GOVERNMENT GAZETTE Vol. 396, No. 18998, 24 JUNE 1998
GOVERNMENT NOTICE
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
NATIONAL EDUCATION POLICY ACT, 1996 (ACT No. 27 OF 1996)
CALL FOR COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT ASSESSMENT POLICY FOR THE GENERAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING PHASE, GRADE R TO 9 AND ABET
I, Sibusiso Mandlenkosi Emmanuel Bengu, Minister of Education, hereby in terms of section
3 (4) (1) of the National Education Policy Act, 1996 (Act No. 27 of 1996) request any
person, society or organisation to submit to me, before Tuesday, 14 July 1998,
comments on the aforementioned report as contained in the Schedule.
Comments should be forwarded to —
The Director-General: Education
(For the attention of Dr N. Mgijima)
Private Bag X895
PRETORIA
0001
S. M. E. BENGU
Minister of Education
:
DRAFT ASSESSMENT POLICY IN THE GENERAL EDUCATION
AND TRAINING PHASE GRADE R TO 9 AND ABET
MAY 1998
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
PREFACE
The development and implementation of a new assessment system within the General Education and Training phase in South Africa presents our nation with exciting opportunities to reconstruct and develop our current education and training systems into a system that reflects an integrated approach which addresses the learner's and nation's needs.
This draft assessment policy is addressed to Provincial Departments of Education, heads of curriculum and assessment units, school principals, subject advisers, curriculum facilitators and classroom practitioners. It will also inform parents, school governing bodies and all other stakeholders involved in learner assessment.
It aims to assist each school to develop sound school-based assessment practices which will improve students' learning, as well as the quality of learning programmes.
The draft policy document gives a broad framework for assessment. This is grounded in the context of the requirements of the National Education Policy Act (1996), the Curriculum 2005 Policy Documents for the Foundation, Intermediate and Senior Phase (October 1997), and the SAQA Act (1995).
The National Department acknowledges the valuable contributions of the Curriculum Management Committee, and the various consultations and workshops that were held. Appendix A lists the members of these groups, those consulted, and the workshops addressed. While these workshops and consultations were not exhaustive and did not cover all possible stakeholders, and role players, they certainly assisted in mapping out the issues that needed to be addressed in the field of assessment.
DRAFT POLICY STATEMENTS
These draft policy statements are extracted from the text, referring to the following paragraphs:
4.1 Outcomes-Based Assessment
From the beginning of schooling (Grade R) and ABET level 1 to the end of the General Education & Training Phase (Grade 9 and ABET level 4), outcomes-based assessment must be an integral part of the teaching and learning process, administered within the guidelines of the provincial education departments, which complies with national education policy.
4.2 The Purpose of Assessment
The primary purpose of assessment should be to maximise learners' access to the knowledge, skills and attitudes as defined in the national Curriculum 2005 Policy Documents for the Foundation, Intermediate and Senior Phase. Directly connected to assessment is the issue of Quality Assurance (i.e. maintaining standards) together with the national requirement of equity, access and redress. It should therefore, for example, advance race, gender, ELSEN, opportunities in a culture-fair and anti-bias manner.
4.4 What is being assessed?
The learners performance as they progress towards achieving the outcomes as stated in the national Curriculum 2005 Policy Documents for the Foundation, Intermediate and Senior Phase.
4.5 Who is involved?
The teacher/practitioner should have overall responsibility for the assessment. However, the decision of who should be involved will be determined partly by the actual form of assessment undertaken. At its best it involves a partnership between teacher, learner and parents and other school support teams e.g. occupational therapists, speech therapists, psychologists etc. In this partnership the rights to confidentiality should be borne in mind. In order to achieve a balance, some assessment reflections should rely mainly on the teacher/practitioner insight, some on the learner, some on the learners' peers or parents and some on the school support teams.
4.6 Types of Assessment
Some assessments should be based on working independently, some on working in pairs and some in groups or teams.
4.6.1 Continuous/Formative Assessment
From the beginning of Schooling (Grade R) and ABET Level 1 to the end of the General Education & Training Phase (Grade 9) and ABET Level 4, continuous/ formative assessment must be an integral part of the teaching and learning process administered within the guidelines of the provincial education department, which complies with national education policy.
4.6.2 Summative Assessment
In summative assessment carried out either at the end of a term or at the end of a grade, assessors should include information about a learner's progress drawn mainly from continuous/formative assessments made throughout the learning process.
4.7 Techniques of assessment
A wide variety of techniques suitable for assessing the performance of learners should be incorporated into the continuous assessment practice. These should be employed to ascertain mastery of what is required, as fairly and as transparently as possible, according to publicly agreed criteria.
4.8 Reporting Achievement
The assessment of learners must be transparent; must acknowledge the rights to confidentiality, the rights of learners and their parents to be an integral part of any assessment process and must ensure their understanding of and right of access to all assessment results and reports. Formal reporting on learner assessment should be carried out once a term within the guidelines of the provincial education department.
