Mixed reports are coming in about school and teacher readiness to implement the New Curriculum Statement (NCS) for grades 10 to 12 next year.
While most agree that the NCS is an improvement on the old curriculum, poor teacher training and delays in the distribution of new learning materials for these grades have been identified as problematic.
Mafika Cele, from the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union’s (Sadtu), says that, according to the official plan: ‘Orientation for teachers was supposed to be a two-week affair, with the first week dedicated to conceptual issues to get teachers to understand the principles behind the new system.” The second week was to be used to look at subject-specific issues.
But, says Cele, ‘training in some provinces was reduced to two or three days — and in some instances, it was even reduced to three hours”. He describes the process in Limpopo and the North West as a ‘shambles”, and in the Eastern Cape ‘the situation was even worse as there was a breakdown in communication between Sadtu and the education department”.
The news from the Western Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng is better. These provinces ‘are almost there” in terms of preparations, says Cele. He attributes their relative progress to the fact that these provinces prepared for the training by involving teachers, trade unions, textbook publishers, NGOs and community-based organisations.
However, in other provinces, Cele says, the preparation plans look good on paper, but have been poorly implemented. ‘Preparations went off best at national Department of Education [DoE] level, but the problems were in the provinces.”
Dave Balt, of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa (Naptosa), echoes Cele’s sentiments. ‘We all agreed there were going to be problems with the process, and so far few teachers have been trained. Even when they have been, the training was not specific but generic,” says Balt.
Balt also identifies the delivery of new learning materials to schools as a problem. ‘The Northern Cape has indicated that it will only get learning materials in early January. Limpopo, the Eastern Cape and the Free State are also behind schedule. Other provinces such as Gauteng and the Western Cape will deliver materials sometime this year.”
Balt says the delay in learning material is directly linked to management and resources. ‘One of the most important reasons for the delay is management. Some provinces have better management and resources, while others have no resources and their management systems are poor.
‘But we have got to do our best to make [the NCS] work. We will go the extra mile to help with the implementation,” he says.
Penny Vinjevold, deputy director general of the further education and training branch of the DoE, says: ‘We are ready to implement.” This is despite the shortcomings in some provinces.
While Vinjevold acknowledges that training in some provinces has been weak, she says the trade unions have intervened where they have seen the need. She adds that the subject-assessment guidelines that have been developed should provide teachers with a clear map of what is expected of them.
What teachers think
Celeste Kew
‘I attended training in September this year. I think the NCS gives teachers guidance in terms of how they should present their lessons. There is not so much work for us English teachers, as most of the stuff is what we already know.
‘But I think I find the assessment a little difficult in that learners have to write three exams. This I find challenging not only for the learners, but also for us teachers. What I like about the NCS is it is comprehensive and emphasises critical outcomes at the end of every lesson.”
Claire Brownbill
‘I think we are ready. I feel one must be enthusiastic about the new curriculum. What I like about it is that it is no longer about content, but also about context, and this will be interesting to learners. But learners will have to understand the language, otherwise they will struggle.
‘I think the training was good only in the sense of giving us an overview. It was about bits and pieces of the NCS. Fortunately we do have our own meetings as maths teachers where we share ideas, and this is helpful.”
Khosi Shabalala
‘I went for 40 hours of training on NCS. As a maths teacher, I was happy with the training. But the thing is, some schools are already ahead in that they were already offering such subjects as life orientation and mathematical literacy that form part of NCS. Only this year did our school send one teacher for training on life orientation so that it can be an examinable subject.
‘I just feel on paper NCS is okay, but it demands a lot of resources and paperwork. My overall sense is that while I am personally ready, I do not think most teachers are.”
Kim Budge
‘I learnt a lot during the training, although a lot of what was covered is what we are already familiar with. I think the new curriculum demands a lot of time from us teachers. I am not sure if we will have it. But I like the NCS, as it encourages creativity and is not restrictive.
‘During the training I also realised there are still huge disparities among schools. There are those with resources and those that do not have. I think those without resources will struggle to cope with the work, given the demanding nature of the NCS.”