By More Matshediso
Pretoria - The Mpumalanga Department of Education has on Monday confirmed its readiness for the 2014 Annual National Assessment (ANA), saying all systems are in place for the smooth writing of the exams.
A total of 622 922 learners from Grade 1 to 6 and 9 in the province will write the ANA between 16 – 19 September.
ANA was put in place by the Department of Basic Education as a strategy to annually measure progress in learner achievement towards the 2014 target of ensuring that at least 60% of learners achieve acceptable levels in literacy and numeracy.
The tests are administered in all the 11 official languages in the foundation phase, and in the two languages of teaching and learning in the intermediate and senior phase.
The department said it intended to improve the assessment results this year.
ANA targets literacy and numeracy as the two subjects were found universally to be the key foundational skills for successful learning in school and beyond.
The ANA were first held in 2011. From 2012, the assessment included all learners in Grades 1 - 6 and Grade 9 and was administered in the third quarter of the school year.
“In 2014, the DBE will also pilot the assessment of a sample of learners in Grades 7 and 8. Based on the findings of the pilot, a decision will be made in 2015 on the assessment of Grade 7 and 8 learners,” said the department.
Marking will be done in schools immediately after the tests are written, and should be completed before the closure of schools for September holidays
“There will be centralised moderation of marking for Grades 3, 6 and 9. Schools will select a sample of three scripts per class per grade for central moderation after marking at school,” said the department, adding that marking moderators were selected and were appointed by the first week of August 2014.
Capturing will be done by schools and the province will capture the sampled scripts together with scripts of either Grade 3 or 6 for the independent schools.
The department said it requested communities to create an enabling environment for learners to write their ANA.- SAnews.gov.za
