PrimTEd

The Primary Teacher Education (PrimTEd) project is a four year project of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) that forms a part of a suite of projects in the Teaching and Learning Development Capacity Improvement Programme (TLDCIP) that covers areas of Primary teacher education, TVET and Community College lecturer education, Inclusive education and Early Childhood care and education. It is managed by the Chief-Directorate for Teaching and Learning Development in the DHET. The programme is supported by the European Union.

About Committees Working Groups SIRP Resources Standards Curriculum frameworks Contacts

PrimTEd

About

PrimTEd’s origins lie in the concern that the country’s teacher training institutions – the universities – were not teaching prospective primary school teachers how to teach reading and writing and mathematics adequately. Further, new teachers were not proficient in teaching English as a First Additional Language (EFAL) – given that from Grade 4 onwards English was the predominant medium of instruction in schools.

Within the broader context of the general consensus that primary education is in a crisis in South Africa it is clear that primary teacher education for literacy and numeracy require radical self-reflection and transformation.

Starting with a series of workshops in 2015, a set of collaborative working groups of primary teacher education academics working in the areas of literacy education and mathematics education were established, with full participation of all universities offering Bachelor of Education programmes for the preparation of primary school teachers (Foundation Phase and Intermediate Phase). The PrimTEd project was then formally established to run for a four year period for the financial years 2015/2016 to 2019/2020. It is now in a close out period.

The PrimTEd project is a component of the Department of Higher Education and Training’s (DHET) Teaching and Learning Development Capacity Improvement Programme (TLDCIP), and as such is under the overall authority of the DHET’s Director-General. It is managed by the Chief-Directorate for Teaching and Learning Development, located in the University Education branch of the DHET. The project is supported financially by the European Union.

Structure of PrimTEd

The engine of the project has been seven Working Groups. Four of these groups were discipline orientated: one for literacy and three for mathematics. Three other working groups were cross-cutting in nature: Knowledge management, Assessment, and Work Integrated Learning. Groups of academics from the participating universities worked collaboratively within these groups, each of which had a coordinator based at one of the universities.

A National Working Committee, with representatives from each working group, the DHET, and from the National Programme Coordination and Management Body, meets biannually to coordinate and synthesise the work of the working groups and make recommendations on Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes.

The National Coordination and Management Body is responsible for overall programme management and coordination and provides technical guidance to the working groups. It is also responsible for quarterly and annual reports. Currently this work is done by JET Education Services.

The National Advisory Body has representatives from the DHET, Department of Basic Education (DBE), Education Deans Forum (EDF), South African Council of Educators (SACE), South African Mathematics Foundation (SAMF) and the teacher unions. It assists in reviewing project proposals, reviews progress and will communicate the purpose, progress and achievements of the programme to their constituencies. It meets once a year.

An Annual National Dialogue was held on 17-18 October 2019 at which Teacher Knowledge and Practice Standards developed by the Literacy and Mathematical working groups were discussed prior to their promulgation in 2020.

The outputs of the project

In broad terms the four discipline-based working groups are expected to produce knowledge and practice competence standards for literacy and mathematics teachers and teacher training curriculum frameworks based upon these standards. In due course they will also develop courses, materials and assessment tools to support initial teacher education programmes for primary school teachers. All this will also require capacity development opportunities for teacher education academics.

The three cross-cutting working groups will support the work of the other working groups and collate and publicise the research and recommendations of the working groups.

Evaluations of PrimTEd

An external evaluation of the PrimTEd project was conceptualised as occurring in three phases: a formative phase that focused on the design elements of the project, a second phase focusing on the implementation strategies of the project, and thirdly a results or outcomes phase. Key evaluation questions related to the appropriateness, strengths and weaknesses of the design, whether it was being implemented as planned.

Four evaluation reports have been released

a first interim one, Evaluation of the Primary Teacher Education (PrimTEd) Project of 23 September 2019, and
a second one, Evaluation of the Primary Teacher Education (PrimTEd) Project - Implementation. Report No. 2, of 30 September 2020,
a third Evaluation of the Primary Teacher Education (PrimTEd) Project - Outcomes. Report No. 3., of November 2021, and
the Final Report of December 2021.

