By Mabinty M. Kamara
The Sierra Leone Teachers Union and its affiliate bodies have welcomed the revised curriculum for senior secondary schools across the country that was published on the 16 December 2021.
The proposed transformative curriculum according to Dr. Yatta Kanu, Chief Education Officer (CEO) Ministry of Basic & Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) is aimed at meeting modern learning needs and standards.
The curriculum according to Dr. Kanu offers choice and flexibility to learners in what subjects they can study. Instead of usual 3 SSS streams (Arts, Science, & Commercial) that have existed for over decades, learners can now choose to specialize in one of 5 new and well-defined SSS streams, based on interests, capabilities, and aspirations. These streams are: Sciences & Technologies, Mathematics & Numeracies, Languages & Literatures, Social & Cultural Studies, and Economics, Business, & Entrepreneurship. “Each stream offers 3 sets of subjects to choose from without being restricted to a specialist stream.
In the forward statement of the document, she added that there are simple rules to guide choices across streams and that all 76 subjects will be examinable at the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), “and we will provide guidance counseling to help learners’ make sensible choices”. The new curriculum structure also offers choice and flexibility to schools in what streams and subjects they can offer to students.
“Schools must offer subjects in at least 3 streams depending on their capabilities (staffing, infrastructure, facilities, supplies, etc.). Minimum requirements will be specified so that schools do not provide mediocre education by offering streams/subjects they are not capable of implementing”, Dr. Kanu noted.
She added that the new curriculum breaks the obsession with WASSCE as the sole purpose of education at senior secondary level, noting that the focus is on preparing learners for a rapidly changing job market and making them into enlightened citizens, as well as getting them to pass WASSCE.
She assured that learners have more opportunities to pass WASSCE given the increased number of subjects and the types of subjects that cater for a wide range of interests and aspirations. However, she noted that it discourages rote learning.
However, Dr. Kanu noted that the new curriculum will be based on a resource-intensive model that ensures regular and massive support to teachers and schools with a wide array of teaching and learning materials (TLMs). “This will entail a central clearing house or repository for producing and disseminating high quality instructional materials (HQIMs) and other forms of teaching & learning materials, including e-learning resources provided on tablets or through smart phones”.
She noted the usual resistance to change as a significant challenge. A new Basic Education Curriculum with a National Framework and subject syllabuses had also been introduced recently across schools that now have new subjects such as Information Communication and Technology, Social Education amongst others.
Mohamed Sallieu Bangura President for SLTU said that reviewing curriculum is very important as time and society are dynamic especially in this digital age where things keep changing. “Therefore, you have to review the curriculum to suit the education system to produce people who will go into the job market and do good job. So that is why the review of the constitution is very important. We really appreciate the review of the curriculum,” he said.
However, he said they are hopeful that the review process will be inclusive of all stakeholders especially the teachers of this country. “Because when we talk about curriculum, it is just a policy, a plan. It is the teachers that implement the plan so you have to make them part of the planning of the educational system. That way, they will own it and be in better place to implement it,” he said.
Bangura added that the government should also be prepared to financially support the educational system in order to make the proposal a reality.
He said one doesn’t have to wait or be prepared before change comes but that you have to accept it and learn to live with it.
He therefore called that the change be reflective in the classrooms and filters down to both the pupils and the teachers
Copyright © 2021 Politico Online (20/12/21)
