Education

THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION

3.        The implementation of the National Development Plan has been defined in Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF). The final version was tabled last week. The performance indicators for each of the six outputs have also been presented.

The Department of Basic Education is to embark on an exercise of further elaborating the criteria and of identifying which of the indicators provinces can already provide data on, so that provinces can set targets on these. Those that lend themselves to immediate action by provinces will be incorporated into the set of national Programme Performance Measures.

Details of these and their accompanying terms of reference will only be presented in the second draft of the Annual Performance Plan, to be presented in November. The academic performance targets will be adjusted based on the results in the Annual National Assessments, the National Senior Certificate, the WCED systemic tests and on our analysis of trends and the targets set in conjunction with the schools themselves.

The MTSFs output priorities are:

1. Improved quality of teaching and learning through development, supply and effective utilisation of teachers.
2. Improved quality of teaching and learning through provision of adequate quality infrastructure and Learning and Teaching Support Materials (LTSM).
3. Tracking of learner performance through reporting and analysis of the Annual National Assessment (ANA) at Grade 3,6 and 9 level and improving ANA over time to ensure appropriate feedback to learners and teachers and to benchmark performance over time
4. Expanded access to Early Childhood Development and improvement of the quality of Grade R
5. Strengthening accountability and improving management at the school, community and district level.
6. Partnerships for education reform and improved quality

• The indicators that are likely to be included in Annual Performance Plans include:
• Percentage of learners in schools that are funded at a minimum level
• Percentage of schools with full set of financial management responsibilities on the basis of assessment

• Percentage of schools visited at least twice a year by district officials (including subject advisers) for monitoring and support purposes

• The percentage of children who turned 9 in the previous year and who are currently enrolled in Grade 4 (or a higher grade)

• The percentage of children who turned 12 in the preceding year and who are currently enrolled in Grade 7 (or a higher grade)

• The percentage of youths who obtained a National Senior Certificate from a school

• The percentage of learners in schools with at least one educator with specialist training on inclusion

• Number of qualified teachers, aged 30 and below, entering the public service as teachers for the first time

• Percentage of learners who are in classes with no more than 45 learners

• Percentage of schools where allocated teaching posts are all filled

• Percentage of learners having access to the required textbooks in all grades and all subjects

• Percentage of learners having access to workbooks per grade

• The kinds of details still to be clarified for example are “what precisely is the meaning of “having access” to books etc.

• The WCED is concluding its first draft of a set of plans to ensure that the elements detailed in the MTSF are planned for and that implementation will be assured.

• Bearing in mind that the NDP has a long range vision, some of the elements have as a prerequisite some enabling policies for which the DBE will be responsible eg policies that pertain to Grade R.