SAQA

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SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY

REGISTERED QUALIFICATION:

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

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
118640	Postgraduate Certificate in Education in Senior Phase and Further Education and Training Teaching
ORIGINATOR
Lyceum College (Pty) Ltd
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY			NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
-			HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework
QUALIFICATION TYPE	FIELD		SUBFIELD
Advanced Diploma	Field 05 - Education, Training and Development		Schooling
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	120	Not Applicable	NQF Level 07	Regular-Provider-ELOAC
REGISTRATION STATUS		SAQA DECISION NUMBER	REGISTRATION START DATE	REGISTRATION END DATE
Reregistered		EXCO 0333/25	2025-07-10	2028-07-10
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2029-07-10		2032-07-10

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification.

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION

Purpose:
The qualification offers entry-level initial professional preparation for undergraduate and/or postgraduate learners who wish to develop focused knowledge and skills as classroom teachers in the Senior Phase (SP) and Further Education and Training (FET) Phase. The qualification requires a specific depth and specialisation of knowledge, together with practical skills and work experience to enable successful learners to apply their learning as beginner teachers in schools in varying contexts.

The qualification provides learners with a holistic, child-centred approach to education, by facilitating their engagement with educational theory, an understanding of relevant and current policy and legislation, subject content knowledge, alongside cooperative and collaborative learning methodologies, which are relevant to the South African context and to their journey of lifelong learning. By providing the learner with a collaborative, cooperative and co-constructed learning environment that embraces technology, the learner is equipped to emulate this as a teacher in his/her own classroom.

On completion of the qualification qualifying learners will:

Be equipped with the required general and specialised pedagogical content knowledge that will enable them to teach their specialisation subjects in the Senior and Further Education and Training Teaching school phases.

Demonstrate competence and responsibility as academically and professionally qualified senior and further education and training teachers in their subjects of specialisation underpinned by universal values.

Guide learners based on focused knowledge and skills, in a contextualised and inclusive way, to attain the relevant knowledge and skills applicable to the senior and further education and training phase of teaching and learning.

Apply specialised subject content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge with the relevant practical teaching and learning skills in Senior and FET classrooms within diverse contexts.

Rationale:
The current challenges in education in South Africa are well documented, as is the poor performance of learners in critical learning areas. The Skills Development Strategy, the Human Resources Development Strategy and the National Development Plan highlighted a strong need to equip not only learners who are entering teaching with marketable skills but also those who have already entered the profession with the skills and practical experience to participate in a meaningful way in teaching and learning and advance their career growth in the long term.

The qualification is an initial teacher education (ITE) qualification for candidates to be registered as fully qualified professional educators in Grade 7-12 schooling. It caters for learners who have completed an appropriate degree or diploma, which must include sufficient disciplinary learning in appropriate fields to enable the development of teaching specialisation subjects applicable to Grades 7-12

The Government's 2011 Integrated Strategic Planning Framework for Teacher Education and Development, Revised policy on the Minimum Requirements for Teacher Education Qualifications, and the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) reported on teacher supply and demand. The qualification aims to address the increasing need for properly qualified SP and FET Phase teachers, as is evident in the past and expected annual increases in applications and admissions.

Furthermore, the qualification aims to produce good teachers who:

Are values-driven and child-centred.

Adopt a cooperative and collaborative approach to their own learning, the learning of others, to children's caregivers and colleagues.

Have sufficient subject knowledge.

Understand diversity in the South African context.

Can engage in differentiated teaching, learning and assessment.

Can reflect critically on educational theory and practice.

Have highly developed literacy, numeracy, and information technology skills.

Conduct themselves in a manner that enhances and develops the South African teaching profession.

The primary employer of teachers, the Department of Basic Education, emphasise in their publication, Action Plan to 2014: Towards the Realisation of Schooling 2025 (Department of Basic Education, 2011), the need for new teachers to be nurtured at university level, to enable well qualified young teachers to enter teaching in the school sector. The qualification, therefore, will play an important role in realising this need of the Department of Basic Education.

