ANC
*ANC Statement, issued 7 July 2010* *ANC Supports Basic Education Reforms*The African National Congress notes the pronouncements of the Minister of Basic Education, Cde Angie Motshekga, on the review of the implementation of the National National Curriculum Statement in Grades R to 12.
The ANC supports the Minister's statement, especially as it clarifies that the purpose of the review is to deal with certain constraints in the implementation of the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) in order to improve the quality of teaching and learning in our schools.
Key among those constraints are overload on teachers brought about by the assessment requirements of the NCS, knowledge gaps in some subjects in the transition from the Foundation to the Intermediate Phase, curriculum overload in the Intermediate Phase, insufficient attention to the teaching of foundational knowledge in literacy and numeracy, and lack of national assessments in the early phases of the schooling system.
In this regard, the ANC supports the Minister's decision to, among other things, : (1) drastically reduce the administrative requirements that teachers have to perform as a result of the assessment imperatives of the curriculum; (2) close the content knowledge gaps in some subjects; (3) reduce subjects from nine (9) to six (6) in Grades 4-6; (4) pay greater attention to literacy and numeracy especially in the early grades of schooling; and (5) introduce nationally set tests in grades 3, 6 and 9.
The ANC believes that the Ministers determination to address these constraints will yield good results, and will improve learner achievement in all levels of the schooling system. This is in line with the Polokwane Resolutions on Education and the ANC's Ten Point Plan to improve the quality of learning and teaching, which is the movement's foremost priority.
The ANC wishes to clarify its position on the reported demise of outcomes-based education. We note and support the Minister's decision to remove some elements of outcomes-based education, especially the framing of the school curriculum in terms of learning outcomes and assessment standards in order to strengthen subject content specification.
However, outcomes-based education as a broad framework for education and training in South Africa remains our approach. Qualifications and programmes in Further Education and Training, Adult Education and Training, vocational and occupational training, and Higher Education continue to be formulated within the outcomes-based approach. This is crucial for articulation in the National Qualifications Framework (NQF).
While the school curriculum will not be strictly formulated in terms of outcomes and assessment standards in the schooling sector, the core values of outcomes-based education, such as encouraging critical engagement with knowledge instead of rote learning, combining foundational with practical knowledge, and encouraging learners to work both as individuals and as teams, will continue to underpin teaching and learning in the schooling sector.
*Issued by:* *Dr ZL Mkhize* *Chairperson of the NEC Sub-Committee on Education and Health* * * *African National Congress* *54 Sauer Street* *Johannesburg* *2001* * * *06 July 2010* * * *Inquiries:* *Ndabezinhle Sibiya 082 375 4742* *Ishmael Mnisi 082 333 5550* -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] .
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