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1
Mpungose, Cedric Bheki. "Reconceptualising the Physical Sciences Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement in a South African Context." International Journal of Higher Education 10, no. 2 (November 26, 2020): 116. http://dx.doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v10n2p116.
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Post-apartheid South African curriculum reforms, from outcomes-based education (OBE) to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), resulted in different challenges. Teachers, in particular those teaching Physical Sciences in the Further Education and Training (FET) phase from Grades 10-12, were expected to cope with changes and master Physical Sciences curriculum for the attainment of good results, but were unable to do so because they were missing an understanding of curriculum concepts. The success of any curriculum depends on ten fundamental and broad curriculum concepts: rationale, goals, activities, assessment, accessibility, resources, content, roles, environment, and time. However, empirical findings show that Grade 12 Physical Science teachers in South African schools still struggle to understand and contextualise curriculum concepts in order to redefine specific CAPS Physical Science concepts. Consequently, this conceptual study uses Van den Akker (2004) curriculum spider web concept framework in reconceptualising Grade 12 CAPS Physical Science concepts. This study argues that teaching without knowing specific subject curriculum concepts can lead to poor teacher performance and poor subject results, this study concludes by proposing a formal, non-formal and informal framework for CAPS Physical Science to resolve this.
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Adekunbi Ojo, Tinuade, and Refentse Mathabathe. "An Investigation into the Effectiveness of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in South African Schools." International Journal on Integrating Technology in Education 10, no. 2 (June 30, 2021): 23–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.5121/ijite.2021.10203.
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The paper presents the findings from current research on the impact that the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum subjects have on two South African Schools in Gauteng province in South Africa. The aim is to present the impact of the CAPs subjects in the school. The study did a critical evaluation of each subject to elaborate on the importance and challenges in implementing the subjects and using a qualitative research method to collect data on a group of teachers and students on their opinion on the impact of CAPs subjects. The findings suggest that even though the curriculum is effective, it needs to be improved to close the gap between public and private schools. Private schools are currently benefiting the most from the subjects and how the curriculum is structured.
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Maharajh, Lokesh R., Thandi Nkosi, and Mbekelezi C. Mkhize. "Teachers’ Experiences of the Implementation of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in Three Primary Schools in KwaZulu Natal." Africa’s Public Service Delivery and Performance Review 4, no. 3 (December 1, 2016): 371. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/apsdpr.v4i3.120.
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This article examined on teachers’ experiences on the implementation of CAPS, using three primary schools in KwaZulu-Natal. This article employed the curriculum theory as an analytical framework. The aim of this article is to examine teacher’s experiences of the implementation of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS). The article employed a qualitative research design to gather data. The data gathered through the use of semi-structured face to face interviews with teachers. The findings of the article reveal that there are many dynamics and possibilities relating to curriculum change in South Africa. The findings of the article further reveal that despite the challenges facing CAPS, South Africa’s education system as a whole is plagued by challenges. The challenges are attributed to lack of resources and poorly trained teachers. The article concludes that understanding these dynamics depend, to a large extent, on paying attention to constraints and challenges influencing curriculum change. This article fills the knowledge-gap with reference to teacher’s first-hand knowledge of CAPS and the challenges associated with it. The article thus recommends that appropriate resources should be made available in order to ensure efficient and effective implementation of curriculum implementation. It also recommends that a teacher: learner ratio of 1:30 should be practiced to ensure that teachers give special attention to each learner.
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Rapetsoa, Johannah Mapotlakishe, and Rachael Jesika Singh. "Does the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement Address Teaching and Learning of Reading Skills in English First Additional Language?" Mousaion: South African Journal of Information Studies 35, no. 2 (February 7, 2018): 56–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.25159/0027-2639/1270.
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There has been a general outcry in South Africa that learners’ reading ability has deteriorated. This could be attributed to the fact that since 1998, new curricula were consistently introduced and changed with an aim of redressing the legacy of apartheid. The whole process of curriculum change not only affected the learners’ ability to read, write and count, but the quality of education as well. When reading skill are not developed, learners cannot cope with their academic responsibilities. The aim of this article is to determine whether the recent curriculum, the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), gives the teaching and learning of reading skills the necessary attention, and whether there is improvement in the reading ability of learners. The study used the mixed methods approach, but focused mainly on the qualitative approach, and employed a small scale quantitative focus to collect data from grade ten English First Additional Language (EFAL) learners and their educators, as well as curriculum policy documents. Although on paper CAPS seems to be a good curriculum, three years after its inception, educators are concerned about the reading ability of EFAL learners who are in grade ten in the Further Education and Training (FET) phase. Findings from educators and learners’ data indicate that there are some learners who can read well and those who are lagging behind. The challenge of educators not receiving intense training in order to implement the new curriculum was also highlighted. The study recommends that training of educators to implement the new curriculum EFAL educators should focus on building vocabulary and teaching comprehension skills so that the reading levels of EFAL learners in the FET phase can be enhanced.
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Mnguni, Lindelani. "EXPLORING THE STUDENT AND SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY OF THE LIFE SCIENCES CURRICULUM: A CASE OF HIV/AIDS." Problems of Education in the 21st Century 77, no. 3 (June 18, 2019): 410–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.33225/pec/19.77.410.
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Science is generally expected to respond to students and societal needs by adopting student and social accountability principles. Therefore, school science curricula are revised regularly to address emerging socio-economic, political, and scientific issues. Similarly, the National Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement of South Africa was introduced to foster a student and social accountable education that adopts relevant curriculum ideologies. Partly, it attempts to equip students with relevant skills and knowledge related to emerging societal challenges such as HIV/AIDS. The aim of the present research, therefore, was to determine the extent to which the curriculum is student and social accountable concerning HIV/AIDS. The current research explored the extent to which HIV/AIDS knowledge was presented in the CAPS Life Sciences curriculum and selected textbooks, and how curriculum ideologies informed this presentation of HIV/AIDS knowledge. Data were collected from the Life Sciences CAPS document and selected textbooks. Results revealed several HIV/AIDS-related topics, which were taught in Life Sciences. While the literature suggests that the citizenship-centered ideology is most relevant for student and social accountability, the present study found that the Life Sciences curriculum adopted a predominantly discipline-centered ideology. It is concluded that Life Sciences may not provide students with HIV/AIDS-related skills and knowledge required in a student and socially accountable curriculum. Keywords: curriculum ideologies, HIV/AIDS education, life sciences, school science curriculum.
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Bruwer, Marietjie, Cycil Hartell, and Miemsie Steyn. "Inclusive education and insufficient school readiness in Grade 1: Policy versus practice." South African Journal of Childhood Education 4, no. 2 (December 24, 2014): 18. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v4i2.202.
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A significant number of young learners entering into Grade 1 in South Africa have not reached the required level of readiness for formal learning due to inadequate early learning experiences. As found in many studies worldwide, these learners are often traumatised because they cannot keep up with the pace and requirements of the formal learning situation, putting them at risk for school failure. Focus group interviews were conducted with Grade 1 teachers at two city schools in Pretoria to explore their experiences regarding the insufficient school readiness of their learners and the impact thereof on the learning process. The predominant concerns emerging from this investigation are the inaccessibility of the current curriculum (Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement – CAPS) for learners with insufficient school readiness, and education policies which seem to work against inclusivity. Although Education White Paper 6 (RSA DoE 2001) states that providing quality education to all learners requires adapting curricula, teaching strategies and organisational arrangements to meet the needs of the learners, the teachers in this study feel that they are not allowed the freedom to do so. Recommendations are made to remedy the situation.
