1. BASIC EDUCATION POLICY: IN RESPONSE TO THE GOALS SET OUT IN THE NDP
Education Conversations Roundtable
14 August 2019
University of Johannesburg,

2. PRESENTATION OUTLINE The next steps Conclusion Purpose
Size and Shape of the Basic Education Sector
Strategic Focus
- SDG4, Agenda 2063, NDP, Sector plan, SoNA
Overview of Sector Responses
Inclusive Education
Early Childhood Development
Reading
Numeracy and Mathematics Learning Outcomes
Skills and Competencies for a changing world
The next steps
Conclusion

3. PURPOSE
To present to the education conversations roundtable basic education sector response to the National Development Plan (NDP)

4. THE SIZE & SHAPE OF BASIC EDUCATION SECTOR
DEPARTMENT OF BASIC EDUCATION
9 PROVINCIAL DEPARTMENTS OF EDUCATION
75 DISTRICTS
889 Circuits
25, 154 SCHOOLS
23, 289 (Public)
1, 865 (Independent)
437, 449 EDUCATORS
398, 789 (Public)
38, 660 (Independent)
12, 819, 542 LEARNERS
12, 230, 194 (Public)
589, 348 (Independent)
11 official languages
57+ million people

5. STRATEGIC FOCUS

6. UN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education
By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy
Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities
for all
By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.

7. THE AFRICA WE WANT
A key driver of Africa’s prosperity will be its world class human capital developed through quality education focused on achieving 100 per cent literacy and numeracy, and clear emphasis on science, technology and engineering.
Launch comprehensive and effective LITERACY campaigns across the continent to eradicate illiteracy
Strengthen the science and MATH curricula and disseminate scientific knowledge and the culture of science in the African society

8. A NATIONAL PRIORITY
NDP: By 2030, South Africa South Africans should have access to education and training of the highest quality, leading to significantly improved learning outcomes. The performance of South African learners in international standardised tests should be comparable to the performance of learners from countries at a similar level of development and with similar levels of access.”
“There should be a policy and programme shift to ensure that the DBE takes the core responsibility for the provision and monitoring of ECD.”
“Make 2 years of quality preschool enrolment for 4 and 5 years olds compulsory before grade 1.”
Improve literacy, numeracy/mathematics and science outcomes
About 90 percent of learners in grades 3, 6 and 9 must achieve 50 percent or more in the annual national assessments in literacy, maths and science.

9. A BASIC EDUCATION PRIORITY

10. THE 6th ADMINISTRATION
At the centre of all our efforts to achieve higher and more equitable growth, to draw young people into employment and to prepare our country for the digital age, must be the prioritisation of education and the development of skills.
We will be substantially expanding the availability of these early reading resources across the foundation phase of schooling.

11. OVERVIEW OF SECTOR RESPONSES

12. INCLUSIVE EDUCATION SYSTEM

13. KEY SECTOR RESPONSES
The policy on Screening, Identification, Assessment and Support (SIAS) approved by the Minister in 2014
Guidelines on the establishment of Full Service Schools (838)
The introduction of the South African Sign Language curriculum in
Grades 1-12 ( )
The DBE developed a National Catalogue for braille LTSM
All workbooks from grade R – 9 HAVE BEEN BRAILLED

14. EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

15. DBE’S ECD VISION
By 2030 we will have put in place a comprehensive ECD ecosystem that is built to serve and support children, families, practitioners, centres and communities.

16. Timelines Systematic Relocation of ECD to DBE
2019
Develop costed plan
Prepare systems for registration, funding, monitoring and regulation
2020
Grade R declared compulsory
Prepare systems for registration, funding, QA, monitoring and regulation
2021
Start with ECD centres and programmes registration and regulation
2022
Register, fund, regulate, QA and support ECD centres and Programmes
2024
All ECD centres and programmes registered, regulated, quality assured and funded by DBE
2030
99% of all 5-year olds are in Gr R
Gr RR declared compulsory
Increase access to and improve quality of ECD system

17. READING

18. PROBLEM STATEMENT
A number of studies show that the majority of learners in South Africa cannot read for meaning at the end of Grade 4. It is estimated that 78% of Grade 4 learners were unable to read for meaning in any of South Africa’s 11 official languages in 2016 PIRLS.
Fragmented reading initiatives in the system
Non-availability of readers in African languages
Inadequate teacher development and support programmes offered by HEIs on reading methodologies
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study Impact of Benchmark
Pay attention to RED Bar
Norm 4%
SA 78% Indicative of the bulk of our learners not being able to achieve the benchmark, when reading predominantly simpler Literary Texts, :
Locate and retrieve explicitly stated information, actions, or ideas
Make straightforward inferences about events and reasons for actions
Begin to interpret story events and central ideas
And
When reading predominantly simpler Informational Texts, learners can:
Locate and reproduce explicitly stated information from text and other formats (e.g., charts diagrams)
Begin to make straightforward inferences about explanations, actions, and descriptions

19. SANCF - EARLY GRADE READING AND MATHS
AGES
Emergent and early reading and maths 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Pre-school R 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Babies
Toddlers
Young Children
FOUNDATION PHASE
INTERMEDIATE PHASE
SENIOR PHASE
FURTHER EDUCATION & TRAINING
PHASE
National Curriculum Framework for children birth to four
National Curriculum Statement for Grades R to 12
National Early Learning & Development Standards
”LIFELONG LEARNING through a National Curriculum Framework document (1996) was the first major curriculum statement of a democratic South Africa”.

