriculum and educational system, the subjects offered may vary from one school to the next, depending on the expertise of the teachers and the traditions of the school.

While finances will inevitably determine which type of school you send your child to, it's a good idea to check out other aspects of the school. These include the subjects and extra-murals on offer, the school's facilities and what the school's pass rate has been for the past few years.

Learners may leave school if they pass the examinations at the end of Grade nine. Further Education and Training (FET) covers Grades 10 to 12. FET Colleges (previously called technical colleges) are an alternative to more traditional schooling. They offer National Qualifications Framework (NQF) levels two to four and National Technical Certificates one to three.

In 2002 all the existing technical colleges merged and were restructured to create 50 FET Colleges nationwide. These colleges provide theoretical and practical skills training linked to specific industry requirements. The courses offered by these colleges include office administration, management, civil building and construction, engineering, information technology and computer science as well as agriculture and tourism.

Independent schools

The independent school sector has boomed over the past decade. According to the Independent Schools Association of South Africa, 60 percent of all independent schools in South Africa were established after 1990.

And these schools don't only cater to the affluent. Of the 400 000 learners currently being educated by the independent sector, 70 percent are black. The majority of these independent schools charge less that R6000 per annum, with only 14 percent with school fees over R20 000 per annum (stats from 2007).

Independent schools often offer alternatives to state schools — religious schools, schools with a different educational approach such as Waldorf or Montessori schools and schools with fewer pupils. On the whole independent schools tend to be far smaller than state schools, with the learner to teacher ratio sitting closer to 18:1.

While there has been an increase in exclusive for-profit independent schools, the majority of the sector still falls under the category of non-profit. Contrary to popular belief, independent schools can be found across the socio-economic spectrum.

Home schooling

If you have specific religious requirements, if your child has some debilitating disorder or handicap, or if you simply feel that you are better equipped to educate your child, home schooling is an option in South Africa. However, this does not simply mean that you can just choose to keep your kids at home.

You need to apply for special permission from the Department of Education and once this has been granted you need to make sure that your child is registered as an independent candidate for school-leaving examinations — either at the end of Grade nine or Grade 12.

Home schooling is not an easy task and it requires dedicated and sustained input on the part of the parents. There are many independent schools in South Africa which offer education in line with a specific religion and it is a good idea to exhaust all your options before resorting to home schooling. There are also state schools which cater specifically for disabled or mentally handicapped children.

A sound education is one of the most valuable gifts you can give your child. Spend some time researching and visiting a range of schools before settling on one.

Useful websites:

The Department of Education: www.education.gov.za
Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa: www.isasa.org
Matriculation Board: www.hesa-enrol.ac.za
FET colleges: www.fetcolleges.co.za
Private schools search engine: www.saprivateschools.co.za
International Baccalaureate: www.ibo.org