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Dirsuweit, Teresa. "Feminist Pedagogy and the South African Curriculum: The case of Women and Food Security." Journal of Geography Education in Africa 3, no. 1 (October 31, 2020): 1–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.46622/jogea_3_2020_1-14.
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There is a food security crisis in South Africa and black working-class women are the shock absorbers of this crisis. It follows that where food studies are included in the South African curriculum, the relationship between women and food security should be understood and critiqued by learners. Improvements in gender equality have also been identified as one of the primary drivers of improvements in food security. In this paper, the South African curriculum is analysed in terms of food studies, gender studies and the promotion of gender equality. Using the lens of feminist pedagogy, a set of qualitative indicators were developed to assess the content and praxis of the curriculum. While there is content which deals with gender and with food, these are presented separately. In the Geography and Agriculture curricula, there is a marked lack of focus on gender concerns. This article concludes that the curriculum could be reoriented to include an awareness and critique of the nexus of women and food and that more positive representations of women as active and powerful agents are needed in the South African Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS).
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Dirsuweit, Teresa. "Feminist Pedagogy and the South African Curriculum: The case of Women and Food Security." Journal of Geography Education for Southern Africa 5 (October 1, 2020): 42–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.46622/jogesa_5_2020_42-68.
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There is a food security crisis in South Africa and black working-class women are the shock absorbers of this crisis. It follows that where food studies are included in the South African curriculum, the relationship between women and food security should be understood and critiqued by learners. Improvements in gender equality have also been identified as one of the primary drivers of improvements in food security. In this paper, the South African curriculum is analysed in terms of food studies, gender studies and the promotion of gender equality. Using the lens of feminist pedagogy, a set of qualitative indicators were developed to assess the content and praxis of the curriculum. While there is content which deals with gender and with food, these are presented separately. In the Geography and Agriculture curricula, there is a marked lack of focus on gender concerns. This article concludes that the curriculum could be reoriented to include an awareness and critique of the nexus of women and food and that more positive representations of women as active and powerful agents are needed in the South African Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS).
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Nkosi, Makho. "Student Teachers’ Experiences of Teaching Physical Education of Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS): Exploring the Gendered Implications." International Journal of Educational Sciences 8, no. 2 (February 2015): 345–61. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09751122.2015.11890257.
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Le Cordeur, Michael. "Gang culture, Identity and Kaaps: Using Adam Small’s Krismis van Map Jacobs in Cape Flats schools." Multilingual Margins: A journal of multilingualism from the periphery 3, no. 2 (November 7, 2018): 104–16. http://dx.doi.org/10.14426/mm.v3i2.44.
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In this paper the focus is on the impact of gang culture on schoolchildren. Theresearch question investigated here is whether teaching the drama Krismis van MapJacobs offers any solutions to learners in gang-infested areas, given the framework ofthe Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS). Two sub-questions consideredwhether the teaching of the drama should take place in Kaaps and whether the themeof Map Jacobs is still relevant within the CAPS curriculum 30 years after it was writtenby Adam Small. Theoretically, the paper is based on Pierre Boudieu’s (1991) view thata speaker’s ‘position’ in society determines whether he is heard, Bernstein’s (1990) ideathat social interaction influences your relationship with language and Vygotsky’s (1978)theory of social constructivism. The study concludes that a life with gangs provides nosolution for issues like poverty and unemployment, and that the youth should escapefrom a featureless existence through striving for good education and engaging withliterature. The paper is published with the kind permission of the SA Academy forScience and the Arts, as it originally appeared in the book Adam Small: Denker, Digter,Dramaturg; ‘n Huldingingsbundel (2017, SAWK).
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Matsepe, David, and Mugwena Maluleke. "Constraints to optimal implementation of Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in the North West Province in South Africa." Ubuntu : Journal of Conflict Transformation SI, no. 1 (March 15, 2019): 177–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.31920/2050-4950/2019/sin1a10.
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Graven, Mellony. "Place value without number sense: Exploring the need for mental mathematical skills assessment within the Annual National Assessments." South African Journal of Childhood Education 3, no. 2 (December 30, 2013): 13. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v3i2.45.
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In this paper we examine the extent of the focus on number sense, enabled and accompanied by the development of efficient strategies for mental maths, in the foundation and intermediate phase. We do this through documentary analysis of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) for these phases and the Annual National Assessments (ANAs). We argue that number sense and mental agility are critical for the development and understanding of algorithms and algebraic thinking introduced in the intermediate phase. However, we note from our work with learners, and broader evidence in the South African landscape, that counting-based strategies in the foundation phase are replaced in the intermediate phase with traditional algorithms. We share experiences in the form of vignettes to illuminate this problem. Whilst literature and the CAPS curriculum emphasise the important role of mental computation within number sense, we note that the ANAs do not include a “mental mathematics” component. This absence in assessment, where assessment often drives teaching, is problematic. We conclude with the suggestion that research be conducted into the viability/appropriateness of an orally administered mental mathematics assessment component in the ANAs as a way to establish a focus on number sense across the foundation and intermediate phases.
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Alex, J. K., and K. J. Mammen. "An Assessment of the Readiness of Grade 10 Learners for Geometry in the Context of Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) Expectation." International Journal of Educational Sciences 7, no. 1 (July 2014): 29–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09751122.2014.11890167.
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Ndzimbomvu, Nosipho T., Isaac T. Rampedi, and Marthie E. Kemp. "Learning Environmental Issues from a Secondary School Curriculum: The Case of Learners in Mamelodi Township, South Africa." Sustainability 13, no. 16 (August 16, 2021): 9149. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13169149.
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In South Africa, the National Curriculum Statement-Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (NCS-CAPS), which came into effect in 2011, was expected to play a critical role in raising environmental literacy among school learners. However, no detailed studies have evaluated its effectiveness in fulfilling this role, especially within schools in peri-urban areas. Consequently, this paper evaluated the level of environmental awareness, perceptions, and participation amongst secondary school learners in the peri-urban area of Mamelodi Township. Primary data for this evaluation research were collected from Grade 9 and Grade 11 secondary school learners by means of a close-ended questionnaire. The results revealed the important role played by school subjects such as Geography, Biology, and Life Orientation while other school subjects were less frequently acknowledged by the learners. The research also revealed the different sources of environmental learning, environmental awareness, as well as environmental problems that the learners were familiar with. However, in some instances, there were statistically significant differences between Grade 9 and Grade 11 learners, thus indicating differences in the learning content and the degree to which environmental education was taught in the different grades.
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Goldschagg, Paul, and Di Wilmot. "Exploring the role of a Google Group in enabling lesson resource sharing in a South African geography teachers’ professional learning community." Journal of Geography Education in Africa 3, no. 1 (October 30, 2020): 51–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.46622/jogea.v3i.2546.
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This article presents the findings of the initial phase of an ongoing exploratory study that responds to a national imperative, to create teacher-initiated professional learning communities (PLCs), to improve the professionalism and capabilities of South African teachers. The overarching goal of the study is to understand how an emergent PLC in the form of an online Google Group for South African geography educators may enhance geography education and teacher professional development. The contributions made to the Southern African Geography Teachers Network Google Group over a six-month period were analysed and categorized according to themes and topics in the Grade 10, 11 and 12 Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum. The findings, in shedding as they do, light on the curriculum sections receiving the most and least contributions, raise more questions than they provide answers. Areas requiring further research are identified. Our main contention is that the emergent PLC enabled through the Google Group offers exciting possibilities for teacher professional learning. As a bottom-up, online, easily accessible initiative, unrestricted by time or place constraints and with a growing membership, it may play an important role in enhancing the quality of teaching and learning in South African school geography.