Committees

National Advisory Committee

The Committee serves to:

Assist in the review of project proposals and advise on approval and so assist to shape the PrimTEd.
Advise on the implementation of projects.
Review project progress reports and advise on slow progress where necessary.
Assist to address blockages that may impact on project implementation.
Communicate the purpose, progress and achievements of the programme to their constituencies.

The committee includes representatives from the following organisations:

Department of Basic Education (DBE)	Mr Gerrit Coetzee
Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET)	Dr Whitfield Green, Dr Michelle Mathey
Education Deans Forum (EDF)	Dr Muki Moeng
National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa (NAPTOSA)	Mrs Gaylin Bowles
National Teachers’ Union (NATU)	Professor S.N. Imenda
Professional Educators Union (PEU)	Mr J. Motona
South African Council for Educators (SACE)	Mr Theo Toolo
South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU)	Mrs Veronica Hofmeester
South African Mathematics Foundation (SAMF)	Professor Hamsa Venkatakrishnan
Suid-Afrikaanse Onderwysersunie (SAOU)	Adele Jacob

National Working Committee (NWC)

The National Working Committee (NWC) consists of representatives from DHET, which manages the overall project, the seven Working Groups (two members from each group) and representatives from the National Coordination and Management Body (which is currently JET Educational Services). It has the power to co-opt additional expertise when required.It has to meet at least once a year but usually meets more often.

The National Programme Coordination and Management Body, currently JET Education Services, acts as the secretariat for the NWC.

Meeting of the National Working Committee on 11 April 2017

Working Groups

Assessment (CCWG 2)

Update on progress in 2019

Testing

Testing has been conducted with the following instruments at the following universities:

English (CALS)

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

North West University

Tshwane University of Technology

University of Johannesburg

Mathematics

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

North West University

Tshwane University of Technology

University of the Free State

University of Johannesburg

University of the Western Cape

University of the Witwatersrand

University of Zululand

More mathematics tests will be conducted at three other universities.

A national data set will be compiled in early 2020.

Assessment item data bank

The Assessment Working group has secured a further DHET grant to work for two-years on a proper item bank for Mathematics and English.

The working group is also developing a proposal for the further online testing and reporting functionality and for extending and trialing mathematics learning materials.

Consolidated Literacy Working Group (CLWG)

Plans

Consolidated Literacy Working Group Plans

A brief summary of the objectives and specific sub-projects of the working group over the life of the PrimTEd project

Objectives

The objectives of the Literacy Working Group for the four years of the PrimTEd project are:

To describe primary school teachers' required content knowledge and pedagogic content knowledge and applied knowledge towards developing children's literacy levels in South African Languages.
To identify strategies for teaching reading in African languages. This will include identifying strategies that will inform how to teach learners to decode text, to read fast and fluently and accurately and with proper intonation (at a rate appropriate to their grade), with meaning and for pleasure.
Describe suitable methods of teaching reading for enjoyment and as a learning tool for the learners in their Home language and their First Additional language.
Describe suitable methods of teaching for teaching writing in learners’ Home language and their First Additional language
To describe what university lecturers need to know about literacy and its instruction in South Africa's languages in order to help educate teachers to assist learners in achieving the required literacy standards in all our languages.
Generally, through the activities of the Working Group within the PrimTEd project as a whole build a cohesive community of practice in the Higher Education Institutions involved around the training of language and literacy teachers.

Sub-projects

To achieve these objectives some 23 specific sub-projects have been set up:

#	Specific project	Purpose	Output
	*Literature reviews and research*
1	Annotated bibliography of early reading development in African languages	Annotated bibliography to provide research information base for overall project (to be followed up in Phase 2 by a full literature review to provide research information base for overall project and identify gaps requiring research) and potential readings for students	Annotated bibliography
2	Full literature review of early reading development in African languages	Full literature review to provide information base for overall project and identify gaps requiring research and potential readings for students	Literature review
3	Annotated overview bibliography of language and literacy teaching in Foundation stage in home language and EFAL	Annotated bibliography to provide research information base for overall project	Annotated bibliography
4	Develop a model for working collaboratively on a literature review that can be rolled out for other literature reviews in later phases of the project	Useful for many of the research outputs and to standardise format of references and bibliographies	Brief Guide
5	Brief on accessing National Benchmark Tests (NBTs) and Test of Academic Literacy Levels (TALL) data for future use in relation to educator competencies	Important for identifying a realistic starting point for students	Brief
6	Access National Benchmark Tests (NBTs) and Test of Academic Literacy Levels (TALL) data for use in relation to educator competencies	Important for identifying a realistic starting point for students	Analysed data
7	Identify gaps in existing knowledge about early literacy in African languages and communicate to universities for postgraduate research	Important in directing research process in later phases of the project	Report
8	Literature review on decoding in languages with similar morphology and orthography to LAs (general and nine specific South African languages)	Crucial research for developing curriculum framework, courses and materials	Literature review
9	Develop decoding strategies	Develop, trial, evaluate, and write report on one or two decoding strategies	Reports Conference presentations
10	Literacy teaching core competency standards summary document	Literature review summary	Literature review summary

11	Literacy teaching core competency standards literature review	Groundwork for developing standards	Literature review
	Core teaching standards development
12	Teacher language and literacy teaching competencies analysis	Analysis of language and literacy teaching competencies required by new teachers and review and use analysis of HEI ITE courses as basis for comparison with competency demands for literacy (Foundations and Intermediate)	Report with list of competencies
13	Develop set of core competency standards	Develop a first draft of core standards that can be used to guide the development and delivery of components of ITE programmes which address the focus areas. There is to be a wide consultation of these and then a second revised draft will be completed.	List of core standards (Ist Draft) Consultation report List of core standards (2nd Draft)
14	Develop competency assessment items	Identify items from tests and questionnaires developed to establish student language and literacy proficiency that could be used to develop assessment items for assessing achievement of core competency standards	Test items
15	Work with CCWG2: Assessment to create assessment items and rubrics	Work with the CCWG 2: Assessment on developing items and rubrics for assessing the achievement of core language and literacy teaching competencies. Consider where language items can be combined with literacy items.	Reports of collaboration Test items and rubrics Tests
16	Assessment items trial	Trial some of the assessment items at the end of the year where courses have integrated these foci and they are explicitly covered in courses where newly designed materials are implemented. Make preliminary evaluation of assessment items and rubrics (based on implementation of courses/materials at individual universities)	Reports on trials
	HEI Qualifications, courses and materials audits
17	HEI audit of language, literacy and reading qualifications, courses, modules, and materials, etc. This project will collect information to enable analysis of HEI teacher training qualifications to ascertain how proposed courses/modules/course outlines/plans for curriculum redesign/materials, WIL requirements, prescribed readings/ textbooks, etc. are currently articulated, taking into account MRTEQ.	To examine what is taught in HEI on language, literacy/ reading/ writing to gauge intensity, duration and quality of initial teacher education in these areas with view to research and materials development in response and indicators suggesting advocacy for policy or MRTEQ regulation changes. The audit will collect information to enable analysis of HEI teacher training qualifications to ascertain how proposed courses /modules/course outlines /plans for curriculum redesign/materials, WIL requirements, prescribed readings/ textbooks, etc. are currently articulated, taking into account the MRTEQ and new PQM documents. Analyze the material and develop a comparative report on how the topics are addressed, showing similarities and differences across the system, with a specific focus on distilling information that can usefully inform the development of core curriculum standards for the focus area	Collection of documents and materials Interview reports Report of data analysis Research publication
18	Re-audit of HEI language, literacy and reading qualifications, courses, modules, and materials, etc.	Re-audit HEI ITE programmes to investigate the extent to which the core standards have been taken up in the programmes for primary school teachers. Collect programme statements, curriculum outlines and relevant course materials that describe how the working group’s focus topics are addressed in the programmes. This specific project is dependent on some progress having been made in re-curriculating, et	Collection of documents and materials Interview reports Reports Research publication
	Curriculum, course and materials frameworks
19	Development of curriculum frameworks for literacy	Analyze the material gathered by the HEI audit and from the literature surveys and develop a draft a core curriculum and then refine it.	Literacy curriculum (Draft 1) (Draft 2)
20	Development of courses and materials exemplars	Develop/design/redesign exemplars of learning materials that can be used in teacher education programmes to support achievement of the core competency standards in teaching language and literacy in English and other languages as embodied in the draft curriculum. In particular to design materials where there are clear gaps. Use the HEI audit report of courses, and materials, and the Core Competency Standards draft document to identify content that may be transferable across universities and which is specific. This development work will be dependent on what can be planned without analysis of test data. Because of the timelines of this project it is likely that some materials be designed and in subsequent years of the project re-evaluated and assessed. [Some universities have redesigned their BEd. curriculum and will not have designed materials for all courses in the four year BEd. This provides a good opportunity to design courses across the degree that are closely aligned with the core competency standards.	Draft materials
21	Collaboration with CCWG3 in development of Work Integrated Learning materials and tools	Develop Work integrated Learning materials and tools which pertain to how to support, mentor and assess student development during work-integrated learning/teaching practice components of primary teacher education programmes	Draft materials
22	Evaluation of new exemplar materials	Work with CCWG1, CCWG2 and CCWG3 to design instruments to collect data from students and staff on the effectiveness and experience of working with new materials.	Draft materials
	Resource repository
23	Collect, database and review existing materials and videos on teaching initial literacy in various languages to inform future materials research and development