It is thus of paramount importance to ensure that future teachers are enabled with the requisite skills, knowledge, values, and attitudes to attend fully to the needs of learners, and the overall goals of education, including to help build a better, socially just society in which its citizens can live a decent life. South Africa needs teachers who are responsible, accountable, and highly motivated to teach their subjects, teachers who are empowered to not only apply theory to and in practice but to critically reflect on the suitability and appropriateness of specific approaches, strategies and techniques within diverse learning contexts-teachers who can educate the 21st Century learner. The qualification includes salient subject choices related to identified needs, and above all, sets a high standard of quality. Most especially, the qualification aims for excellence in teaching.

The learning pathway of the qualification allows for learners to articulate into an appropriate Honours Degree and to be registered as fully qualified professional educators in Grade 7-12 schooling.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
The institution has an approved Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) policy which is applicable with regards to equivalent qualifications for admission into the qualification. RPL will be applied to accommodate applicants who qualify. RPL thus provides alternative access and admission to qualifications, as well as advancement within qualifications. RPL may be applied for access, credits from modules and credits for or towards the qualification.

RPL for access:

Learners who do not meet the minimum entrance requirements or the required qualification that is at the same NQF level as the qualification required for admission may be considered for admission through RPL.

To be considered for admission in the qualification based on RPL, applicants should provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that they have acquired the relevant knowledge, skills, and competencies through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to cope with the qualification expectations should they be allowed entrance into the qualification.

RPL for exemption of modules

Learners may apply for RPL to be exempted for modules that form part of the qualification. For a learner to be exempted from a module, the learner needs to provide sufficient evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that competency was achieved for the learning outcomes that are equivalent to the learning outcomes of the module.

RPL for credit:

Learners may also apply for RPL for credit for or towards the qualification, in which they must provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates prior learning through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to obtain credits towards the qualification.

Credit shall be appropriate to the context in which it is awarded and accepted.
Entry Requirements:
The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is:

An appropriate 360 Credits Diploma, NQF Level 6.
or

An appropriate Bachelor's Degree, NQF Level 7 with two appropriate teaching subjects for Grade 7 -12 teaching in the selected area of specialisation.

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

QUALIFICATION RULES

This qualification consists of the following compulsory and elective modules at National Qualifications Framework Level 7 totalling 124 Credits.

Compulsory Modules, Level 7, 84 Credits:

Decoloniality, 14 Credits.

Diversity and inclusion, 12 Credits.

Education Studies, 20 Credits.

Managing Teaching, 6 Credits.

Teaching Practice 1, 12 Credits.

Teaching Practice 2, 20 Credits.

Elective Modules, Level 7, 40 Credits: (Select two - one Senior Phase (SP) teaching specialisation and one FET Phase teaching specialisation).

Senior Phase Elective Group, 20 Credits (Select one teaching subject specialisation):

Teaching Afrikaans First Additional Language in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching Afrikaans Home Language in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching Economic and Management Sciences in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching English First Additional Language in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching English Home Language in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching isiZulu First Additional Language in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching isiZulu Home Language in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching Life Orientation in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching Mathematics in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching Natural Sciences in SP, 20 Credits.

Teaching Social Sciences in SP, 20 Credits.

FET Phase Elective Group, 20 Credits (Select one teaching subject specialisation):

Teaching Accounting in the FET Phase. 20 Credits.

Teaching Afrikaans First Additional Language in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Afrikaans Home Language in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Business Studies in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Economics in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching English First Additional Language in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching English Home Language in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Geography in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching History in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching isiZulu First Additional Language in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching isiZulu Home Language in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Life Orientation in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Life Sciences in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Mathematical Literacy in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Mathematics in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Computer Applications in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Technology in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Information Systems in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

Teaching Tourism in the FET Phase, 20 Credits.

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

1. Demonstrate competence in reading, writing, and speaking the Language of Learning and Teaching (LoLT) to facilitate own academic learning, and learning in Senior Phase and FET Phase classrooms.
2. Interpret and use numerical and elementary statistical knowledge to facilitate own learning, and to manage Senior Phase and FET Phase teaching, learning and assessment.
3. Demonstrate competence about the knowledge base underpinning Senior Phase and FET Phase learning areas that they will be teaching.
4. Plan, design and reflect on learning programmes that are appropriate for Senior Phase and FET Phase learners and learning contexts in area/s of specialisation.
5. Select, use, and adjust teaching and learning strategies to meet Senior Phase and FET Phase learner and context needs.
6. Manage and administer supportive learning environments in a sensitive, stimulating, democratic and organised way.
7. Monitor and assess learner progress and achievement in the Senior Phase and FET Phase area(s) of specialisation.
8. Function responsibly within the education system, the institution, and the community in which the institution is located.
9. Demonstrate respect for, and commitment to, the profession of education and display appropriate professional values, attitudes, and behaviours.