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Balie, Lorna, and Yusuf Sayed. "Education and Care: How Teachers Promote the Inclusion of Children and Youth at Risk in South Africa." Education Sciences 10, no. 10 (October 9, 2020): 273. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/educsci10100273.
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Children and youth at risk, particularly those placed in child and youth care centres (CYCC) in South Africa, have suffered from school disengagement due to multiple barriers to learning such as the exposure to crime and violence at a young age. As children and youth at risk at these centres find it difficult to engage in learning, new approaches need to be found to re-engage their interest to learn. This article discusses how the ‘Curriculum of Care’, an adaptation of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), responds to the educational needs of children and youth at risk at a CYCC in the Western Cape. It draws primarily from interviews and a focus group discussion with the centre manager and teachers at the institution. The findings reveal that positive learning outcomes, and the effective integration of children and youth at risk, are shaped by positive teacher–learner relationships; however, the findings raise questions about the extent to which such a curriculum prepares children and youth at risk for life after they leave the institution. The article suggests that the institutions providing education and care for children and youth at risk need to provide a curriculum balancing academic rigour with care to promote a holistic, inclusive education programme that enables youth and children at risk to effectively navigate their entry into society.
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Bonginkosi Msezane, Sikhulile. "Perceptions of youth about the integration of natural resource economics through environmental education in schools: a realist social perspective." Environmental Economics 8, no. 3 (September 11, 2017): 70–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ee.08(3).2017.07.
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The purpose of this paper is to delineate the perceptions of grade 12 students about the integration of environmental economics through environmental education into the South African Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS). Margaret Archer’s (1995) Realist social theory (RST): the morphogenetic approach provides the meta-theoretical framework that informs this study. RST deals with the concepts of structure, culture, agency, pre-existing structures, position-practice systems and mechanisms that have impact on the economic growth and welfare of the society. Data was collected through focus-group interviews with ten students who were purposefully selected from a classroom of 80 students. In addition, a qualitative research approach was used in this study to describe perception of youth about proper utilisation of scarce natural resources. The inductive analysis approach was used to interpret raw data sourced from the participants.The results of this paper revealed that even though youth have been taught principles of environmental education which consist of natural resource economics as a cross-curricular topic, some do not appreciate the importance of efficient use of natural resources in the reduction of poverty and welfare of future generation. Further, the youth believe that environmental issues such as land degradation, water and air pollution, and improper solid waste disposal can be alleviated through activities that can be done outside the classroom. However, some participants noted that the local government has to provide financial support for programmes that encourage natural resource sustainability in the schools.
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Ramatlapana, K., and J. P. Makonye. "From too much freedom to too much restriction: The case of teacher autonomy from National Curriculum Statement (NCS) to Curriculum and Assessment Statement (CAPS)." Africa Education Review 9, sup1 (December 2012): S7—S25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/18146627.2012.753185.
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Phasha, Tshegofatso, Keshni Bipath, and Johan Beckmann. "Teachers’ Experiences Regarding Continuous Professional Development and the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement." International Journal of Educational Sciences 14, no. 1-2 (July 2016): 69–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09751122.2016.11890480.
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Mpungose, Cedric Bheki. "Rationale of Teaching Physical Sciences Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement Content: Teachers’ Reflections." International Journal of Educational Sciences 14, no. 3 (August 2016): 256–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09751122.2016.11890500.
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Wium, Anna-Marie, and Brenda Louw. "The South African national school curriculum: Implications for collaboration between teachers and speech-language therapists working in schools." South African Journal of Childhood Education 5, no. 1 (September 4, 2015): 23. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v5i1.348.
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This critical review addresses the implications of the Curriculum and Assessment Plan Statement (CAPS) for collaboration between teachers and speech-language therapists (SLTs) in schools. A historical perspective on changes in the roles and responsibilities of SLTs is provided, reflecting a shift from supporting the child to supporting the teacher. Based on the role of SLTs and audiologists in schools, an innovative approach to the support of teachers is conceptualized. The curriculum content and methods support learners who experience challenges and barriers to learning in main stream classrooms. The implementation of the curriculum necessitates close collaboration between teachers and SLTs in order to ensure the best possible outcomes for all learners. This collaboration is reviewed by identifying the benefits of, and barriers to, the process, as well as crucial areas of collaboration. Inclusive education is mandated by White Paper 6, and collaborative support of teachers by SLTs is presented from the learners’ perspective within the context of the curriculum. An example of teacher support through the response to intervention (RTI) approach is described.
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Henning, Elizabeth. "Views of childhood and knowledge of children." South African Journal of Childhood Education 4, no. 2 (December 24, 2014): 4. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v4i2.200.
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<p>In a country where there is a consistent loud outcry about school achievement of youth<br />in the final school examination in Grade 12, attention has recently shifted to children in<br />the primary school. The very founding of this journal was motivated by a deep concern<br />about research in childhood education and children’s lives. Questions were being asked<br />about what happens in the first years of schooling, about the suitability of the national<br />curriculum for such a diverse population, about specialised research in the field of<br />learning in the early years, and about teaching with care and with insight, knowing<br />who the children of this nation are.<br />The journal took an early stand when, at its launch in 2010, the editor noted that the<br />notion of a national foundation phase curriculum assumes the existence of a ‘national’<br />Grade 1 learner. In South Africa there are children who come to school, well prepared<br />for the demands of school – and there are others who come with only their survival<br />records in homes of extreme poverty, of absent parents and of families broken by the<br />effects of the history of the nation and the effects of disease. Much as we would like<br />to see a standard of performance expected from the ‘national’ young learner, we need<br />to see the layers of diversity too. Can such a stratified population, socially fractured<br />in many ways, truly enact a differentiated curriculum for children who have so much<br />and for children who have so little at the same time and at the same pace? Can our<br />foundation phase classes be truly inclusive?<br />It remains a vexing question. Much research is needed to even try to give a robust<br />response. In recent years, in the research of the Centre for Education Practice Research<br />at my home institution, we have encountered more than 3000 children between five<br />and seven years old in an extensive interview test of mathematical cognition. In the<br />process we found children who had never encountered a print drawing and children<br />who did not know that a page can be turned. However, the very same children had<br />a perfectly normal idea of approximate number and size. We regard this as evidence<br />that they have the core knowledge of number that has to be developed by systematic<br />instruction and caring apprenticeship in classrooms. But for that they would need<br />teachers who know them as well as they know the latest curriculum and its suggested<br />tools of teaching.<br />This is but one example of how important teacher education is and how important<br />it is that we should investigate both learners and teachers, but also teacher education<br />and teacher educators. Teachers and their educators at universities have their own<br />view of children, of learning and of childhood. Much as we may all agree that the<br />core activity of schools is for the young to learn the three Rs and the subject areas of<br />the curriculum, there are researchers who are opposed to a developmental view of<br />learning. The journal’s stance is that, in the Vygotskian tradition (Kozulin, 1990), the<br />young learn and are initiated – and thus develop – in the work of school (and society).<br />SAJCE– December 2014<br />ii<br />In the SAJCE we welcome different views on child learning and celebrate South<br />Africa’s researchers who argue that “pedagogical ‘know-how’ and views of child and<br />childhood constitute the subject knowledge that is foundational in the foundation<br />phase curriculum” – as Murris and Verbeek do in this issue. Add to that knowledge<br />of how children the world over have core knowledge systems, as argued by cognitive<br />developmental psychologists and neuroscientists, and we have a composite picture<br />of what the object of teacher education is – to know 1) the learner and 2) the subject<br />content, but also 3) the self as teacher.