The Consolidated Literacy Working Group

The set up and work of the Consolidated Literacy Working Group

The Consolidated Literacy Working Group (CLWG) was the result of a merger in late 2016 between two literacy working groups (both with a special focus on reading), one working on the teaching of literacy in African languages and the other working on the teaching of literacy in English First Additional language (FAL), together with some components that had originally been part of what became the Knowledge Management Working Group.

This merger has worked extremely well. Professor Kerryn Dixon was appointed as the Coordinator and the was succeeded in 2019 by Professor Elizabeth Pretorius. Ms Aneesha Mayet was appointed Workgroup Manager in mid-2108.

Activities of the groupHigher Education Institution audit

The group began its work with an attempt during 2016 and 2017 to collect information from the universities to enable analysis of the current and planned language and literacy components of their teacher training programmes. Unfortunately, this audit was badly hampered by the “Fees Must Fall” disruptions, but work has continued in 2018.

The Annotated bibliographies

An annotated bibliography Reading in the African Languages: An annotated bibliography 2004-2017 on research into early reading development (including decoding in languages with similar morphology and orthography) was completed by Professor Elizabeth Pretorius, placed on this website and launched at a workshop on 9 April 2018.

Follow up research will be done on the developing decoding strategies for African languages and a full literature review.

A similar annotated bibliography on Reading in English as an Additional Language is near completion.

Developing Literacy teaching core competency standards

The brief for the Literacy teaching core competency standards sub-project was to do an Annotated list of readings on literacy teacher competencies and standards. This was completed in early 2018 and placed on the website. This literature was then used for an analysis of language and literacy teaching Consolidated Literacy Working Group (CLWG) competencies required by new teachers which would be compared with the presumed competencies developed in the actual courses/modules currently or about to be run by HEIs. From this analysis the CLWG engaged in an intensive process to develop its own draft of core competency standards that can be used to guide the development and delivery of components of teacher education programmes. A consultation was held on 4 May 2018 to examine these draft standards, and, after various revisions were made, there will be a further wider consultation process.

Curriculum Framework

A draft Curriculum Framework was discussed at a workshop in January 2019.

Assessment of literacy teacher graduates

A sub-project to develop competency assessment items will then develop assessment of competency items for use by the Assessment Working group. Work will be done with this latter group to develop items and rubrics for assessing the achievement of core language and literacy teaching competencies. The CLWG will also consider where language items can be combined with literacy items.

A number of journal articles by Consolidated Literacy Working Group members have been placed on the website.

Knowledge Management (CCWG 1)

Knowledge management, including materials development, monitoring and evaluation liaison, communication, marketing and network coherence. This working group finished its work in mid-2020.

Plans

Cross-Cutting Work Group 1 (CCWG1): Knowledge management

Knowledge management, including materials development, Monitoring and Evaluation liaison, communication, marketing and network coherence

The Cross-Cutting Working Group 1 (CCWG1) is essentially a small technical support working group that will service all the other for four disciplinary working groups (one language and literacy, three mathematics) and the two other Cross-Cutting Working Groups (one Assessment and one Work Integrated Learning) by ensuring that the outputs of the other groups, in print or other formats, will be realised in the most accessible and attractive form, whether in print or electronic media, in databases, on web sites, and that the messages and communications between the groups and the disseminating, marketing and evaluating of their work will happen speedily and effectively.

