Review of the implementation of the National Curriculum Statement

1. Review of the implementation of the National Curriculum Statement Report of the Task Team

2. Background to the Report • Minister of Basic Education noted the following: • criticism of the implementation of the NCS and the manifestation of teacher overload • the challenge of underperformance of learners in local and international assessments • Minister appointed a panel of experts to conduct hearings with teachers to understand the curriculum challenges

3. Terms of Reference • Identify challenges and pressure points in the implementation of the NCS Grades R-12 • Investigate how challenges could be addressed • Develop a set of practical interventions to respond to the noted challenges

4. Problem Questions • Policy and Guideline Documents • The contribution of the NCS policy documents to the overload was investigated • Transition between Grades and Phases • This was to identify problems with transition from Grade 3 to 4 and from Grade 9 to 10 • Assessment • This was to establish whether there was clarity and appropriate use of

5. Problem Questions Continued • Teacher Support and Training • This was to investigate the extent of teacher support and training for curriculum implementation • Learning and Teaching Support Materials • This was to investigate the challenges of the development of learning materials and their provision to schools

6. Methods • The panel held public hearings and interviews with Teachers, Teacher Unions and Subject Advisors across the 9 provinces • Over 500 electronic and written comments from parents, academics, teachers, professional organisations, etc, were received in August • The method also included review of documents

7. Main issues emerging from hearings and submissions • General support of NCS • Document proliferation • Assessment • Transitions (Grade 3 and 4 & Grade 9 and 10) • Overload • Contexts of teaching • Strengths and weaknesses of NCS

8. A Clear, Simple Five Year Plan to Improve Teaching and Learning • The plan should provide a vision of a bigger picture in terms of what education and the curriculum are set to do and achieve • The plan must offer the support to teachers and the improvement of learner performance • Mechanisms to monitor implementation of the plan through external monitoring to assess whether it has the desired effects on learner and teacher performance

9. A Set of Simple and Coherent Curriculum Documents • Develop a single Overview Curriculum and Assessment policy document for Grade R-12 • The learning area and subject documents to be organised around knowledge (content, concepts and skills) to be learnt, with recommended texts, pedagogical approaches and assessment requirements • Document to address knowledge gaps that have been identified

10. A Set of Simple and Coherent Curriculum Documents • The number of Learning Areas in the Foundation Phase should be reduced • The teaching of English as a First Additional Language must be given priority and that English should be taught from Grade 1 • Develop separate, special guideline documents for ELSEN and multi-grade classes aligned to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy documents

11. A Set of Simple and Coherent Curriculum Documents, Conti • The Foundations for Learning should be replicated in all schools as soon as possible. • Oversight of curriculum should be centralised within the Department of Basic Education and all communication should be through the Department

12. Assessment • Regular external annual assessment of Mathematics, Home Language and English FAL in Grade 3 & 6 & 9 • Finalise promotion and progression requirements for Grades R-12 as well as grading descriptors for all grades • The balance between year marks and examinations should be 50%: 50% for Grades 4-9 and 25% year mark and 75% exam mark for Grades 10-12

13. Workload • The requirements of projects as an assessment requirement must be reduced to one project per learning area/subject • Rationalise and ‘standardise’ the levels of planning required for teachers in different schools and prescribe core requirements for the Teacher File • Learner portfolios as separate, formal compilations of assessment tasks must be discontinued. • Evidence of school based assessment for promotion and progression must be kept in most appropriate mode

14. Teacher Training • Targeted in-service teacher training must be provided where is it needed most • Principals, HODs, District and Provincial Support Staff should be trained on curriculum and content and assessment requirements • HEIs should be required to align their teacher training programmes with the national curriculum documents with national curriculum • Teaching for 5 hours per day

15. Clarification of Roles with respect to Curriculum Production, Dissemination, Monitoring and Support • Clarify the roles of subject advisors nationally, specifying the exact nature of the in-classroom and school support they should provide. • Clarify the roles of the national, provincial and district level support for curriculum.

16. LTSM • Develop a national catalogue of textbooks and other LTSM aligned to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Document • The role of textbooks and other LTSM must be reasserted • Plan for the provision of a textbook for all learners (Grade 4-12) for every learning area / subject and relevant LSM (Foundation Phase)

17. Plans for 2010 • The Minister of Basic Education has announced the following: • Curriculum and Assessment Policy documents will be developed and implemented in 2011 • Use of Learner Portfolios will be discontinued from 2010 • Only one file for administrative purposes will be required from teachers • Number of projects required by learners will be reduced