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1:

Interpret academic and professional texts critically, integrate and use the knowledge in own studies and teaching.

Read and interpret with understanding written and graphic materials relating to the Senior/FET Phase requirements.

Select and apply study methods appropriate to own needs as well as the demands of Senior / FET teaching in the South African context.

Use information and communications technology to further own learning and facilitate the learning of others.

Convey learning content in written, graphic, and other forms which are appropriate to the developmental level/s and language ability of the Senior Phase and FET Phase learners in their care.

Foster interactive communication with learners through non-judgmental language, supportive replies, constructive feedback, acknowledgement of feelings and demonstration of mediation skills.

Use the Language of Learning and Teaching (LoLT) to explain, describe, discuss, and relate key concepts in keeping with the stipulated school curriculum.

Use an additional language to explain, describe and discuss key concepts in a conversational style.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2:

Interpret numerical information in the learning area, subject or discipline.

Evaluate and apply numerical and statistical information to educational issues, cross-curricular activities, and own learning.

Analyse and apply numeracy and elementary statistics to manage classroom resources and monitor learner attendance.

Examine and apply numeracy and elementary statistics to record, interpret and report on the academic progress and achievement of learners.

Interpret and apply numerical data relating to psychological assessments of learners.

Use elementary procedures for financial management, including budgeting.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3:

Explore and apply the fields of knowledge that underpin the selected subject/learning area/s.

Show commitment to the epistemic values and principles which characterise the fields of knowledge.

Analyse and apply evidence, modes of argument or criteria of adequacy appropriate to the fields of knowledge in the selected Senior Phase and FET subject.

Use the characteristic language, terminology and concepts for Senior Phase and FET subject/s or learning area/s appropriately, and with confidence.

Critically discuss the content of the selected Senior Phase and FET subject in terms of curricular knowledge and apply appropriate values and conceptual frameworks to problem-solving within these fields of knowledge.

Interpret selected phase and subject/learning area curricular knowledge in practice, in learning areas, in terms of a broader understanding of the relevant fields of knowledge.

Evaluate and select learning material (including textbooks), that is level appropriate, explain the sequencing, and indicate how it should be assessed, for the various learning areas for Senior Phase and FET learning area(s).

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4:

Select and/or design materials and resources appropriate to selected learning areas that take cognizance of a collaborative and cooperative teaching approach, conceptual adequacy, and content accuracy.

Select, adapt, or design coherent learning programmes and lessons appropriate for the learners, South African context and learning area, whilst taking account of the national, regional, and school curriculum policies, learner contexts, and learner differences.

Plan lessons and other learning experiences within teaching programmes, selecting appropriate teaching and learning strategies.

Justify selection and design of learning programmes in ways that show knowledge and understanding of a range of theories about teaching, learning, child development and curriculum.

Evaluate and improve learning programmes, lessons and materials based on experience, classroom research, and an understanding of the knowledge base underpinning the relevant learning areas or subjects being taught.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5:

Select and use teaching and learning strategies appropriate to the grade, subject and topic and based on careful assessment, appropriate to the learners in class.

Create expectations that make appropriate demands on the learners.

Select and use teaching and learning strategies, which motivate learners to meet those demands and to take initiative.

Accommodate differences in learning style, pace and ability in the planning and use of teaching and learning strategies.

Identify and assist learners with special needs and barriers to learning and development.

Facilitate occasions where learners are taught in groups, pairs and as individuals.

Make judgements about the effect that language has on learning and, in that light, make the necessary adjustments to the teaching and learning strategies.

Adjust teaching and learning strategies to cater for cultural, gender, ethnic, language and other differences among learners in a range of contexts, both familiar and unfamiliar.

Use teaching and learning support materials to facilitate learner progress and development.

Evaluate the efficacy of specific teaching and learning strategies in achieving learning objectives.

