Postgraduate Certificate in Education in Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching

Purpose

The purpose will enable teachers to demonstrate the knowledge, skills and applied competencies identified by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) as crucial for beginner teachers in both private and government secondary schools. Graduates of this programme will be well-prepared with the insights and skills required for further specialised study in education. In support of the principles of life-long learning, the qualification caters to the integration of all types of learning associated with the acquisition, integration and application of knowledge for teaching purposes within the South African context.

The specific skill-sets and competencies incorporated into this qualification, as stipulated by the MRTEQ (DHET, 2015), present a highly attractive prospect for schools and should add significant value to the local education environment.

This qualification is designed to produce teachers who can demonstrate a strong focus on critical, adaptive and reflective thinking, and are able to act both professionally and ethically so that they can contribute meaningfully to secondary school level education. The programme design thus facilitates the development of a well-rounded beginner teacher, and graduates will be required to demonstrate both theoretical depth and the applied skills and competencies relevant to initial teacher practice.

As a one-year programme, students will commence their first semester with a mixture of theoretical and practical components related to education, including SP and FET Teaching and Learning, Professional Ethics, one SP Professional Didactic, and one FET Professional Didactic.

Basic competencies of a beginner teacher (DHET, 2015) that will be developed in this qualification include

• Have a sound subject knowledge.
• Know how to teach their subject(s) and how to select, determine the sequence and pace content in accordance with both subject and learner needs.
• Know who their learners are and how they learn; they must understand their individual needs and tailor their teaching accordingly.
• Know how to communicate effectively in general, as well as in relation to their subject(s), in order to mediate learning.
• Have highly developed literacy, numeracy and Information Technology (IT) skills.
• Be knowledgeable about the school curriculum and be able to unpack its specialised content, as well as being able to use available resources appropriately, so as to plan and design suitable learning programmes.
• Understand diversity in the South African context in order to teach in a manner that includes all learners. They must also be able to identify learning or social problems and work in partnership with professional service providers to address these.
• Be able to manage classrooms effectively across diverse contexts in order to ensure a conducive learning environment.
• Be able to assess learners in reliable and varied ways, as well as be able to use the results of assessment to improve teaching and learning.
• Have a positive work ethic, display appropriate values and conduct themselves in a manner that befits, enhances and develops the teaching profession.
• Be able to reflect critically, in theoretically informed ways and in conjunction with their professional community of colleagues on their own practice in order to constantly improve it and adapt it to evolving circumstances.

Once students are acquainted with good practice in teaching and learning in general, and in their didactic electives in particular, they will be ready to commence with the eight-week practical teaching experience Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) module, and will complete the theoretical Foundations of Education and Inclusive Education modules in their second semester of study. The Teaching Experience module, which will see students placed at selected secondary schools as arranged by the relevant campus, will allow students to hone their understanding of theory, and will provide significant opportunities for in situ practice and reflection on teaching and learning in the SP and FET bands, thus allowing for suitable preparation of graduates as beginner teachers.

Rationale

The Postgraduate Certificate in Education in Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching is a professional teaching qualification that seeks to 'cap' a suitable undergraduate Degree or an approved Diploma. The qualification offers entry-level initial professional preparation for undergraduate Degree or Diploma holders who wish to develop focused knowledge and skills as classroom teachers in the Senior Phase (SP) and Further Education and Training (FET) band in their chosen subject(s).

The programme is structured to ensure knowledge specialisation linked with SP and FET teaching, while simultaneously developing practical skills and work integrated learning experiences in order to prepare beginner teachers for teaching in diverse contexts.

The programme design has been informed by the Department of Higher Education and Training's (DHET) Revised Policy on the Minimum Requirements for Teacher Education Qualifications (MRTEQ; 2015), and is coupled with the national drive to improve teaching capacity, both in teacher numbers and in the quality of teaching, in classrooms around the country.

In this regard, it is important to note that, while significant efforts have been made by public universities to increase teacher numbers in the country, The Centre for Development and Enterprise's (CDE) Teacher Supply and Demand 2013-2025 study estimates that by 2025, an additional 30 000 teachers will be required to meet the demands of growing learner enrolment in South Africa. While current rates of teacher training are promising, there remain a number of critical gaps in this regard.

Specifically, the CDE's study (2015) indicates a slight mismatch in the DHET's current Initial Teacher Education (ITE) enrolment plan, and reflects that, due to the demographic structure of South African learners and citizens, the requirements for individual school phases are differently weighted for the projected period.

In particular, in order to meet the demands of phases relevant to secondary school by 2025, South Africa will require an additional ten percent more teachers in these phases than it will require for foundation learning phases (which is a current priority area with significant teacher shortages expected until 2020). The report (CDE, 2015) suggests that additional efforts are required and that providers of ITE programmes on the SP and FET bands should prepare suitably for the market's immediate and long-term requirements.

Alongside the supply and demand of teachers in the South African marketplace, the CDE (2015) also notes a significant shortage of teachers in the key areas of languages and mathematics in the SP and FET phases. The Postgraduate Certificate in Education in Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching will, therefore, contribute to addressing these critical shortages through its offering of, among others, relevant language and mathematics teaching specialisations.

The PGCE (Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching) seeks, therefore, to provide a fundamental and comprehensive education underpinned by subject knowledge in the teaching in specific SP and FET band subjects, and includes both educational theory and methodology in order to align with the requirements of a professionally qualified and effective beginner teacher.

This qualification will qualify graduates to work in schools teaching at the SP and FET levels.

Specific outcomes in the design of this programme were identified as critical in beginning a successful career in SP and FET teaching. As such, graduates will be suitably prepared to move into their teaching career and demonstrate the basic competences of a beginner teacher.

