scholarly journals An Investigation into the Effectiveness of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in South African Schools

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-38
Author(s):  
Tinuade Adekunbi Ojo ◽  
Refentse Mathabathe
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Private Schools ◽  
Research Method ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Policy Statement ◽  
Gauteng Province ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Assessment Policy ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
The Impact

The paper presents the findings from current research on the impact that the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum subjects have on two South African Schools in Gauteng province in South Africa. The aim is to present the impact of the CAPs subjects in the school. The study did a critical evaluation of each subject to elaborate on the importance and challenges in implementing the subjects and using a qualitative research method to collect data on a group of teachers and students on their opinion on the impact of CAPs subjects. The findings suggest that even though the curriculum is effective, it needs to be improved to close the gap between public and private schools. Private schools are currently benefiting the most from the subjects and how the curriculum is structured.

Methodological Thoughts on Measuring the Impact of Private Sector Competition on the Educational Marketplace

2003 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan D. Goldhaber ◽  
Eric R. Eide
Keyword(s):  
School Choice ◽  
Private Sector ◽  
General Equilibrium ◽  
Private Schools ◽  
Relative Effectiveness ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
K 12 ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Educational Marketplace

Numerous researchers have speculated on and attempted to quantify the impact of policies designed to increase school choice and competition between schools, and they have reached widely differing conclusions. In this article, we provide an overview of the research that focuses on the potential achievement effects of greater private sector competition on K-12 schooling. In particular, we explore the various methodologies that have been used to assess the relative effectiveness of public and private schools. We discuss the strengths and shortcomings of different approaches, and based on this, we ponder what is known and not known about the impact of increased choice and competition. In conclusion, we maintain that although many of the methodologies used to assess the effects of particular interventions, such as educational vouchers, are sound, they likely fail to capture the general equilibrium consequences of enhanced choice. As a result, many of the questions we would want answered to inform policymaking remain unknown.

scholarly journals Helping South Africans achieve a better income in retirement: a critical evaluation of the impact of treasury proposals

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 185-202
Author(s):  
Jesse A. De Beer
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Financial Regulation ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Partial Solution ◽  
Retirement Income ◽  
Policy Proposal ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Retirement income security is an issue relevant to the majority of South Africans, many of whom are financially inexperienced and illiterate. South Africa has a sophisticated retirement industry offering a very wide range of choice of annuity products, but these are often not designed to optimise choices by rather unsophisticated investors. This article provides an overview of issues in the South African income withdrawal market, as well as policy remedies proposed by National Treasury to deal with these issues. The aim of this paper is to provide a critical analysis of these policy proposals, using a behaviourally informed framework to financial regulation (Barr, Mullainathan & Shafir, 2008). It recognises that policy remedies need to take into account the realities of how people make retirement income decisions, and how the institutional environment impacts on this. The results of the research suggest that the main policy proposal – simplifying the retirement income withdrawal landscape through the use of default options – is only a partial solution to the problem of unsophisticated consumers who must make several challenging decisions. The research contributes to the literature by providing a more complete, integrated view of the factors that shape retirement income withdrawal decisions and offers practitioners several insights into appropriate reform of the retirement income market.

scholarly journals Reconceptualising the Physical Sciences Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement in a South African Context

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 116
Author(s):  
Cedric Bheki Mpungose
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Science Teachers ◽  
Physical Science ◽  
Further Education ◽  
Policy Statement ◽  
Physical Sciences ◽  
Spider Web ◽  
Assessment Policy ◽  
Science Concepts ◽  
Conceptual Study

Post-apartheid South African curriculum reforms, from outcomes-based education (OBE) to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), resulted in different challenges. Teachers, in particular those teaching Physical Sciences in the Further Education and Training (FET) phase from Grades 10-12, were expected to cope with changes and master Physical Sciences curriculum for the attainment of good results, but were unable to do so because they were missing an understanding of curriculum concepts. The success of any curriculum depends on ten fundamental and broad curriculum concepts: rationale, goals, activities, assessment, accessibility, resources, content, roles, environment, and time. However, empirical findings show that Grade 12 Physical Science teachers in South African schools still struggle to understand and contextualise curriculum concepts in order to redefine specific CAPS Physical Science concepts. Consequently, this conceptual study uses Van den Akker (2004) curriculum spider web concept framework in reconceptualising Grade 12 CAPS Physical Science concepts. This study argues that teaching without knowing specific subject curriculum concepts can lead to poor teacher performance and poor subject results, this study concludes by proposing a formal, non-formal and informal framework for CAPS Physical Science to resolve this.

scholarly journals "Para que serve ler e escrever?" O depoimento de alunos e professores