<br />This ‘didactical triangle’, was already proposed as view of teaching in the 17th century<br />in Comenius’s major work, Didactica Magna (Comenius, 1632/1967). In the 20th century,<br />for some reason, the English- speaking world used the term ‘didactic’ to denote<br />teacher-centred learning, while Comenius proposed what can arguably nowadays be<br />termed pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Jari Lavonen, the chair of the teacher<br />education department at the University of Helsinki, recently noted that PCK is the<br />transformation of subject content knowledge by infusing it with knowledge of the<br />learner and of the self as teacher. In Finland they refer to PCK simply as Didactics, while<br />taking full cognisance of Shulman’s model (Shulman 1986).<br />But, views on teaching become more complicated when teachers are faced<br />with children who enter Grade 1, but who are not ready to embrace the way of life<br />at school. Bruwer and her co-authors report in this issue on teachers’ views on the<br />predicament they face when children need to cross the liminality boundary – when<br />they are still ‘betwixt and between’ life as an informal learner and life in school, where<br />they have to be inducted into life as a formal learner in a national curriculum. In the<br />same vein, Condy and Blease argue that a “one-size-fits-all curriculum cannot address<br />the issues that rural multigrade teachers and learners face”. Seldom do educational<br />researchers contemplate this very real issue. I was in the same class in Grade 1 as my<br />brother, who was then in Grade 8, in a little farm school. I recall vividly how we young<br />ones spent much time making clay oxen while they were doing indecipherable maths<br />on the writing board.<br />When more than one language is used, or required to be used, in a single classroom<br />communication set-up, a teacher is faced with yet another dimension. Ankiah-Gangadeen<br />and Samuel write about a narrative inquiry that was conducted in Mauritius, noting<br />that the “narrative inquiry methodology offered rich possibilities to foray into these<br />[teachers’] experiences, including the manifestations of negotiating their classroom<br />pedagogy in relation to their own personal historical biographies of language teaching<br />and learning”.<br />Added to the multilayered types of knowledge around which a teacher needs to<br />negotiate her way in a foundation phase classroom, are knowledge and understanding<br />of children’s transition from one grade to the next. Nieuwenhuizen and co-authors<br />found that the move from Grade 2 to Grade 3 is notably more difficult for children than<br />earlier grade transitions. I wish to add that it is also a grade transition that requires<br />much more of the learning child in volume and in pace of learning; the transition<br />Editorial<br />requires a ‘mature’ young learner who has worked through the curriculum of the<br />earlier grades effectively.<br />Kanjee and Moloi not only present information about ANA results, but show how<br />teachers utilise these in their teaching. To that, the editorial team adds: what is the<br />national testing ritual really doing for teachers? Are there many unforeseen and even<br />unintended effects? Many teachers may say that it alerts them to gaps in their own<br />knowledge and pedagogy and, especially, we would think, the way in which they<br />assess children’s learning effectively. While Kanjee and Moloi invoke local national<br />tests, Fritz and her co-authors from Germany, Switzerland and South Africa show<br />how a mathematics competence and diagnostic test for school beginners found<br />its way from Europe to South Africa. They point to the challenges of translating an<br />interview-based test and of validating it in a local context in four languages. With the<br />promise that the test will be normed in this country, the foundation phase education<br />as well as the educational psychology community may stand to benefit from such a<br />test, which is theoretically grounded in children’s conceptual development.<br />The matter of teaching with formative assessment as pedagogical tool comes to<br />mind whenever one discusses assessment. In an article by Long and Dunne, one reads<br />about their investigation into teaching of mathematics with a very specific angle – how<br />to “map and manage the omissions implicit in the current unfolding of the Curriculum<br />and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for mathematics”. In a very dense and fast<br />paced curriculum it is not possible to fill all the gaps. Who knows what the effect may<br />be for future learning of children who move through a curriculum quite rapidly?<br />Staying in the early grade classroom, Sibanda explores the readability of two<br />textbooks for natural science learning for Grade 4 learners. She touches on one of<br />the sensitive nerves of South African school education, namely the English language.<br />In her analysis of two textbooks, using a range of methods of text analysis, she<br />comes to the conclusion that the books are simply too difficult to read. She argues<br />that the authors have not taken into account that both vocabulary and syntax have<br />to be taught systematically in order for Grade 4 children to be able to read texts in a<br />language they do not know well, for one, and in a discourse of science writing that is<br />new for them as well.<br />Ragpot narrates the story of how an instructional film, #Taximaths: how children<br />make their world mathematical, was conceptualised, scripted and produced with<br />senior undergraduate students at UJ. This artefact serves not only as higher education<br />material in teacher education, but is also used as material for teacher development.1<br />This issue of the journal is rounded off by an important contribution about the<br />ethics of research on children. Pillay explains how experts in ethics have advised him<br />in the work they do in the National Research Foundation South African Research<br />Chair he holds in ‘Education and Care in Childhood’ at the University of Johannesburg.<br />The reader is reminded that care of vulnerable children and the protection of their<br />rights should be high on the list of educational practice and its research.<br />iii<br />SAJCE– December 2014<br />The next issue of SAJCE is a special one. It is edited by Nadine Petersen and Sarah<br />Gravett and it celebrates a programme of research and development of the South<br />African Department of Higher Education and Training, with funding support from the<br />EU. The Strengthening Foundation Phase Teacher Education Programme started in<br />2011 and included most of the universities in the country. The issue promises to be a<br />milestone publication on teacher education for the primary school.<br />Editorial greetings<br />Elizabeth Henning</p>
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Copp, Derek T. "Policy incentives in Canadian large-scale assessment: How policy levers influence teacher decisions about instructional change." education policy analysis archives 25 (November 20, 2017): 115. http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/epaa.25.3299.
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Large-scale assessment (LSA) is a tool used by education authorities for several purposes, including the promotion of teacher-based instructional change. In Canada, all 10 provinces engage in large-scale testing across several grade levels and subjects, and also have the common expectation that the results data will be used to improve instruction in classrooms. Yet despite agreement between ministries that instructional change based on LSA results is a positive development and employs data-based decision making at its heart, there remain significant differences in the kinds of incentives written into assessment policies in Canada. It is also true that implementation of the policies is less than uniform between schools and school divisions. Using mixed methods (survey data and follow-up interviews), this study examines which policy factors have the most significant impact on teacher decisions regarding the use of data. The findings indicate that highly incentivized policies correlate well to instructional change including aspects of both teaching (to) the curriculum as well as teaching to the test. Since the latter will be examined as a neither an educationally defensible practice nor a stated policy goal, the statement that ‘incentives work’ does not fully capture the nature of these impacts.
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Clasquin-Johnson, Mary G. "Now and then: Revisiting early childhood teachers’ reactions to curriculum change." South African Journal of Childhood Education 6, no. 1 (November 25, 2016): 9. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v6i1.408.
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This article reports on the findings of a study consisting of two phases. Both phases aimed at investigating how professional development, physical resources and instructional support influenced teachers’ responses to curriculum change. Despite more than 90% of Grade R teachers being under-qualified, they have had to implement two radically different curricula over the past decade. The initial study (‘Phase 1’), conducted in 2007–2010, investigated teachers’ responses to the National Curriculum Statement. The 2015 follow-up study (‘Phase 2’) focused on the same teachers, but the focus fell on the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements. The latter occurred in a drastically different context because of the improved monitoring and support systems. A qualitative case study design was employed within an interpretive paradigm. The findings of Phase 1 suggested that the teachers ignored, resisted, adopted and adapted curriculum change. Their highly individualised responses could be attributed to their professional isolation. In contrast, the findings of Phase 2 reveal policy fidelity because of their enhanced capacity to adopt curriculum change. Notably, curriculum implementation is presently occurring within a community of practice. This has the potential to be a catalyst for effecting curriculum change.
