My last few columns for this year are aimed at heads of departments (HODs) and particularly school principals who are often left out of the curriculum training loop. What should you be telling your teachers about the planned changes to the curriculum?
The revised National Curriculum Statement (NCS) for General Education and Training (GET – grades R to 9) is available on the government website, http://education.pwv.gov.za in all 11 official languages. It will be phased in over the next six years in the following way:
The first in line for the big change is the Foundation Phase in 2004. What are the implications for these grades? Firstly, Literacy will now get 40%, the lion’s share of the timetable, followed by Numeracy with 35% and Life Skills with 25%. Flexitime will be done away with.
Few will dispute the need to focus on Literacy and Numeracy in the Foundation Phase. C2005 in its original form has been criticised for distracting Foundation Phase teachers from teaching the basics.
The main learning outcomes for Literacy will now be those of the Languages Learning Area. Additional outcomes for Literacy should be drawn from all the other learning areas to provide contexts in which language learning can take place.
An additive multilingualism approach to the teaching and learning of languages should be encouraged. This means that, as far as possible, learners should learn to read and write in their home language first and then transfer this knowledge to their additional language/s.
It is imperative that learners are able to read and write (preferably in their home languages) by the end of Grade 3. After this, the focus of teaching shifts away from learning to read to reading to learn.
An important aspect of the process of learning to read involves reading lots of books, fiction and non-fiction, at the right level, rather than slowly struggling through a couple of books.
The main learning outcomes for Numeracy will be those of the Mathematics Learning Area. Note that this learning area will no longer be called Mathematical Literacy, Mathematics and Mathematical Sciences (MLMMS) but simply Mathematics.
Additional outcomes for Numeracy should be drawn from other learning areas to provide meaningful contexts in which numeracy learning can take place.
Mathematics is a learning area in which the order in which concepts and skills are taught really matters. It has therefore benefited greatly from the renewed emphasis of the NCS on the sequence and progression of concepts and skills.
The Numeracy learning programme will focus on problem-solving, reasoning and communication. Young children should be encouraged to express curiosity, intelligence and flexibility as they try to find solutions to problems. Where possible, the context of the problem should be derived from real-life experiences.
Communicating understanding is fundamental to Numeracy. In the Foundation Phase, this is likely to take the form of visual representations, sharing solutions to find out how others have solved a problem and becoming familiar with conventions that need to be followed (for example, using the right operational signs, spacing and layout).
The main learning outcomes for Life Skills will now be those of the Life Orientation Learning Area. Each learning outcome relates to a key aspect of Life Skills, such as:
– Health promotion: Here nutrition, diseases including HIV and Aids, safety, violence, abuse and environmental health are addressed.
– Social development: This aspect deals with human rights as contained in the South African Constitution, aspects of social relationships, and cultural and religious diversity.
– Personal development: Personal development is central to learning and equips learners to contribute effectively to community and society. This is an important concern of Life Skills.
– Physical development and movement: Physical and motor development is integral to the holistic development of learners.
It makes a significant contribution to learners’ social, personal and emotional development.
In addition to covering the Life Orientation learning outcomes and assessment standards, the Life Skills learning programme should draw on outcomes from all the other seven learning areas – Languages, Mathematics, Social Sciences, Arts and Culture, Natural Sciences, Technology and Economics and Management Sciences. Additional outcomes from these learning areas should be selected as a basis for providing meaningful contexts for Life Skills learning to take place.
Next month I will look at the changes we can anticipate in the Intermediate Phase.