20. INTEGRATED SECTOR PROGRAMME ON READING 2019 - 2024
The DBE has developed a system- wide, multi-faceted reading improvement programme with focus on:
Strengthening the capacity of the sector to support and monitor reading at all levels (national, provincial, district and school levels);
Teacher development and support;
Direct Learner support;
Parental and community support and mobilisation;
Provisioning and utilisation of LTSM;
Tracking learner performance in reading outcomes;
Research, monitoring, evaluation and reporting; and
Partnerships.

21. THE SECTOR READING PROGRAMME
The DBE has provided strategic and programmatic support at all levels of the system through the following sub-programmes:
Primary School Reading Improvement Programme (PSRIP)
A programme that seeks to capacitate and upskill teachers in teaching reading in in all languages; and ultimately improve literacy and reading outcomes of learners in the FP
Meant to comprehensively contribute to the overall improved learning outcomes and ultimately improved quality education
EGRS: Data and Evidence driven intervention – Coaches, lesson plans, readers etc.
EGRA: Assessment of reading proficiency will provide useful data for making decisions on screening of learners, diagnosing learner reading strengths and needs and monitor their individual progress.
The Minister launched the Read to Lead campaign in July 2015 to mobilise all South Africans to get involved in promoting literacy; ambassador programme, reading clubs, 6000 schools have benefited by receiving either a central library/ corner, trolley or classroom library/ resources/ librarian etc. Early Grade Reading Study (EGRS);

22. THE SECTOR READING PROGRAMME…..
To support and build on the Read to Lead campaign, the NECT is championing the National Reading Coalition NRC which was launched on 15 February 2019:
The NRC aims to:
Coordinate and mobilise support for reading initiatives - initially targeting schools and communities in 25% of the education circuits;
Develop and advocate for a national plan that aligns and coordinates various initiatives that support the Read to Lead campaign;
Establish and maintain a self-sustaining, agile ecosystem of reading initiatives across the country and networking government and civil society for reading improvement.

23. STRATEGIES TO SUPPORT READING PROGRAMS
The DBE has put in place some strategies further advance reading
Reading across the curriculum in all subjects and grades.
Reading and writing norms in all languages
The framework on the teaching of reading in African Languages
The Drop All and Read initiative at school level

24. NUMERACY AND MATHEMATICS LEARNING OUTCOMES

25. KEY SECTOR RESPONSES
Full implementation of the reviewed Mathematics, Science and Technology Education (MSTE) Strategy by 2024
The framework on the Teaching of Mathematics for Understanding (TMU) roll-out in the FP and IP by 2024
Institutionalisation of Lesson Study in Maths and Science education by (Japan International Cooperation Agency)
Provision of an average of (volumes 1 and 2) R to 9 maths and language workbooks for distribution to about public schools

26. SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES FOR A CHANGING WORLD

27. DIGITAL SKILLS
Introduction of Curriculum for Digital Skills including coding and robotics in the General Education and Training (GET) band.
2023
Gr 8&9 Implementation
2022
Gr 4-6 &7 Implementation
2022 Gr 8&9 Pilot
2021 Gr 4-6 & 7 Pilot
2021
FP Implementation
2020
FP Pilot

28. PROVISION OF DIGITAL LTSM THROUGH ICT DEVICES
All State-owned Textbooks and Workbooks are digitised and are available to all learners by 2024
A phased-in-approach for the accelerated deployment of digital LTSM through ICTs at all levels of the basic education sector will be as follows:
Pre-Implementation Phase ( 2019/20)
Phase 1 (2020/21): Multi-grade, Special and Farm Schools as well as Quintile 1 and 2 Schools (two years)
Phase 2 (2022/23): Quintile and Special Schools
Phase 3 (2023/24): Quintile 4 – 5

29. TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL SKILLS
Towards 2024
Accelerate the implementation of the technical occupational pathway – workplace experience
Improve performance in technical mathematics
Strengthen the Technical science curriculum
Bridge the gap between school and the workplace
Establishment of focus schools

30. ESTABLISHMENT OF FOCUS SCHOOLS
Outcome
Outcome indicator
Baseline data (amount and year )
Five year target 2024
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Focus Schools established in line with Special Economic Zones
Focus Schools established in all PEDs including, Technical High School/ school offering technical subjects per circuit
Only Technical High Schools can be found in all provinces
One Technical High School per Circuit
One Aviation School per PED
One Agricul-tural School per District
One Marine Science School per PED
One Arts School per PED
& One Hi-Tech School per PED

31. ENTREPRENEURAL SKILLS
Roll out strategy
The goal is that by 2030, 100% of the schools will be implementing the E3 Programme
Subject
Grade
Yearly targets
2019
2020
Economic and Management Sciences
Grades 7-9
Pilot in 20 schools per province
(180 schools)
20%
50%
75%
100%
Life Skills
Grade 4-6
Life Orientation
Grades 10-11
Languages and Mathematics
Grades R-3
UNICEF
Play Based Learning piloted in 9 Provinces

32. THE NEXT STEPS Finalisation of a competence based curriculum
Strengthen Curriculum Research and Development capacity
Establishment of the National Institute for Curriculum and Professional Development (NICPD)
Scaling up OF reading improvement initiatives – collaboration
Accelerate the establishment of focus schools

33. IN CONCLUSION
In order to achieve the global, continental, national and sector goals, the DBE values constructive partnerships with International development agencies, private sector, cooperations, NGOs and civil society.