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Oguoma, Enid, Loyiso Jita, and Thuthukile Jita. "Teachers’ Concerns with the Implementation of Practical Work in the Physical Sciences Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement in South Africa." African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 23, no. 1 (January 2, 2019): 27–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/18117295.2019.1584973.
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Schultz, Annine, and Michael le Cordeur. "The teaching of Literature in the Further Education and Training phase within the framework of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement." Tydskrif vir Geesteswetenskappe 59, no. 4 (2019): 545–61. http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2224-7912/2019/v59n4a6.
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Azainil, Azainil, Nurul Ulfa Apriliani, and Suandie Suandie. "Policy Evaluation Total Quality Management (TQM) School Applying International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in the City of Samarinda." Journal of Educational Review and Research 1, no. 1 (March 29, 2018): 25. http://dx.doi.org/10.26737/jerr.v1i1.506.
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<span class="ShortAbstract"><em><span>This policy evaluation research to find out the need, implementation and achievement result of TQM in Vocational High School applying ISO.This research is a policy evaluation research, with qualitative research method. Qualitative research method is a research method used to determine natural condition (naturalistic), where the researchers are as a key instrument, data technique in triangulation. Data analysis with inductive and more.This policy evaluation study examines the TQM policy documents required for schools implementing the ISO. The evaluation model uses the Context, Input, Process and Product (CIPP) model developed by Stuffebeam. Component Criteria. From the vision statement. The input components of the curriculum, financing, facilities and infrastructure, educators and educators as well as students, curriculum preparation process components, teaching materials, teaching and learning process and assessment, while product / output components of student satisfaction, student achievement and school performance implements TQM ISO.Research result. TQM ISO-based schools need to be implemented, both schools have the formulation of vision, mission, goals and restra. The input components of all schools have implemented the 2013 curriculum, discipline, sufficient facilities and infrastructure, educators and educators are in accordance with standards and there are standards of acceptance. The process component shows all teachers have been preparing syllabus, lesson plan and teaching materials, and teaching and learning process and assessment according to the standard. Existing Product / Outputs. Students, student achievement and achievement in applying ISO 9001-2008 well.Suggestions of these results are (1) improvements from the TQM ISO understanding for all stakeholders, (2) need also from the same language, and (3) improve the ISO-based TQM with commitment improvement, paradigm shift, mental attitude and organizing the guarantee system quality.</span></em></span>
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Long, Caroline, and Tim Dunne. "Approaches to teaching primary level mathematics." South African Journal of Childhood Education 4, no. 2 (December 24, 2014): 20. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v4i2.208.
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In this article we explore approaches to curriculum in the primary school in order to map and manage the omissions implicit in the current unfolding of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement for mathematics. The focus of school-based research has been on curriculum coverage and cognitive depth. To address the challenges of teaching mathematics from the perspective of the learner, we ask whether the learners engage with the subject in such a way that they build foundations for more advanced mathematics. We firstly discuss three approaches that inform the teaching of mathematics in the primary school and which may be taken singly or in conjunction into organising the curriculum: the topics approach, the process approach, and the conceptual fields approach. Each of the approaches is described and evaluated by presenting both their advantages and disadvantages. We then expand on the conceptual fields approach by means of an illustrative example. The planning of an instructional design integrates both a topics and a process approach into a conceptual fields approach. To address conceptual depth within this approach, we draw on five dimensions required for understanding a mathematical concept. In conclusion, we reflect on an approach to curriculum development that draws on the integrated theory of conceptual fields to support teachers and learners in the quest for improved teaching and learning.
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Cascio, Toni. "Incorporating Spirituality into Social Work Practice: A Review of What to Do." Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services 79, no. 5 (October 1998): 523–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1606/1044-3894.719.
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The importance of spirituality in the lives of many clients has been acknowledged in the most recent curriculum policy statement of the Council on Social Work Education and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association. A number of studies have also appeared in the professional literature advocating for the inclusion of spirituality in both social work practice and education. Despite this legitimacy, social workers are often reluctant to address this issue for a variety of reasons, most notably the lack of knowledge on this subject and its application to practice. To that end, this article presents general information on spirituality and discusses specific ways of incorporating the spiritual dimension into social work assessment and intervention.
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Sibanda, Senzeni, and Awelani M. Rambuda. "The Implementation of Formal Assessments in Intermediate Phase Mathematics at Primary Schools in South Africa." International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research 20, no. 8 (August 30, 2021): 300–320. http://dx.doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.20.8.18.
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The purpose of this research was to explore the implementation of formal assessments in intermediate phase mathematics at primary schools. The research was elicited by reports that assessment methods and procedures for tackling learners’ needs had been observed to be insufficient in South African schools. The study is grounded in Piaget’s cognitive constructivism and Vygotsky’s social constructivism. The researchers conducted document analysis of teachers’ portfolios which were purposefully selected. Nine teachers– three from each of Grades 4 to 6 were sampled. The portfolios were analysed to establish whether the implementation of the formal assessments was aligned with the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement requirements. A checklist was used to determine teachers’ implementation of formal assessment. Measures of central tendency were used to analyse data. The results revealed that teachers were not developing the abilities of learners in handling complex mathematical procedures as per the requirements of the policy. This implies that learners lacked the ability to break down mathematical problems into different factors or constituent parts. Learners were given a test instead of a project or investigation. Hence teachers were not promoting cooperative learning which is advocated by the policy. Therefore, teachers should be assisted by knowledgeable colleagues and subject advisors in their adoption and use of assessment. There must be a close examination of the classroom observation tools that are currently being utilised. Classroom observation assists teachers to improve their assessment strategies. The Department of Basic Education should supply tablets to primary schools to promote social constructive interaction amongst teachers and learners to enhance effective teaching and learning.
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Spady, William. "It’s Time to End the Decade of Confusion about OBE in South Africa." Suid-Afrikaanse Tydskrif vir Natuurwetenskap en Tegnologie 27, no. 1 (September 16, 2008): 17–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/satnt.v27i1.79.
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The fundamental elements of what is known today as Outcome-Based Education are clearly embodied in numerous familiar models of learning, assessment, and credentialing in the non-education world that, in some cases, are many centuries old. In virtually all of these models, successful outcome performance is the clear/fixed/pre-determined/known/constant factor in the equation, and time is the flexible/variable/adaptable factor. In formal education, however, exactly the opposite pattern exists: time is the clear/fixed/pre-determined/known/ constant factor, and learning successes the flexible/variable/adaptable factor. This makes “authentic” OBE implementation extremely difficult for modern education systems to implement because they are fundamentally Time-Based – defined, organized, and driven by the calendar, schedule, and clock – not Outcome-Based as some profess. South Africa is no exception to this rule – which made its enthusiastic embracing of OBE in 1997 problematic from the start. In explaining the core fundamentals of the OBE concept and how those fundamentals evolved(particularly in North America) prior to 1997, this paper makes clear that South Africa’s Curriculum2005 initiative missed the OBE mark on almost every essential count: 1) not having a clear, compelling, and operational framework of “Exit Outcomes” on which to ground the reform and the curricular changes which drove it; 2) making no reference, either in theory or practice, to OBE’s Four Operating Principles – which enable modern day educators to get as close to “real “implementation as the Time-Based paradigm of education allows; 3) missing the mark significantly on understanding and implementing what Outcomes are – culminating demonstrations of learning– the multiple forms they take, and the multiple ways in which they can be designed and assessed;4) bogging down in micro content, assessments, marking, and record-keeping – which advanced BE implementers warn strongly against; 5) lacking the future-focused grounding of OBE designs that are legitimately called “transformational;” and 6) falling into the familiar pattern of calling its “CBO” thinking and practices “OBE.”The latter relates to an almost universal constellation of practices that make educational systems virtually unchangeable from an OBE perspective: Curriculum Based Outcomes, Content Bound Objectives, Calendar Based Opportunities, Cellular Based Organization, Contest Biased Orientations, Convenience Based Operations, and Convention Bound Obsolescence. Unfortunately, Curriculum 2005 and its key advocates appeared to take these seven CBO’s as givens, which made their continuous reference to OBE incongruous at best. Consequently, the paper argues that, had South Africa’s key educational policy makers in1997, and since, taken the time to understand the six key points above, they would have been able to make a more constructive choice about the educational reforms they sought to bring about. First, recognizing these major disparities between their Curriculum 2005 strategies and the fundamentals of genuine OBE, they could have chosen to bring C2005 more strongly into alignment with OBE and modified their initial course of action considerably. Or, recognizing these major disparities, they could have chosen to drop the OBE label altogether and thereby reduced or avoided a lot of the confusion generated by implying that Curriculum 2005 required significant changes in familiar practice. For example, by maintaining the very “non-OBE” Matric and annual examination systems that had always been in place, the government kept everyone locked into traditional/conventional modes of thinking about learning, curriculum, achievement, assessment, and qualifications. Conclusion: South Africa should stop referring to OBE in any form. OBE never existed in1997, and has only faded farther from the scene as C2005 was replaced by the Revised National Curriculum Statement. The real challenge facing educators is how to implement educational practices that are sound and make significant differences in the lives of ALL South African learners.
