THE BASIC CONCEPTS PROGRAMME IN METROPOLE CENTRAL Western Cape Department of Education

1. THE BASIC CONCEPTS PROGRAMME IN METROPOLE CENTRALWestern Cape Department of Education WKOD / WCED METROPOOL / METROPOLE SENTRAAL / CENTRAL  Dr. Louis Benjamin, Dulcie Volkwyn, Faith Engel, Gill Brand1[Independent Consultant], 2[Deupty Chief Education Specialist: Learning Support], 3[Learning Support Teacher: Project Coordinator], 4[Learning Support Teacher: Project Coordinator] DISCUSSION RESULTS (2008) INTERVENTION PROGRAMME The Basic Concepts Programme (BCP) • The baseline results gathered from the project schools at the start of the school year (2008) are indicative of the enormity of the problem confronting educationalists. A majority (65%) of learners who start school in Grade 1 are not prepared for school learning. • At the end of Grade 1 the mean scores of the intervention learners (who had attained weak to very weak scores at the start of the year) were in the average range. • The results from similar intervention projects suggest that learners who have a knowledge of basic concepts also perform well on scholastic tests. One might infer that the intervention learners who attained higher basic concept scores would also attain higher scores on scholastic tests. ABSTRACT TITLE:The Basic Concepts Programme (BCP): An Intervention of the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy (2006-2016) of Metropole Central, Western Cape Department of Education. BACKGROUND TO THE LITERACY AND NUMERACY STRATEGY: The strategy is a coordinated plan to improve the literacy and numeracy of learners and includes the following interventions: a preschool programme, teacher development, changes to classroom practice, learning and teaching support materials. OBJECTIVE: To train, support, and provide mentoring to Grade 1 and Learning Support Teachers to become mediators of the Basic Concepts Programme in order to advance thinking and learning in young learners. (The Basic Concepts Programme is a meta-cognitive programme that aims to improve the cognitive and scholastic functioning of Foundation Phase learners – see panel alongside for more information about the BCP.) DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT:The programme is implemented by Grade 1 teachers in mainstream classes with small groups of learners who experience barriers towards learning. The teacher-mediators are supported by District Officials, Learning Support Teachers as well as the Project Team. (See Figure 1 below.) The entire staff of the District Office (SLES: Learning Support) are experienced BCP practitioners and trained mentors of the programme. AREA OF INTERVENTION:The project is located in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. The project is being implemented in the Metropole Central and includes many schools from the ‘Cape Flats’, a historically disadvantaged area in Cape Town. NUMBER OF SCHOOLS:Current Number of schools: 58 Primary Schools Targeted Number of schools: 178 Primary Schools TARGET OF INTERVENTION:District Officials:8 Current number of Learning Support Teachers: 38 Targeted number of Learning Support Teachers: 53 Current Number of teachers: 118 Targeted Number of teachers: 196 Current number of learners: 1248 Targeted number of learners: 1992 TIME FRAME:2006-2011 EVALUATION: The learners who participate in the BCP are monitored and assessed continuously (formative and summative) by their teachers during the year. The learners' work from the programme is incorporated in their portfolio for review. The learners’ progress during the programme is also evaluated according to the outcomes of the National Curriculum Statement. In addition, the basic concepts knowledge of a sample of learners is assessed annually at the end of Grade 1. (See the Results section.) The BCP is a metacognitive, short-term, intensive, small-group, semi-structured intervention programme for learners who experience barriers to learning in the Foundation Phase. While the programme is used for intervention in Grades 1-3, it is used as a curriculum in Grade R. The BCP draws directly on the interrelated conceptualizations of three prodigious cognitive developmental theorists: Piaget, Vygotsky and Feuerstein. In addition, it wasbuilt on the insights from three theoretically derived metacognitive programmes for young children: Bright Start, Cognitive Acceleration Through Science, and Concept Teaching. The BCP provides an operational framework that consists of four procedures (Figure 2). These procedures provide a succinct teaching approach (mediational teaching: Figure 3) for systematically mediating the content of the programme (6 superordinate and approximately 80-120 subordinate concepts: Figure 4) as well as associated vocabulary required for learning the content of the programme (Figure 5) while enhancing the information-processing capacity of learners. The