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Talent Chimutambgi Review Writer
Educationists have said the lead time for introduction of the new curriculum in schools – starting January 2016 – is too short. College Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe (COLAZ) national secretary general Mr Jinggy Makarudze said the ministry should make sure that there is enough time for teachers training for the ministry to produce desired results. “As much as we commend the curriculum review, we need to have something that benefits children forever; something that resonates with the world, something that will produce students set for life, but at the moment we do not have it.

“I think to implement the curriculum now will be over ambitious as little time has been given in discussing the zero draft curriculum framework which is set to begin next year. Enough time is essential to produce desired results,” he said. Primary and Secondary Education Minister Lazarus Dokora said the ministry is expecting the new curriculum to be implemented by qualified teachers and teachers-in-training.

“If you are within the education system, and you’re neither of the two, then you should have made efforts to have undergone training by January next year,” said the minister. “As a ministry there’s a certain level of competence and skilfulness that teachers should have which are in line with the new curriculum.”

He said the ministry was working on ensuring that teachers acquire new skills required under the new curriculum, adding that strategies had been put in place to solve the shortage of Mathematics and Science teachers.

“It’s true that we’ve a shortage of science teachers. This is why the ministry launched the Teacher Capacity Development Programme in 2014 to upgrade teachers in various areas so that they acquire skills to cope with the demands of the new curriculum. “I’m confident that learners will benefit tremendously from this programme. We’ve 2 500 teachers pursuing studies in Science, Technology, Mathematics, Heritage Studies, Languages, Art and Culture with various universities,” said Min Dokora.

A head of a teacher training institute, who declined to be named, said that it is not feasible to expect teachers to just turn up in January and start teaching in a whole new way without any re-training.

“The current teacher training touches on topics like discovery learning but that is not enough. Our current methods of teacher assessment are on paper-based learning. So we need to start with the syllabi in teacher training institutions or else this will just be another bright idea that leads nowhere. You need to start by reorienting the teachers,” said the head.

He also said that teachers would need to know exactly how the examination format has been changed to suit the new curriculum since the reputations of schools and individual teachers rest on student pass rate records.

The draft policy framework proposes a new grading system which will see Grade Seven final results determined by 50 percent of continuous assessment and 50 percent on national examinations. At Form Four, the framework proposes that learners’ grades be based 40 percent on theoretical examination, 30 percent practical examination and 30 percent continuous assessment.

Primary and Secondary Education Deputy Minister Professor Paul Mavhima said education experts were working on prototype syllabi, which would include proposals from the 2014-2015 draft curriculum review. “Thus these prototypes are looking at how these subjects should be taught in schools. The way these subjects are taught should prepare the students for self-reliance.

“This is being done at all levels and the syllabus prototypes will be presented to Cabinet together with the proposed draft curriculum review, but we are saying everything should be done this year.”

The draft curriculum proposes introduction of compulsory languages like Chinese, French, Swahili and Portuguese. Cabinet recently approved The Zero Draft Curriculum Framework for Primary and Secondary Education, an education blueprint setting and guiding learning and teaching standards in the country’s education sector.

The aims of the new curriculum include motivating learners to cherish their Zimbabwean identity and value their heritage, history and cultural tradition and preparing them for participatory citizenship.

Minister Dokora, at a media conference held in the capital following the endorsement announced that this would start by producing syllabi restructuring Grade Seven and Ordinary Level subjects in January 2016. “We are now doing the prototype syllabus. Next year we should start teaching some subjects based on the new syllabus proposed in the curriculum,” he said.

“We are working on subjects such as Agriculture, languages, Information Communication Technology, Science, Maths, Statistics and Physics. There has been a lot of emphasis on technical education with stakeholders suggesting subjects like Maths, Science and Technology should be taught from as early as Early Child Development.

The framework targets moving learning systems from the paper-based approach to project-based learning. Edutopia.org defines project-based learning as a dynamic classroom approach in which students actively explore real-world problems and challenges and acquire a deeper knowledge.

This is unlike the current system in which learners are expected to receive all wisdom from external sources including teachers, textbooks and the internet. Some educationists support the minister’s decision to hit the ground running saying that there will always be something to be done before everyone is satisfied that the country is ready.

Mr Don Mutorindo, a teacher at Chomuchena Secondary School in Mhondoro, supported the idea saying it is a noble idea to begin the implementation next year as it does not take time to train teachers on that as they are already trained in the related field.

“I think it is an honourable thing that Government has proposed to work on implementing the new curriculum next year as it doesn’t take time to train a trained person in the same field,” said Mr Mutorindo.

Teachers Union of Zimbabwe national secretary-general Mr Ottoman Magaya said there is need for everyone to support and participate as the curriculum is an ongoing process. “The curriculum review is an ongoing process and there is need for everyone to participate so that there is continuous review,” he sai Minister Dokora said an audit would be undertaken on the readiness of the schools’ infrastructure to implement the new education system.

“In January 2016, phase one implementation on continuous, practical and assessment will begin,” he said. “In January 2017, phase two teacher capacity building started in phase one continues and audit of infrastructure capacity to handle teaching and learning of technical vocational subjects and design takes place.”

The new curriculum aims to prepare learners for life and work in an indigenised economy and increasingly globalised and competitive environment and ensuring learners demonstrate desirable literacy and numeracy skill, including practical competences necessary for life.

Other aims of the new system are preparing and orienting learners for participation in voluntary service and leadership and fostering life-long learning in line with the emerging opportunities and challenges of the knowledge society.

The minister said an effective supervision programme would be effected to ensure that teaching personnel complied with the new requirements. “Supervision instruments for the heads of schools, teachers-in-charge, heads of departments and teachers have been reviewed to include the assessment of teacher professional standards. The new supervision instruments have been piloted and will be in use from January 2016.

“We’ll be monitoring the teachers to ensure that they upgrade themselves and become relevant to the kind of students that we want to groom today. We won’t tolerate teachers who only have their teaching certificate and several years of experience without any upgrading,” said Minister Dokora. He said the Government had finalised teacher professional standards. These establish the knowledge levels, skills and values expected from every teacher.

“Furthermore, the new curriculum embraces new strategies for student assessment. There’ll be both continuous and summative assessment. What should emerge from these procedures are comprehensive learner profiles which should go a long way in helping the learner make informed career choices. The teaching method has shifted to ensure that what’s taught in the classroom is what happens in practice,” said Minister Dokora.