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Peden, Moraig. "Education for sustainable agriculture: the old and new curricula for agricultural sciences in South African schools." Journal of Education, no. 60 (2015). http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/i60a03.
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This article explores the support given to Education for Sustainable Agriculture (ESA) bythe South African Agricultural Sciences school curricula. It compares two post-apartheidcurricula: the current Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) and the phased-outNational Curriculum Statement (NCS) for Agricultural Sciences in terms of content,knowledge requirements, cognitive processes and philosophies of education for sustainableagriculture, as well as the role of assessment and the stated purpose of the curricula. Whilethe NCS had a vision of sustainable agriculture and of a progressive curriculum, these aimswere not supported in the detail of the curriculum. The CAPS presents a shift back to moretraditional, discipline-based agriculture, with a detailed curriculum, which provides moresupport for ESA in terms of fundamental ecological knowledge as well as sustainableagriculture strategies. However, the CAPS, has fewer requirements for practical agriculture,higher order learning and engagement with broad socio-economic issues. The paperconcludes with recommendations for supporting ESA, through teacher education andamendments to the assessment requirements.
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De Lange, Maryna M., Christine Winberg, and Hanlie Dippenaar. "Why the English Home Language Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement will not improve learners’ reading comprehension." Reading & Writing 11, no. 1 (May 27, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/rw.v11i1.260.
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Background: The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), and similar international assessments, have consistently shown South African intermediate phase learners’ performance to be among the lowest worldwide. Of particular concern is the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for Home Language in the Intermediate Phase and, specifically, the document’s treatment of the assessment of reading comprehension.Objectives: In this study, the CAPS requirements for assessing reading comprehension were examined, with the aim of laying the groundwork for an improved policy framework.Method: The research design of the study involved evaluating the assessment of reading comprehension in the CAPS document, using a social realist approach to uncover its underlying structures and mechanisms.Results: The study found that a principled approach to the assessment of reading comprehension was lacking, which had a cumulative effect across the CAPS document, resulting in random, yet highly prescriptive, requirements.Conclusion: The study concluded that CAPS does not provide adequate guidance for improving reading comprehension and, moreover, that the prescribed programme of assessment is not supported by the research literature on reading comprehension. The study recommends that better, more evidence-informed and consultative policies and guidelines be introduced to support teachers in the assessment – and, ultimately, the improvement – of intermediate phase learners’ reading comprehension.
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Chetty, Rajendra. "Freirean principles and critical literacy to counter retrograde impulses in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement." Reading & Writing 6, no. 1 (July 10, 2015). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/rw.v6i1.71.
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Inherent in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) document are inferences of transmission and reproduction that run counter to the emancipatory imperatives of core educational policy documents enacted after democracy in 1994. Some structural inadequacies in implementation of the first curricular changes to outcomes-based education have opened the way to reactionary and retrograde pedagogy which appears to privilege the teacher and textbook as sole authorities in the classroom. The purpose of this article, therefore, is to warn against teacher-centred pedagogy and restate the significance of Freirean principles in the establishment of a student-centred educational environment, specifically in the field of critical literacy. In defence of Freirean thought, a re-consideration of literacy and critical literacy grant legitimacy to the learner and demonstrate that individual experience is foundational to knowledge construction in a participatory manner which accords with the vision and original principles of education in the new South Africa.
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Johnson, Kathryn, Edith Dempster, and Wayne Hugo. "Exploring the recontextualisation of biology in the CAPS for Life Sciences." Journal of Education, no. 60 (2015). http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/i60a04.
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This study is concerned with the recontextualisation of biology in the most recent version of the South African Life Sciences curriculum, the CAPS (Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements). The following aspects of the curriculum were assessed: the balance of canonical and humanistic material, the inclusion and weighting of the core concepts of biology, and the overall curriculum coherence. The results were compared with those for earlier versions of the curriculum, and the implications for South African students are considered. The study reveals that, according to these criteria, the content material of the CAPS faithfully reflects the hierarchical nature of its parent discipline biology.
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Musitha, Mavhungu E., and Mavhungu A. Mafukata. "Crisis of decolonising education: Curriculum implementation in Limpopo Province of South Africa." Africa’s Public Service Delivery & Performance Review 6, no. 1 (January 30, 2018). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/apsdpr.v6i1.179.
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There is a consensus amongst social scientists and public administration practitioners about the importance of decolonising the education system in Africa and South Africa. Decolonising the education system is viewed as a catalyst to create human capital that will promote economic development to end the scourge of poverty. This study was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of the implementation of Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) as a tool of decolonising from 2014 to 2016. This is a qualitative and descriptive study based on literature, and key informant interviews (KIIs) were used to gather data. This study has, however, found that implementation of CAPS in Limpopo Province is in a state of crisis. While there are many factors that contribute to this crisis, non-delivery of textbooks to schools remains a crucial factor. Civil society and media have been found to be key in playing oversight role in forcing the state to be accountable by taking it to court to deliver textbooks. However, this study recommends that Vhembe district should be used as a model for the province for effective implementation of CAPS.
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Nkosi, Makho. "Student Teachers’ Experiences of Teaching Physical Education of Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS): Exploring the Gendered Implications." INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES 08, no. 02 (April 8, 2015). http://dx.doi.org/10.31901/24566322.2015/08.02.12.
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Blignaut, Renette J., Retha Luus, Ronell Lombard, Abduraghiem Latief, and Danelle Kotze. "Maths4Stats: Educating teachers." Suid-Afrikaanse Tydskrif vir Natuurwetenskap en Tegnologie 32, no. 1 (November 1, 2013). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/satnt.v32i1.405.
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The inadequate nature of the education infrastructure in South Africa has led to poor academic performance at public schools. Problems within schools such as under-qualified teachers and poor teacher performance arise due to the poorly constructed education system in our country. The implementation in 2012 of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) at public schools in South Africa saw the further crippling of some teachers, as they were unfamiliar with parts of the CAPS subject content. The Statistics and Population Studies department at the University of the Western Cape was asked to join the Maths4Stats project in 2012. This project was launched by Statistics South Africa in an effort to assist in training the teachers in statistical content within the CAPS Mathematics curricula. The University of the Western Cape’s team would like to share their experience of being part of the Maths4Stats training in the Western Cape. This article focuses on how the training sessions were planned and what the outcomes were. With the knowledge gained from our first Maths4Stats experience, it is recommended that future interventions are still needed to ensure that mathematics teachers become well-informed and confident to teach topics such as data handling, probability and regression analysis.