4.9 Internal and External Assessment
4.9.1 Internal Assessment
From the beginning of schooling (Grade R) and ABET level 1 to the end of the General Education & Training Phase (Grade 9 and ABET level 4), there will be internal continuous assessment which is administered and marked by teachers/facilitators and moderated externally, (for example other schools, advisory services, outside agencies) within the guidelines of the provincial education department, which comply with national education policy. A system should be in place to ensure external reference points for internal assessment decisions. System moderation is essential.
4.9.2 External Assessment
At the end of the General Education & Training Phase (Grade 9 and ABET level 4), there will be external assessment designed, set, marked and moderated by a body/provincial department, which is separate from the school/organisation/institution which delivers learning.
5. Promotion And Progression Within Phases
From the beginning of the General Education & Training phase (Grade R to Grade 9 ) learners will progress with their age cohort. Should the learner, according to his/her assessment profile as developed during the course of the year, display a lack of progress in achieving the outcomes and in a case where teachers/facilitators/schools/support services provide adequate information or evidence of interventions and support given to the learner, the parents/guardian and/or institution/provincial department could use their discretion by allowing such a learner to spend more time on task on those areas where difficulties are experienced. As a guideline no learner should stay in the same phase for longer than four years.
5.2 Foundation Phase Assessment
Continuous and formative assessment for the Foundation Phase, from grade R to 3, will be internal, set and marked by the teacher and moderated externally within guidelines of the Provincial Education Departments
Summative assessment at Grade 3 will be external, administered as part of the national systemic evaluation.
5.3 Intermediate Phase Assessment
Continuous and formative assessment, as well as summative assessment for the Intermediate Phase, from grade 4 to 6, will be internal and external, set and marked by the teachers and moderated externally within guidelines of the Provincial Education Departments.
Grade 6 summative assessment will form part of the national systemic evaluation.
5.4 Senior Phase Assessment
Continuous and formative assessment, as well as summative assessment for the Senior Phase, from grade 7 to 9, will be internal and external, set and marked by the teachers and moderated externally within guidelines of the Provincial Education Departments. Grade 6 summative assessment will form part of the national systemic evaluation.
5.5 Grade 9 and ABET Level 4 (GETC)
The principle of equal access to education opportunities will be prevalent at the GET phase to support the principle of education for all, enshrined in the Constitution. A modular system at ABET levels in the GET phase is highly recommended in order to facilitate access, mobility and portability of qualifications and credits. The GETC will be the first national assessment in the schooling and ABET systems accredited by the NQF.
There will be external assessment, which, together with the credits accumulated from grade 7, will contribute to the attainment of the qualification. The assessment will be of an integrative nature i.e. continuous/formative and summative.
Accountability to the public and transparency to all stakeholders will require that the Department of Education introduce external moderation for the validation of the assessment that leads to the qualification at Grade 9 and ABET level 4.
6. Adult learners' assessment
All the recommendations featured in this draft policy document apply to the assessment of adult learners. This draft policy should be applied in conjunction with the National Interim Guidelines ABET, and the Guidelines to ABET assessment documents
6.1 Recognition of Prior Learning
It must be considered a priority to develop policy, to set up mechanisms and provide access to a formal system of RPL, leading to credits and qualifications registered on the NQF. The national Department, in collaboration with provincial departments, should initiate this process.
7. Learners With Special Educational Needs
All the recommendations featured in this draft policy document apply to the assessment of Learners with Special Educational Needs. The new outcomes-based approach has taken the requirements of learners with special education needs (ELSEN) into account in the process of developing learning programme guidelines.
7.1 Role of Education Support Personnel
Direct involvement by education support personnel in routine assessment of individual learners should be de-emphasised. They should rather play a role in supporting educators and parents in assessment and developing appropriate interventions, developing preventative and promotive programmed, and only addressing individual problems when other centre-based interventions have not proved effective.
7.2 Standardised Tests
Learners should only be assessed by means of standardised tests, which have proven usefulness in identifying barriers to learning and development. The routine administration of group tests of intelligence should be discontinued.
7.3 Early identification
The early identification and assessment of children who are likely to experience barriers to learning and development, as well as the principles of early intervention, should be a national priority.
8. Systemic Evaluation
Systemic Evaluation should play an integral part in ensuring that all learners derive maximum benefit from the system of education. Systemic Evaluation includes the evaluation of all aspects of the sites of learning and learning programmed. Systemic Evaluation will take place at grades 3,6 and 9. This evaluation will not be done annually. It is important to state that not all learners and learning sites will be evaluated. A nationally representative sample of learners and learning sites will be evaluated.
9. Implementation of the Draft Assessment Policy
The new draft assessment policy should be phased in over a period adequate for the preparation and trial of new assessment methods, for educator preparation and capacity building, and for learners to benefit from curriculum 2005. This should continue at least until 2004, the review year.
9.4.1 Teacher/Educator Support
The implementation of a system of teacher-driven assessment must be supported by a focused programme for training and re-orientating teachers and education support services personnel, to fulfil new roles and perform new functions.
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