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Ensuring that all our learners are able to read, write and calculate at the appropriate level is a key priority for this administration.

In order to identify problem areas and to undertake remedial action in the fields of literacy and numeracy performance, the Western Cape leads the rest of the country in the use of extensive testing for Grade three (3) and six (6) learners.

Since 2002, the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) has conducted diagnostic tests on the levels of literacy and numeracy among Grades three (3) and six (6) learners in alternate years.

From 2010, all Grade three (3) and six (6) learners will be tested every year. For the first time, this programme will also be extended to Grade nines (9s). The 2010 test, however, will be treated as a pilot and will cover the full cohort of Grade nine (9) learners. Testing will be in the Language of Learning and Teaching (English and Afrikaans) and Mathematics only.

All the tests are systemic in nature and will assist the WCED to support schools in improving levels of literacy and numeracy. The results of the testing will also assist schools to identify areas for improvement. They are administered by independent service providers appointed by WCED.

Since its inception, the diagnostic tests have not been conducted at independent schools. However, following recent visits by WCED officials to selected independent schools, many have indicated their willingness to participate in the programme.

Starting in 2010, Grade six (6) and nine (9) learners from independent schools will also be invited to participate in the testing programme with learner numbers of more than ten (10). Grade three (3) learners from independent schools will not be included in the 2010 testing programme as planning for this year is already at an advanced stage.

Testing in 2010 will take place between the 6th and the 19th of October and is scheduled for one day per school.

U.S. education issues in 2010 boil down to two questions: how to fund cash-strapped state universities and how to fix so-called high school "drop-out factories."</img> </img> </img> </img> </img>


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Pretoria- Education will be the legacy of the first Soccer World Cup on African soil, says FIFA President Sepp Blatter.

“Education, this is the legacy not the infrastructure. Naturally you must be proud of the infrastructure in South Africa not only for the people but the football society. But the legacy is education, “said Blatter at a briefing hosted by President Jacob Zuma on Sunday.

This as President Zuma announced that government plans to host a 1Goal Education campaign on 7 July on the sidelines of the semi-finals in Cape Town. The World Cup officially kicks off on Friday.

Zuma who agrees that education will be the most important spin-off of the month-long spectacle said if the programme is implemented properly, it will enable 72 million African children who currently don’t attend primary school to do so.

“It will be one of the most lasting legacies of the 2010 World Cup and we urge all nations of the world and the private sector internationally to support this campaign,” said Zuma.

Zuma saluted construction workers who worked tirelessly to ensure that stadia were ready on time. Fifty two football pitches are being built in communities across the country while 52 others will be built across the continent.

Blatter said as part of bringing the spectacle to African soil, R100 million US dollars to help national associations as well as to hone and to keep talent on the continent by ensuring that players remain in their home countries to earn a decent living has been set aside.

“Bringing the world cup to Africa, to South Africa is to trust South Africa, Africans and to say that you’re strong you can do it, this is something also of a legacy of a continent that has been sidelined and still is sidelined but the World Cup cannot be sidelined. It is an achievement,” concluded Blatter. –BuaNews

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