The main aim of the CCWG1 is to support the other Working Groups in the general PrimTEd aim of producing high quality research-informed knowledge and practice standards and various course/module outlines, assessment tools, pedagogical models, and teaching materials.

The CCWG1 will assist the disciplinary Working Groups in producing well-designed comprehensive courses and materials that support the delivery of the language/literacy and mathematics components of initial teacher education programmes for primary school teachers, including the work-integrated learning component of the programmes. In addition the group will serve as a general communications and product repository hub (through a dedicated website (housed by the JET Education Services) for intra and inter working group communication and to make all project products (research, curricula and materials) accessible to all and a regular newsletter) and will generally assist in the monitoring and evaluation liaison, communication, and marketing of the PrimTEd Project.

Summary of the proposed outputs for the workgroup

Output 1: Courses and materials in multiple media

These curricula would be supported by a variety of open source, multi-modal course materials to support delivery of such a curriculum, plus support for academic staff to make use of these resources in course planning and delivery.

These materials would incorporate the outputs of other working groups in the literacy and mathematics groups of the PrimTEd project and will require very close collaboration with the assessment and work integrated learning working groups.

The course materials developed by the disciplinary working groups would be aligned to this curriculum framework starting with Foundation Phase and then moving to Intermediate Phase in all South African official languages.

The languages chosen will be on a phased scalable basis, starting with three simultaneously versioned in /English, Zulu and Pedi / and followed by /Afrikaans, Xhosa, and Tswana / Sotho, Tsonga, and Venda / Swati and Ndebele.

Each of the sets of courses or materials produced will in a sense be a specific project in itself requiring planning, resourcing and budgeting for.

Output 2: Website for all PrimTEd products accessible to all

The website will be managed to communicate the outputs of the entire PrimTEd Project. The website will serve as a repository for the PrimTEd project outputs, and also provide an online community space project for the members of working groups and ultimately for university-based educators of primary teachers.

The website, accessible by both computers and mobile phones, will be designed to provide access to student teachers and educators to the following:

Curriculum and course designs for literacy and mathematics in Foundation and Intermediate phase initial and in-service teaching education (and would also include all the materials developed by the European Union funded Strengthening Foundation Phase Teaching Project).
Full course materials
Annotated bibliographies of research documents (including the actual documents where possible
Placement and assessment instruments

Where possible downloadable resources will in due course be available in pdf, ePub and mobi formats as well, as, where appropriate and available, the original wordprocessor format (doc, docx, rtf, wpd, odt). Electronic originals of typeset materials will be available in original formats (indd, cdr) on request.

Output 3: Research from PrimTEd workgroups communicated and applied for use

These research communications will comprise accessible reports on the findings of research from the other working groups. This will require regular liaison with these working groups.

Initial work is being undertaken on copyright issues and on standards for text and visual material that will be put on the website.

Output 4: Reports and Communications

This will include a regular electronic PrimTEd newsletter and assistance to other Working Groups on their Annual Reports.

Mathematical thinking (WG 4)

Mathematics - geometry (WG 3)

Mathematics - number (WG 2)

Work-Integrated Learning (CCWG 3)

SIRP

Sesotho and IsiZulu Reading Project (SIRP)

The Sesotho and IsiZulu Reading Project (SIRP) was conceived by the Literacy Working Group of PrimTEd. It is funded by the Nedbank Foundation. A description of the objectives, institutional location, current work plan, and components of the SIRP project

The objectives of SIRP

SIRP's objectives are elaborations of the more general objectives of PrimTEd's Literacy Working Group, namely:

To describe primary school teachers' required content knowledge and pedagogic content knowledge and applied knowledge towards developing children's literacy levels in South African Languages.
To identify strategies for teaching reading in African languages. This will include identifying strategies that will inform how to teach learners to decode text, to read fast and fluently and accurately and with proper intonation (at a rate appropriate to their grade), with meaning and for pleasure.
Describe suitable methods of teaching reading for enjoyment and as a learning tool for the learners in their Home language and their First Additional language.
Describe suitable methods of teaching for teaching writing in learners’ Home language and their First Additional language
To describe what university lecturers need to know about literacy and its instruction in South Africa's languages in order to help educate teachers to assist learners in achieving the required literacy standards in all our languages.
Generally, through the activities of the Working Group within the PrimTEd project as a whole build a cohesive community of practice in the Higher Education Institutions involved around the training of language and literacy teachers.