2019 ◽  
Vol 77 (187) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alina Spinillo ◽  
Eliana Albuquerque ◽  
Maria Emilia Silva
Keyword(s):  
Private Schools ◽  
Written Language ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
The Social ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Social Uses ◽  
Social Backgrounds

O depoimento de alunos e professores de alfabetização de escolas públicas e particulares acerca dos usos e funções da linguagem escrita foi analisado a partir de entrevistas onde a pergunta central era: "Para que serve 1er e escrever?" Pelos depoimentos foi possível identificar diferentes concepções, as quais variam entre professores e alunos e em função do tipo de escola. A natureza dessas concepções reflete noções distintas a respeito dos usos e funções da linguagem escrita para o indivíduo que aprende a 1er e a escrever. Abstract Students ' and teachers ' point of view about the social uses and functions of written language was analysed. The results made it possible to identify several conceptions that differ between teachers and students, and also between public and private schools which attend children from different social backgrounds. The nature of these conceptions expresses different ideas about the social uses and functions of written language for the individual who learns how to write and read. Résumé L 'opinion d'étudiants et enseignants de l'élémentaire sur les usages et fonctions du langage écrit a été analysée à partir d'interviews où la question centrale concernait les raisons de savoir lire et écrire. Différents points de vue ont été ainsi identifiés parmi les élèves et enseignants compte tenu de l'école (publique ou privée). Ces points de vue mettent en relief des différentes conceptions concernant V usage et les fonctions du langage écrit pour l'individu qui apprend à lire et à écrire. Resumen El testimonio de alumnos y profesores de alfabetización de escuelas públicas y particulares acerca de los usos y funciones del lenguaje escrito fue analisado a partir de entrevistas donde la pregunta central era "Para qué sirve leer y escribir? ". Através de los testimonios fue posible identificar diferentes concepciones, las cuales varían entre profesores y alumnos y en función del tipo de escuela. La naturaleza de esas concepciones refleja nociones distintas, respecto del uso y funciones del lenguaje escrito para el individuo que aprende a leer y a escribir.

scholarly journals Why the English Home Language Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement will not improve learners’ reading comprehension

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maryna M. De Lange ◽  
Christine Winberg ◽  
Hanlie Dippenaar
Keyword(s):  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
South African ◽  
Intermediate Phase ◽  
Cumulative Effect ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Home Language ◽  
Reading Literacy ◽  
Policy Statement ◽  
Language Curriculum ◽  
Assessment Policy

Background: The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), and similar international assessments, have consistently shown South African intermediate phase learners’ performance to be among the lowest worldwide. Of particular concern is the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for Home Language in the Intermediate Phase and, specifically, the document’s treatment of the assessment of reading comprehension.Objectives: In this study, the CAPS requirements for assessing reading comprehension were examined, with the aim of laying the groundwork for an improved policy framework.Method: The research design of the study involved evaluating the assessment of reading comprehension in the CAPS document, using a social realist approach to uncover its underlying structures and mechanisms.Results: The study found that a principled approach to the assessment of reading comprehension was lacking, which had a cumulative effect across the CAPS document, resulting in random, yet highly prescriptive, requirements.Conclusion: The study concluded that CAPS does not provide adequate guidance for improving reading comprehension and, moreover, that the prescribed programme of assessment is not supported by the research literature on reading comprehension. The study recommends that better, more evidence-informed and consultative policies and guidelines be introduced to support teachers in the assessment – and, ultimately, the improvement – of intermediate phase learners’ reading comprehension.

scholarly journals Gang culture, Identity and Kaaps: Using Adam Small’s Krismis van Map Jacobs in Cape Flats schools

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 104-116
Author(s):  
Michael Le Cordeur
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
Policy Statement ◽  
Kind Permission ◽  
Good Education ◽  
Curriculum Assessment ◽  
Assessment Policy ◽  
The Arts ◽  
The Impact

In this paper the focus is on the impact of gang culture on schoolchildren. Theresearch question investigated here is whether teaching the drama Krismis van MapJacobs offers any solutions to learners in gang-infested areas, given the framework ofthe Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS). Two sub-questions consideredwhether the teaching of the drama should take place in Kaaps and whether the themeof Map Jacobs is still relevant within the CAPS curriculum 30 years after it was writtenby Adam Small. Theoretically, the paper is based on Pierre Boudieu’s (1991) view thata speaker’s ‘position’ in society determines whether he is heard, Bernstein’s (1990) ideathat social interaction influences your relationship with language and Vygotsky’s (1978)theory of social constructivism. The study concludes that a life with gangs provides nosolution for issues like poverty and unemployment, and that the youth should escapefrom a featureless existence through striving for good education and engaging withliterature. The paper is published with the kind permission of the SA Academy forScience and the Arts, as it originally appeared in the book Adam Small: Denker, Digter,Dramaturg; ‘n Huldingingsbundel (2017, SAWK).

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