Use classroom research to explain the success or otherwise of teaching and learning strategies regarding key educational concepts, the needs, and abilities of the learners, and demands of the learning area.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6:

Select, adapt and/or design assessment tasks and strategies appropriate to areas of specialisation and a range of learning contexts.

Explain the link between the method of assessment, the overall assessment purpose and the outcomes being assessed.

Design and administer assessment tasks using plain language and instructions.

Collect, from a variety of sources, sufficient confirming evidence of learner competence.

Use a range of assessment strategies to accommodate differences in learning style, pace, and context.

Evaluate own and others' assessment strategies in terms of their validity, fairness, reliability and sensitivity to gender, culture, language, and barriers to learning and development.

Systematically assess and record individual learner progress.

Use assessment results to provide supportive and developmental feedback on learner progress and achievement.

Interpret and use assessment results to inform future teaching, learning and assessment strategies.

Justify choice and design of assessment strategies, methods and procedures that show understanding of the assumptions that underlie a range of assessment approaches, and their strengths and weaknesses in relation to age and learning area being assessed.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 7:

Create and maintain safe learning environments, which are conducive to learning.

Manage learning environments democratically and in ways that foster creative and critical thinking.

Discipline learners in ways that are firm, growth-promoting and fair.

Create learning environments that are sensitive to cultural, linguistic and gender and other differences.

Resolve classroom conflict situations in an ethical and sensitive manner.

Perform administrative duties required for the effective management of learning environments.

Assist learners to manage themselves, their time, physical space, and resources.

Take appropriate action to assist or refer learners in the solution of personal or social problems.

Evaluate and, where necessary, adjust own actions in ways that show knowledge and understanding of management and administration.

Justify actions in ways that reflect knowledge and understanding of a variety of ways of managing individual learners and classes.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 8:

Show and maintain a sense of respect towards others in the learning environment.

Cooperate professionally with colleagues in an institutional setting.

Create and maintain conducive learning environments.

Initiate and maintain effective, professional communication with parents, guardians and other members of the community and involve them in school affairs.

Engage critically with a wide variety of stakeholders regarding issues that are specifically relevant to teaching and learning practices.

Use internal and external networking opportunities effectively.

Engage critically with education policies, procedures and systems which impact institutions and classrooms, as well as on the national education and training landscape

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 9:

Practise and promote a sense of respect and responsibility towards others by cultivating a critical, committed, and ethical attitude.

Behave in ways that enhance the status of professional educators and ensure an accountable culture of teaching and learning.

Promote the values and principles of the Constitution, particularly those related to human rights and the environment.

Practise and promote democratic values, attitudes, and dispositions in the school, as well as in society at large.

Encourage, create, and maintain a supportive and empowering environment for learners.

Evaluate own professional progress effectively.

Show a commitment to act in and actively promote the best interests of learners, parents, communities, colleagues, and the profession.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY

The Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) is an internationally recognised nomenclature. It is a popular qualification in the United Kingdom and, as in South Africa, is also presented as an entry into teaching for graduate learners.

This qualification was compared with similar international guidelines and standards. The focus of comparison was on the duration, admission requirements, the main purpose of the qualification, curriculum structure and the practice teaching component of the qualification. The Revised Policy on Minimum Requirements for Teacher Education Qualifications (Government Gazette 38487, February 2015) was used to compare with the reviews of the international institutions:

General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTC) guidelines for Initial Teacher Education and the Australian guidelines for Initial Teacher Education and a review conducted by the European Commission on Initial Teacher Education23.
Similar to the South African qualification, the main purpose of the General Teaching Council for Scotland's (GTC) for Initial Teacher Education (ITE) is to prepare competent, thoughtful, reflective and innovative practitioners, who are committed to providing high-quality teaching and learning for all pupils.

The following aims were further highlighted:

Develop professional values and recognise research and scholarship, and commitment to continuous professional development.

Forge partnerships with schools.

Balance professional studies, subject studies, and school placement experience.

Ensure quality assurance and improvement based on research.

Provide learners with the opportunity to meet the Standard for Provisional Registration.

Meeting Equality Legislation requirements.