This qualification has been designed to address specific skills shortages identified in teaching. The curriculum will address scarce and critical skills in the SP and FET bands, thereby aligning with the DHET's MRTEQ (2015). As such, the programme is designed to respond effectively to teaching demands whilst maintaining the core nature of a PGCE, and to prepare graduates to enrol in specialised further study at Level 8.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

RPL processes are programme-specific in that the criteria against which evidence of prior learning must be provided are determined by the learning normally assumed to be in place for qualifications at the level concerned in the field concerned. The procedure is governed by the institution's Credit Accumulation and Transfer (CAT), RPL and Qualification Completion Policy.

In addition to RPL, a CAT mechanism exists for access and Advanced Standing (AS) for formal learning from a recognised, registered and accredited institution on a registered and accredited qualification.

If an applicant applies for admission via RPL, the learning assumed to be in place for the programme is assessed against exit level outcomes equivalent to the formal learning required for admission. This would include an evaluation of the content as well as the applicant's cognitive and technical competence. Applicants prepare a portfolio against these stated requirements which is then assessed by a team of experts/ academics in line with the policy.

Recognition is awarded for

• Learning, and not for experience per se.
• Learning that is on the level of the specific level descriptors of the qualification/unit standard.
• Learning that is in line with applied competence and has a balance between theory and practical.
• Application appropriate to the subject or unit standard.

Entry Requirements

For admission to the qualification, the learner must have either

• An approved Diploma or Bachelor's Degree as stipulated in the MRTEQ (DHET, 2015).
• Sufficient disciplinary learning in appropriate academic fields to enable the development of teaching specialisation in the SP and FET bands of schooling.
• Competence in both ICT and a second language is a required component of fundamental learning for this programme.

This qualification comprises compulsory modules at Level 7 totalling 124 Credits.

• SP and FET Teaching and Learning, 16 Credits.
• Professional Ethics, 12 Credits.
• Professional Didactics: Senior Phase Teaching, 24 Credits.
• Professional Didactics: Further Education and Training Teaching, 24 Credits.
• Foundations of Education, 12 Credits.
• Inclusive Education, 12 Credits.
• Teaching Experience (WIL), 24 Credits.

1. Demonstrate sound subject, curricular and pedagogical knowledge through the practice of teaching.
2. Identify and adapt teaching methods to the unique needs of learners in diverse settings.
3. Use and develop reliable methods of assessment to assess learning and improve teaching and learning.
4. Reflect critically on practice, skills and ethics to enhance professionalism in the teaching profession.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Compare the theories, methods, benefits and drawbacks of various teaching and learning strategies in different scenarios.
• Outline the principles that inform the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) for Grades R - 12.
• Defend a chosen educational philosophical perspective in relation to its possible benefits for the curricula, teaching, and learning in a given context.
• Identify the curriculum requirements and characteristics of quality learning as they relate to chosen teaching specialisations.
• Use the characteristics of quality learning and effective teaching to design an ICT-based CAPS-relevant lesson plan that considers the needs of all learners, regardless of their cultural and academic differences, for a specific grade in a chosen teaching area.
• Design engaging and effective CAPS-relevant lessons that meet the needs of diverse groups of learners.
• Develop engaging and effective resources for specific teaching and learning purposes.
• Conduct lessons using teaching skills, knowledge and competencies relevant to the phase and learning areas in accordance with appropriate pedagogy and curricula.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the history, principles and contemporary practice of inclusive education in South Africa.
• Make informed legal and ethical decisions for addressing inclusivity issues in given scenarios.
• Critically reflect on personal practice as it relates to inclusive education.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3

• Demonstrate knowledge of different assessment purposes, practices and tools for determining learning and guiding future planning in a given phase/band of learning.
• Defend a chosen assessment strategy for given scenarios, learners, outcomes and content.
• Use appropriate methods to assess, record and reflect on learners' progress and to inform future lesson planning.

Associate Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4

• Critically discuss the roles and responsibilities of educators in relation to specific stakeholders.
• Demonstrate reflective practice in the context of value-driven, ethical and effective education and assessment.
• Apply the South African Council for Educators' (SACE) Code of Professional Ethics to given scenarios and personal practice.
• Record observations of school management systems, inclusivity, assessments, and teaching practice as part of a teaching portfolio, as supported by reflections on best practice and recommendations for improvement.

Integrated Assessment

Formative assessment

Learning and assessment are integrated. Continual formative assessment is required so that students are given feedback on their progress in the achievement of learning outcomes. The scheme of work includes assignments, real-world briefs, tests and an integrated programme portfolio based on the learning material. Students receive feedback. The process is continuous and focuses on smaller sections of the work and limited numbers of outcomes.

Summative assessment

Summative assessment is concerned with the judgement of the learning in relation to the Exit Level Outcomes of the qualification. Such judgement must include integrated assessments which test the student's ability to integrate the larger body of knowledge, skills and attitudes that are represented by the Exit Level Outcomes as a whole. Examinations, projects, reports or equivalent assessments, such as a portfolio of evidence, assess a representative selection of the outcomes practised and assessed. Summative assessment also tests the student's ability to manage and integrate a large body of knowledge to achieve the stated outcomes of a module.

Integrated assessments will be designed to achieve

• An integration of the achievement of exit level outcomes in a way which demonstrates that the purpose of the qualification as a whole has been achieved.
• The evaluation of learner performance which can provide evidence of applied competence.
• Criterion-referenced assessment which is clearly explained to, and understood by, the students and which can be applied in the Recognition of Prior Learning.