As we draw to the end of a very topsy-turvy 2020, children and parents alike have been given some potentially good news. The Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga has released a public policy for comments from stakeholders regarding the addition of 13 new subjects in the curriculum for grades 8 and 9.
It’s believed that the subjects have been added to up-skill students who will most likely not complete their Matric. This will equip them with skills to be competent in areas such as agriculture, healthcare, beauty, arts, and crafts. Motshekga and her team are proposing Early Childhood Development (ECD) in schools.
According to the policy statements “there are learners participating in the General Education and Training Band who have an interest and talent in applied knowledge and in technical and vocational skills subjects which are currently not available in the National Curriculum Statement, Grades R to 12 (2011).”
These subjects will open up a big world of possibilities, where kids can learn what their passions are, and how they can pursue them earlier on.
The 26 technical subjects include:
Ancillary Health Care
Topics covered will include personal, food, home, and environmental hygiene. Students will also learn about nutrition, life, and toddler care.
Students will learn the business of farming, gardening, plant, and animal production.
Art and Crafts
Students will be able to conceptualize and design pieces of art, cost, market, and sell them.
Beauty and Nail Technology
The business of beauty will be covered, teaching students the basics of beauty and nail technology, including safety, techniques, and sanitation amongst other topics.
Panel beating and spray painting are the biggest topics to be covered in this curriculum.
Bricklaying and Plastering
Students will be equipped with the basic knowledge of finishing off the interior of buildings and repairing different kinds of structures.
Consumer Studies: Food Production
Students will learn how to produce different kinds of foods, using culinary terms and abiding by food regulations, techniques, and understanding the needs and rights of a customer.
Information and Communications Technology
Students that take Information Technology would learn basic adulting skills such as creating a spreadsheet, presentations, creating web pages, and using graphics. These are necessary skills post-school and are currently not in the curriculum.
Early Childhood Development
Caring for babies, and assisting them to develop through art, play, language, and communication. Learners will be able to be familiar with the safety regulations governing ECD centres.
Students will be able to understand the basic principles of how electricity works, and applying them to install basic appliances in a domestic setting.
English FAL and English HL
Listening, speaking, reading, and writing will be covered as both a home and an additional language.
Hairdressing and Beauty Care
Students can pursue careers in the hair care industry, using their creativity and learnings to colour, cut, and style hair.
Learners should be able to prepare and present different meals, tend to customers, and use the correct techniques utilised in the hospitality industry.
Life Skills: Creative arts
Learners will learn to appreciate visual arts, music, drama, and dance. They will be taught the basics of visual literacy and performance art.
Life Skills: Physical Education
Learners will be taught about physical well-being and movement.
Life Skills: PSW
Personal and Social Well-being (PSW) will equip children is aimed at “guiding learners to achieve their full physical, intellectual, personal, emotional and social potential.”
Students will learn how to repair and maintain equipment at home and in small construction environments.
Learners will acquire a conceptual understanding of numbers and mathematical relationships.
Students will learn about working in a car workshop, understanding the health regulations, tools, and different mechanical equipment.
Learners will be able to acquire information and apply it to solve different kinds of problems in the sciences.
Learners will acquire the skills to do office work, learning how to efficiently use the computer and different software, and learning office etiquette.
Learners should be able to understand how water piping works, and be able to understand how different water systems work and are repaired.
Leaners will be able to understand and use sewing machines and use different sewing technical ques.
Sheet Metal Work
Students will learn how to create metal models using the necessary machinery.
This furniture upholstery module will upskill students in covering all kinds of furniture.
Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of welding practices and safety practices.
Wholesale and retail
Students will have a better understanding of how the wholesale industry works, who the stakeholders are, and the rules that regulate the industry.
Woodworking and timber
Students will be able to draw and design different wood and timber products.
* The public has an opportunity to comment on the subjects here.