Cape Town - The Department of Basic Education says the 2015 Annual National Assessments (ANA) are going ahead in December despite the fact that some schools have already opened the boxes with question papers.
But teacher unions, that have made it clear they will boycott the tests, say the fact that the boxes were opened have compromised the ANA and is just another reason why the tests shouldn’t be written.
The ANA assesses Grade 1 to 9 pupils’ numeracy and literacy skills, and were scheduled to be written last month. However, they were postponed following strong opposition from unions. It was agreed that a task team would be set up to deal with the issues raised by unions.
But some schools had not received the message that the tests had been postponed, and opened the boxes and even administered the tests.
“ANA will go ahead as planned. Out of the 25 000 schools the number of those who opened the boxes is minute.
“Those schools are known and we don’t believe it will compromise ANA as a whole,” said the department’s spokesman, Elijah Mhlanga.
Basil Manuel, president of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa, disagreed.
“There is no credibility left. The tests have been seriously compromised.”
Jonavon Rustin, provincial secretary of the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union also said the tests were no longer credible.
“Just imagine if this had happened with the matric exam papers. It would have been a scandal.”
Teacher unions have indicated that the ANA, in its current form, was not in the best interest of pupils or for the provision of quality education.
Criticism has included that while the tests were meant to be a diagnostic tool, it was no longer used as such and writing it annually didn’t give schools enough time to implement any changes needed.
“If we can’t use these tests to determine a programme for teacher development then what are we using these tests for,” Manuel said.
He said he didn’t see how the ANA could go ahead if teachers were not going to administer or mark it.
In a statement earlier last month the department called on teachers to prepare to administer the tests in December.
“We must reiterate that the department is not opposed to the restructuring of ANA as it is a process that was already under way, having been initiated by the department last year. However the administration of ANA 2015 will go ahead as planned in 2015,” the statement said.
Cape Argus