Institutional location

SIRP is housed by the Centre for African Language Teaching (CALT@UJ) at the University of Johannesburg which was set as one of the Department of Higher Education and Training funded initiatives to support African language teaching in South Africa. The JET Education Services provides project management support to SIRP.

The SIRP work plan

The work plan includes nine major tasks:

To prepare for empirical research to determine the present state of the teaching of reading at the twelve Higher Education Institutions training Sesotho and isiZulu teachers;
Identify and liaise with other stakeholders in the field of early language literacy;
Conduct empirical research to determine the present state of reading training at the twelve HEIs that train Sesotho and isiZulu teachers and draft a report;
Develop, standardize and conventionalize terminology needed for the teaching of reading at Foundation and Intermediate Phase levels;
Arrange a conference to introduce the project to stakeholder institutions and reach consensus on the six core study units (modules) to be developed to facilitate reading development;
Review and align the SIRP work with the curriculum frameworks and knowledge and practice standards developed by PrimTEd Literacy Working Group;
Develop the content of the agreed six study units essential for developing reading for both Sesotho and isiZulu;
Train HEI lecturers to offer the study units developed;
Offer institutional support for the curriculum review, obtaining approval and implementation of the newly developed study units on reading.

The work plan has three main components:

The first is to establish the state of teaching reading at those HEIs that train Sesotho and isiZulu Foundation Phase teachers in their Bachelor of Education programmes.

The second is to identify and develop key study units and learning materials focusing on teaching reading in Sesotho and isiZulu to be implemented in the BEd programmes of the participating HEIs.

The third component is the development and standardizing of Sesotho and isiZulu terminology needed for teaching at Foundation Phase and Intermediate Phase levels of schooling.

The SIRP project will collaborate closely with the DHET and DBE, the HEIs that offer education to Sesotho and isiZulu student teachers and all other institutions and initiatives in the field of basic language literacy development.

The SIRP HEI Research Report

SIRP undertook a survey of the teaching of Sesotho and IsiZulu at a number of Higher Education Institutions.

Resources

Standards

Teacher knowledge and practice standards are statements that describe what a teacher needs to know and be able to do to carry out their core function professionally and effectively. The statements may be general or specific to a subject area and school phase or to a specific extended teacher role. Currently there are no such knowledge and practice standards for teachers in the Foundation Phase or any other Phase in South African schools. The Joint Standards Working Group is addressing this lack.

Curriculum frameworks

These are draft and finalised curriculum frameworks for initial teacher education. A curriculum framework is an organized plan or set of standards or learning outcomes that defines the content to be learned in terms of clear, definable standards of what the student should know and be able to do.

Contacts

Michelle Mathey

Michelle Mathey is the Director in the Department of Higher Education and Training for the Teaching and Learning Development Capacity Improvement Programme (TLDCIP) of which PrimTEd is one project. All DHET related PrimTEd communications should be routed through her.

mathey.m@dhet.gov.za

Dr Nick Taylor

Dr Nick Taylor is a Senior research Fellow at JET Education Services and previously its Director from 1994 to 2000. He has general management oversight of the PrimTEd project.

ntaylor@jet.org.za

Pinky Magau

Pinky Magau is a Senior Programme Administrator at JET Education Services and assists in the management of the PrimTEd project.

pmagau@jet.org.za

Post-school education and training, incl. TVET Teacher education

PrimTEd

PrimTEd

About

Committees

Working Groups

SIRP

Sesotho and IsiZulu Reading Project (SIRP)

The objectives of SIRP

Institutional location

The SIRP work plan

The SIRP HEI Research Report

Resources

Search results

Standards

Curriculum frameworks

Contacts

Michelle Mathey

Dr Nick Taylor

Pinky Magau