procedures are interconnected, arranged around a set of activities and aim to promote and enhance cognitive functioning; that is to shift and modify the thinking of the young learner from pre-operational to concrete operational schemas. Photos of the Basic Concepts Programme in Action (Metro Central, 2008) All Grade 1 learners (n=942) from 25 project schools in Metro Central were tested by their class teachers at the start of the school year (2008); that is before the start of intervention programme. The learners’ content knowledge of 24 basic concepts was assessed. While 35% of the learners’ attained strong to average scores and were prepared for learning in Grade 1, 65% of the learners attained weak to very weak scores and were not prepared for learning in Grade 1. The learners who obtained weak to very weak scores were selected to participate in the intervention programme (see below for more information). Figure 2 Figure 3 CHALLENGES • A number (14%) of teachers have not implemented the programme. • Teachers tend to start to implement the programme late in the first term (after completing the baseline assessments) and so do not complete the programme. • The programme has sometimes not been implemented consistently or intensively enough. • Some teachers experience difficulties with differentiated teaching and groupwork – this may also be related to the size of their classes and a lack of class control and behaviour management skills. • Some teachers are overwhelmed and confused by the demands made by different sectors (principal, HODs, departmental officials, external organizations). • Some teachers need more support, encouragement and mentoring than can be provided. • The support visits by the Learning Support Teachers have at times not been frequent enough. * Project Team = Project Leader and Project Coordinators from the district office Figure 4 Figure 5 A representative sample (20.5%) of intervention learners from 8 project schools was assessed at the end of the year. Four schools attained mean scores of 40 and above (strong), two schools attained mean scores of 36 & 37 (average), and two schools attained mean scores of 29 & 31 (weak to very weak). The interpretation of the scores (see below) is based on data gathered from learners in South Africa and not the American norms used in the standardization sample. An important aspect of this content-specific programme is its correspondence to the National Curriculum Statement of South Africa. For example, 82% of the Grade R and 96% of the Grade 1 Language and Mathematics outcomes in the National Curriculum Statement are targeted by the programme. The BCP design aimed to address some of the concerns raised with other meta-cognitive programmes for younger learners, by i) limiting the length of the programme, ii) ensuring that the teaching model was easy to implement, and iii) ensuring that the content was directly relevant to the teaching context. In addition, the content of the BCP was considered to be well suited to learners from disadvantaged backgrounds who had deficits in knowledge and conceptual vocabulary. The knowledge of basic concepts is considered essential for school learning. The relationship between basic concepts and school achievement has been supported by numerous studies (Benjamin, 2006, 2005; Nason, 1986; Piersel & McAndrews, 1982). CONCLUSION The project is still in process and will continue to extend into Grade 1 classes as well as train new Learning Support Teachers over the next two years until 2011. The focus on the Basic Concepts Programme as the most important intervention of the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy in Metropole Central has started to influence the teaching-learning discourse and practice. The preliminary findings of the effects of the programme on learners are promising and suggest that improvements in literacy and numeracy are achievable. At the end of the year intervention learners attained a mean score of 37.5 which is considered average, based on data and experience in disadvantaged South African schools. At the end of intervention projects learners from Hantam and Kamiesberg District attained mean scores of 39.6 & 39.2 respectively which are considered strong, while learners from a project in process in ‘Lowryville’(Pixely Kaseme District, Northern Cape) attained a mean score of 33.4 which is considered weak. Furthermore, learners from the projects who attained strong Boehm scores were found to be functioning on or above grade level, while those who attained weak Boehm scores were found to be functioning below grade level in scholastic tests. For additional information about the project please contact: Dulcie Volkwyn Deputy Chief Education Specialist: Learning Support Metropole Central, Western Cape Department of Education Email: dvolkwyn@pgwc.gov.za Tel: 021-659 4416 Website: www.basicconcepts.co.za