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Alex, J. K. "An Assessment of the Readiness of Grade 10 Learners for Geometry in the Context of Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) Expectation." INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES 07, no. 01 (June 8, 2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.31901/24566322.2014/07.01.04.
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Abrie, Amelia L. "The botanical content in the South African curriculum: A barren desert or a thriving forest?" South African Journal of Science Volume 112, Number 1/2 (February 1, 2016). http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2016/20150127.
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Abstract Botanists who are interested in education have often expressed their dismay at how plant sciences are neglected in Biology curricula, despite the important roles that plants play. While botanists in several overseas countries have studied the ways in which plant sciences are represented in curricula, no research has been done on how botany is neglected in the South African curriculum. Currently, the South African curriculum is known as the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) for Grades R–12. In this study, a comparison was made among the content that is generally taught in introductory plant sciences courses, the American Society of Plant Biologists’ principles for plant biology education and the relevant CAPS documents. The time spent on plant, animal or human-focused content was established and compared at both phase and grade level. It was found that while the curriculum addresses all the major concepts in the plant sciences, very little time was being allocated to exclusively plant-focused content as compared to animal and human-focused content. This neglect was particularly prevalent in the Foundation Phase. The way in which the content is structured and presented in the curriculum may in all likelihood not be sufficient to provide a strong knowledge and skills foundation in the plant sciences, nor will it encourage the development of positive values towards plants. While consensus regarding the content of a curriculum will be difficult to achieve, awareness of potential gaps in the curriculum should be brought to the attention of the botanical and educational communities.
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Ndlovu, Mdutshekelwa, and Andile Mji. "Alignment between South African mathematics assessment standards and the TIMSS assessment frameworks." Pythagoras 33, no. 3 (October 26, 2012). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/pythagoras.v33i3.182.
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South Africa’s performance in international benchmark tests is a major cause for concern amongst educators and policymakers, raising questions about the effectiveness of the curriculum reform efforts of the democratic era. The purpose of the study reported in this article was to investigate the degree of alignment between the TIMSS 2003 Grade 8 Mathematics assessment frameworks and the Revised National Curriculum Statements (RNCS) assessment standards for Grade 8 Mathematics, later revised to become the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS). Such an investigation could help to partly shed light on why South African learners do not perform well and point out discrepancies that need to be attended to. The methodology of document analysis was adopted for the study, with the RNCS and the TIMSS 2003 Grade 8 Mathematics frameworks forming the principal documents. Porter’s moderately complex index of alignment was adopted for its simplicity. The computed index of 0.751 for the alignment between the RNCS assessment standards and the TIMSS assessment objectives was found to be significantly statistically low, at the alpha level of 0.05, according to Fulmer’s critical values for 20 cells and 90 or 120 standard points. The study suggests that inadequate attention has been paid to the alignment of the South African mathematics curriculum to the successive TIMSS assessment frameworks in terms of the cognitive level descriptions. The study recommends that participation in TIMSS should rigorously and critically inform ongoing curriculum reform efforts.
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Mpungose, Cedric Bheki. "Inner-self in the teaching of physical sciences according to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in South African schools." African Identities, October 20, 2020, 1–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14725843.2020.1828039.
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Ankiewicz, Piet. "’n Teoretiese besinning oor die implikasies van die filosofie van tegnologie vir kriteria vir vakkurrikulumontwikkeling en -evaluering." Suid-Afrikaanse Tydskrif vir Natuurwetenskap en Tegnologie 34, no. 1 (February 4, 2015). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/satnt.v34i1.1170.
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Technology education is globally still relatively new, and it lacks a substantive research base, a well-established classroom pedagogy and a scientifically founded, subject-based philosophical framework that may serve as a directive for related aspects. Technology is also a developing school subject with no equivalent academic discipline upon which curriculum development and classroom pedagogy may rely. The Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for Technology in the Senior Phase was officially implemented in 2014. However, responses to the intended or specified curriculum, either positive or negative, are often elicited from various stakeholders and interest groups. In the absence of philosophical-founded criteria for the development and evaluation of an intended technology curriculum, it is often unclear whether such responses are justified. Subsequently it is impossible to make fair judgments about such subject curricula. Based on Mitcham’s framework, the literature reports on a philosophical framework that is directive for technology classroom pedagogy, technology teacher education and Science, Technology and Society Studies (STS). The purpose of the article is to investigate how a scientifically founded, philosophical framework of technology can be directive for the development and evaluation of the intended technology curricula. The following research question served as point of departure for the theoretical reflection: Based on the four modes of the manifestation of technology – namely as object, knowledge, activity, and volition – which scientifically founded criteria can be deduced to be applied as part of the development and evaluation of intended technology curricula? In answering the research question it is important to point out that curriculum developers and evaluators should ensure that they take note of the philosophical framework for technology which guides subject-curriculum development and evaluation. A fourfold set of applicable criteria, based on the four manifestations of technology, have been deduced accordingly.
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Thenga, Muofhe, Paul Goldschagg, Rene Ferguson, and Caleb Mandikonza. "Teacher Professional Development and Geography Teachers’ Pedagogical Practices for Climate Change Education." Southern African Journal of Environmental Education 36 (June 17, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/sajee.v36i1.17.
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Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) was added to the South African Geography school curriculum when the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) was implemented from 2012. Many in-service teachers who qualified prior to 2014 did not cover this concept during their initial teacher education qualification because it was not part of the curriculum at that time. To address this deficiency, a teacher professional development (TPD) module was developed by the Fundisa for Change programme and offered to a selection of in-service high school Geography teachers. Transformative learning theory helped to understand the pedagogical practices used by teachers after attending the Fundisa for Change teacher professional development programme, in particular the use of a learner-centred approach. Using a small-scale, qualitative and interpretive case study method, the influence of this short TPD course on the teaching of climate change in the Geography CAPS curriculum on teachers’ pedagogical practices was investigated. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, document analysis and lesson observations. Data were analysed using both inductive thematic and deductive analysis. Findings from this small sample of five teachers and their practices suggest that despite attending the programme, most of the participating teachers did not sufficientlyintegrate climate change education in their Geography classroom practices. The majority of the research participants did not implement the learner-centred teaching methods covered in the course. It is therefore recommended that a teacher professional development programme should be incorporated into longer-term and preferably ongoing professional development programmes so as to adequately foster climate change education in classroom practices. Keywords: Geography, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), climate change education, teacher professional development, learner-centred pedagogies
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Andrich, Christelle, Anne Hill, and Andre Steenkamp. "Training Grade R teachers to impart visual perceptual skills for early reading." Reading & Writing 6, no. 1 (August 7, 2015). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/rw.v6i1.73.
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Visual Perception is the mind’s ability to interpret or give meaning to what is seen with the eyes (WCED 2006). Grade Reception Phase (R) teachers, of five and six year-old learners, need to impart Visual Perceptual Skills (VPS) during visual training for pre-reading. These prereading activities in Grade R support early reading progress in Grade 1, which is critical for improving basic literacy and numeracy education in South Africa. A quality Grade R programme which can deliver these visual training outcomes depends on a progressive model for effective pre- and in-service professional development of teachers. A model implemented via academic-governmental collaboration. This article seeks to describe and recommend best practices of such professional development. The recommendations are based on an overview of the current Grade R professional development landscape, a brief exposition of the Subject Content Knowledge (SCK) of VPS, a document analysis of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum and, finally, a case study with a discourse analysis involving four Grade R teachers.