There is considerable overlap between the General Teaching Council for Scotland's ITE guidelines and those of the South African qualification and Australia. The principles underpinning the Australian guidelines for Initial Teacher Education (ITE) are flexibility, diversity, and innovation. The guidelines outline six qualification standards, that include the following:

Initial teacher competence requires learner adherence to the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, and learners to engage in classroom teaching practice that covers planning, teaching, assessing and reflecting.

Qualification design: training provider to demonstrate impact (after graduation), the inclusion of emerging developments in education, curriculum requirements and stakeholder expectations, preparation of ITEs for Early Childhood Development and contextual realities, and various modes of delivery.

Programme entry: training provider to provide a rationale, selection criteria, additional support to those with identified needs, to set minimum literacy and numeracy levels equivalent to the top 30% of the population and ensure coverage of a minimum number of subjects/learning areas.

Programme structure and content: a four year or longer full-time qualification with various configurations, preparation for the school curriculum and learning areas in selected educational settings (early childhood, primary, secondary/middle school), opportunities for specialisation.

Professional experience: formal partnerships for pre-service teacher experience, a minimum number of days (60-80 depending on whether undergraduate or graduate entry programme), a channel of communication between the ITE provider and the school, and rigorous assessment of pre-service teacher's achievements.

Programme evaluation, reporting and improvement - ongoing collection, analysis, and evaluation of data to inform ITE programme improvement and reporting thereon.

The European Commission (EC), in a review of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) highlighted the following core competence requirements of all teachers:

Sound knowledge frameworks of education theories, school curricula and assessment.

Deep knowledge of how to teach specific subjects.

Classroom teaching/management skills and strategies.

Interpersonal, reflective and research skills.

Critical attitude towards own professional conduct.

Engagement in continuous professional development.

Positive attitude to collaboration, diversity, and inclusion; and

Ability to adapt plans and practices to varying contexts and learner needs.

Furthermore, the EC highlighted the integration of the following three core curriculum areas as directly linked to effective ITE curricula:

Learning areas/subjects and methodologies.

Linking ways of learning with school curricula and strategies for dealing with classroom diversity.

Teaching practice and supervision.

The following were thus considered key in the ITE curriculum:

Teaching literacy and numeracy.

Information Computer Technology for teaching and learning.

Assessment and diversity.

The role of research.

The review highlighted the following similarities which were considered in the development of this qualification:

Selection and retention.

Minimum standards have been set for entry into this learning qualification.

Programme design:
> Developing competence in teaching.
> The methodology modules for selected areas of specialisation in the Senior Phase and FET integrate general teaching methodologies, assessment, and Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements.
> Learners will complete a general "Teaching methods" module.
> The inclusion of a variety of modules and teaching practice is designed to develop the basic competence of a beginner teacher as outlined in the Revised policy on the Minimum Requirements for Teacher Educational Qualifications.

Preparing learners for diverse contexts.
> To accommodate this, learners complete a "Diversity and Inclusion" module.
> Developing as a professional.
> A collaborative and cooperative approach is adopted and content in the "Managing Teaching" module includes professional ethics and conduct.

Developing critical and reflexive thinkers.
> Learners are exposed to various educational and psychological theories in Education Studies and Decoloniality.

Professional experience: The inclusion of supervised teaching practice in the qualification of twelve weeks. This commences in the first semester with two weeks of observation (and the first week of this is at the institution in workshops), and two weeks of assisted teaching. In the second semester, the learner completes eight weeks of supervised teaching practice. The extended teaching practice / Workplace Integrated Learning (WIL) (eight weeks) provides the learner with the opportunity to experience the full teaching cycle, plan, implement, assess, remediate and integrate into the school.

Conclusion:
The PGCE in Senior Phase and FET Phase Teaching was thus developed in accordance with an informed review of international policies, practices, and strategies regarding postgraduate teacher training qualifications, and therefore compares favourably with international offerings. However, this qualification is specifically tailored to the South African context with consideration having been taken with regards to learner equity and linguistic diversity.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

This qualification allows possibilities for both vertical and horizontal articulation.
Horizontal Articulation:

Advanced Diploma in Education, NQF Level 7.

Vertical Articulation:

Postgraduate Diploma in Education, NQF Level 8.

Bachelor of Education Honours Degree, NQF Level 8.

MODERATION OPTIONS

N/A

CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

N/A

NOTES

N/A

LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION:

NONE

PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION:

This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.

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