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Myburgh-Smit, Jo-Mari, and Albert Weideman. "The refinement and uses of a test of academic literacy for Grade 10 students." Journal for Language Teaching 51, no. 1 (July 5, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jlt.v51i1.11.
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The massification of higher education has led to a substantial increase in enrolments since 1993, and an astonishing 300% rise in firstdegree completion among black students. Yet questions remain about the level and adequacy of students’ preparation at school for such study. Drop-out rates of learners remain unacceptably high both at school and university level. Language ability is often identified as being one of several hurdles that prevent success, especially in higher education. At school there is an apparent misalignment between the aims of the current Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), and the subsequent instruction and assessment of students. CAPS requires that students should be prepared to handle academic discourse, yet no clear outline of what academic discourse entails is given.Consequently, many higher education institutions across the country require of students to write additional pre-admission or post-entry tests of language ability. In some cases the National Benchmark Test (NBT) is used to grant or deny access, or in others for placement of at-risk students on language development interventions, usually defined as “academic literacy” courses. The clear expectation is that these tests will have some measure of predictive value, or at least be useful as regards minimising risk of failure. Ideally, it would then be advantageous if students who need to improve their academic literacy levels could be identified at an earlier stage than university entry, whilst they are still in school. To monitor and gauge the value of language assessments and courses, however, one would first need appropriate, adequate and defensible assessment instruments. This paper discusses the need for and the refinement of an academic literacy test for Grade 10 students as a first step towards measuring and then developing the required level of academic literacy before entry into higher education.
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Dornbrack, Jacqui, and Kerryn Dixon. "Towards a more explicit writing pedagogy: The complexity of teaching argumentative writing." Reading & Writing 5, no. 1 (April 17, 2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/rw.v5i1.40.
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Advances in technology, changes in communication practices, and the imperatives of the workplace have led to the repositioning of the role of writing in the global context. This has implications for the teaching of writing in schools. This article focuses on the argumentative essay, which is a high-stakes genre. A sample of work from one Grade 10 student identified as high performing in a township school in Cape Town (South Africa) is analysed. Drawing on the work of Ormerod and Ivanic, who argue that writing practices can be inferred from material artifacts, as well as critical discourse analysis, we show that the argumentative genre is complex, especially for novice first additional language English writers. This complexity is confounded by the conflation of the process and genre approaches in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) document. Based on the analysis we discuss the implications of planning, particularly in relation to thinking and reasoning, the need to read in order to write argument and how social and school capital are insufficient without explicit instruction of the conventions of this complex genre. These findings present some insights into particular input needed to improve writing pedagogy for specific genres.
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Roux, Kobus C. J. "The delivery of primary school physical education in South African public schools: The perceptions of educators." South African Journal of Childhood Education 10, no. 1 (August 11, 2020). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v10i1.813.
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Background: Physical Education (PE) is a fundamental cornerstone for childhood development as it promotes lifelong participation in physical activities for holistic health. School educators play a key role in creating school environments that lead to developmentally appropriate and high-quality PE lessons.Aim: The aim of this study was to determine educators’ perceptions on the state and status of PE in selected public primary schools in all nine provinces of South Africa.Setting: Data were collected on the campus of the selected primary schools within 150 km of a university. In the absence of a university within the stated radius, an airport was used as an initiated point of departure.Methods: The mixed-methods approach (quantitative: questionnaires and qualitative: semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions) was used to collect data. The purposive sampling method was used to select the participants. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics in the form of percentages, and presented using graphs and tables. Qualitative data were analysed using themes.Results: The findings revealed that the educators from quintile 4 and 5 schools especially are of the opinion that challenges, such as a lack of resources, qualified PE specialist educators, and facilities and equipment negatively affected the delivery of PE at their schools.Conclusion: Participants perceived that there are varying contextual and socio-economic school settings affecting the delivery of PE in the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum. The researcher recommends that all learners have access to the adequate provision of PE programmes.
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Rauscher, Willem J. "Die verband tussen wetenskap en tegnologie: ‘n Tegnologie-onderwysperspektief." Suid-Afrikaanse Tydskrif vir Natuurwetenskap en Tegnologie 31, no. 1 (March 6, 2012). http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/satnt.v31i1.27.
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Die aankondiging deur die Suid-Afrikaanse Minister van Basiese Onderwys dat Natuurwetenskappe en Tegnologie voortaan in die Intermediêre Fase gekombineer gaan word, skep verskeie uitdagings wanneer dit kom by die uitvoering van hierdie aankondiging. Die vraag oor wie vir die onderrig van hierdie nuwe gekombineerde vak, Natuurwetenskap en Tegnologie, verantwoordelik gaan wees, is problematies. Uit die nuwe Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement [Kurrikulum- en Assesseringsbeleidverklaring] (CAPS, Department of Basic Education 2011) wil dit voorkom asof wetenskaponderwysers daarvoor verantwoordelik sal wees om Natuurwetenskap en Tegnologie in die Intermediêre Fase te onderrig. Die meeste wetenskaponderwysers in Suid-Afrika beskik egter oor gebrekkige opleiding in tegnologie-onderwys en het dus nie ‘n grondige begrip van die aard van tegnologie of die onderlinge verband met wetenskap nie. Dit kan rampspoedige gevolge vir tegnologieonderwys inhou, want dit kan byvoorbeeld bepaal hoe hierdie vak onderrig en hoe die inhoud geprioritiseer word. Op sy beurt kan dit weer die persepsie ondersteun dat tegnologie ‘n vorm van toegepaste wetenskap, dus ondergeskik aan wetenskap is, en uiteindelik sy status as skoolvak teenoor wetenskap verloor. Die doel van hierdie artikel is om ‘n oorsig te gee van die literatuur oor die verband tussen wetenskap en tegnologie en om die mite dat tegnologie toegepaste wetenskap is, die nek in te slaan. Daar word gehoop dat hierdie artikel die aandag daarop sal vestig dat tegnologie-onderwys tot ‘n derderangse vak afgewater sal word indien die persone wat vir die onderrig daarvan verantwoordelik is nie ten minste deeglik verstaan wat die onderlinge verband tussen wetenskap en tegnologie is nie.The relationship between science and technology: A technology education perspective. The South African Minister of Basic Education’s announcement that Natural Sciences and Technology should be combined in the Intermediate Phase can pose various challenges when it comes to the execution stage. The question as to who will be responsible for teaching this new combined subject, called Natural Sciences and Technology, is problematic. The Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS, Department of Basic Education 2011) seems to suggest that Science teachers will be responsible for the teaching of Natural Sciences and Technology in the Intermediate Phase. Most science teachers in South Africa however, have had inadequate training in Technology education and, therefore, do not have a sound understanding of the nature of Technology or its inter-connectedness with Science. This can have disastrous consequences for Technology education. It can, for example, determine how this subject will be taught and how content is prioritised. This in turn, can perpetuate the perception that Technology is a form of applied science and therefore, inferior to Science, which will lead to Technology losing its status as a school subject in relation to Science as a school subject. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the literature on the relationship between science and technology and to debunk the myth that technology is applied science. It is hoped that this article will draw attention to the danger of Technology education being diluted to a lesser subject if the persons responsible for the teaching of this combined subject do not at least have a proper understanding of the relationship that exists between science and technology.
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Phasha, Tshegofatso. "Teachers’ Experiences Regarding Continuous Professional Development and the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement." INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES 14, no. 1-2 (June 8, 2016). http://dx.doi.org/10.31901/24566322.2016/14.1-2.09.
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