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SAQA All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.
SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY 
REGISTERED QUALIFICATION THAT HAS PASSED THE END DATE: 

Advanced Certificate: Education 
SAQA QUAL ID QUALIFICATION TITLE
50379  Advanced Certificate: Education 
ORIGINATOR
University of Witwatersrand 
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education  HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework 
QUALIFICATION TYPE FIELD SUBFIELD
Advanced Certificate  Field 05 - Education, Training and Development  Higher Education and Training 
ABET BAND MINIMUM CREDITS PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL NQF LEVEL QUAL CLASS
Undefined  120  Level 6  Level TBA: Pre-2009 was L6  Regular-Provider-ELOAC 
REGISTRATION STATUS SAQA DECISION NUMBER REGISTRATION START DATE REGISTRATION END DATE
Passed the End Date -
Status was "Reregistered" 		 SAQA 10105/14  2015-07-01  2016-10-20 
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2017-10-20   2020-10-20  

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 is replaced by: 
Qual ID Qualification Title Pre-2009 NQF Level NQF Level Min Credits Replacement Status
101139  Advanced Diploma in Education  Not Applicable  NQF Level 07  120  Complete 

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION 
The purpose of the qualification is:
  • To extend the applied competence of educators in an existing subject/learning area.
  • To develop the applied competence of educators in a new subject/learning area.
  • To develop the applied competence of educators in specialisms including the following:educational leadership and management, technology, inclusive education, education for learners with special educational needs, Deaf education, Library science.
  • To prepare educators for study at higher levels.

    The qualification does the above through the development of educators':
  • Educational knowledge.
  • Subject/learning area or specialism knowledge in relation to a specific phase.
  • Subject/learning area or specialist teaching knowledge and skills in relation to a specific phase.
  • Academic literacy.

    The qualification targets educators with level 5 and 6 qualifications and provides a level 6 qualification allowing articulation with a B.Ed (Honours) at level 7. It may also be taken by educators with level 7 and 8 qualifications.

    Possible career paths for holders of the qualification are: leadership roles as specialist teachers and/or curriculum developers, as subject advisors of NGO workers; leadership and managerial roles in schools or districts, or as part of support services. 
    		•

    LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING 
    Formally Accredited Learning

    The typical applicant has:
  • A 360 credit Diploma in Education, REQV 13, or an equivalent University-approved qualification.
  • A 480 credit Bachelor of Education degree, in the case of re-specialising.
  • A Higher Diploma in Education, in the case of re-specialising.

    Other Qualities:
  • Applicants should normally have two years of teaching experience, and where possible should be practicing educators, working in an educational context.

    Recognition of Prior Learning

    Applicants who fall outside of the normal admissions process and who can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the University that they have a qualification, experiential or work based learning which has taken the learner to an equivalent level of the qualifications specified above (under Formally Accredited Learning), may be considered for admission and/or for the recognition of prior accredited and/or prior experiential learning. Students who, after such assessment, are deemed to have sufficient potential but are in need of further academic development, may be admitted on condition that, upon admission, their curriculum is broadened over a longer period to include preliminary or parallel programmes. Assistance may be given to students where required, for the development of appropriate materials to enable RPL assessments to be made. This may take the form of individual consultations, or an RPL course, which may also subsequently be used for accreditation, and which will provide some of the required academic preparation for the programme.

    Applicants who fall outside of the normal admissions process who can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the University that they have a qualification, experiential or work based learning which has taken the learner to an equivalent level of a qualification specified above (under Formally Accredited Learning), may be considered for admission and/or for the recognition of prior accredited and/or prior experiential learning. Students who, after such assessment, are deemed to have sufficient potential but are in need of further academic development, may be required to broaden their curriculum by including preliminary programmes prior to admission to the degree or parallel programme after admission. 
    		•

    RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? 
    Y 

    QUALIFICATION RULES 
  • Fundamental: 36 credits at NQF Level 6.
  • Core: 24 credits at NQF Level 6.
  • Elective: 60 credits at NQF Level 6.
  • Total: 120 credits at NQF Level 6. 
    		•

    EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES 
    Qualified practitioners at this level will:
  • Apply competently the knowledge, skills, values, principles, methods and procedures relevant to their subject, learning area or specialism.
  • Continue to broaden and deepen their knowledge of content, skills, values and ways of thinking in their subject, learning area or specialism, in ways which promote their teaching and their learners' learning.
  • Continue to develop their pedagogical content knowledge and skills to provide a foundation for their teaching.
  • Understand principles underlying curriculum and curriculum change and how knowledge is selected into the curriculum.
  • See links between theory and practice and use theory as a tool to understand, think about and solve problems in their school/workplace and within broader educational and community contexts.
  • Engage in classroom and school/workplace-based research.
  • Reflect on cultural, social, political and economic issues in relation to subject content and barriers to learning.
  • Communicate effectively in visual, written or alternative modes in the classroom, community and in their academic studies.
  • Be able to extend their academic literacy in further study through understanding and using effective study methods, including accessing libraries and using a range of appropriate technological.
  • Understand career paths in education and take a leadership role in enabling and fostering collegial and co-operative ways of working among educators.
  • Take initiative in and responsibility for themselves, their work, communities and the broader natural and social environment. 
    		•

    ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA 
    Qualified practitioners will demonstrate their abilities to:
  • Develop and modify activities to teach particular knowledge, skills and values in their subject, learning area or specialism, and select and sequence activities appropriately into larger learning programmes appropriate for the learners in their context.
  • Design and use a range of teaching resources in their subject, learning area or specialism, by making better use of existing resources and developing new ones; design and use a range of assessment tools which promote learning in their subject, learning area or specialism.
  • Develop procedures for recording and reporting learner progress.
  • Understand and manage learner diversity and develop appropriate learning programmes, teaching strategies and assessment tools for diverse learners.
  • Work with a range of learner levels of proficiency in the language of teaching and learning in order to promote learning for diverse learners in their subject or learning area.
  • Work with a range of learner languages as resources for teaching and learning.
  • Develop their own and their learners' subject/discipline specific language.
  • Develop their own and their learners conceptual knowledge in their subject.
  • Know and teach the basic declarative (facts), procedural and conceptual knowledge in their subject, at phase-appropriate levels.
  • Understand the contested and contextual nature of knowledge and the implications of this for the curriculum, teaching and learning and assessment.
  • Understand and critique current examples of curriculum change.
  • Understand links between curriculum, assessment, learning and teaching.
  • Reflect on innovations in curriculum, teaching, learning and assessment and see how there are new possibilities for these in their school/workplace.
  • Reflect on their own values in relation to human rights and inclusivity, and in relation to learner and community values.
  • Undertand the link between theory and practice, and solve problems in educational contexts using theory as a tool for doing so.
  • Carry out the research required for the extension of understanding in educational contexts.
  • Display their ability to communicate effectively and coherently in a variety of educational contexts and their academic studies.
  • Evaluate their own leadership role in fostering collegiality and co-operative working among educators in their educational context.
  • Describe ways in which they take responsibility.
  • Show how they can and have used technology in their academic studies and their educational context.

    Integrated Assesment

    Assessment strategy

    Formative and summative assessment takes place throughout the qualification with a range of different assessment tools being used for different purposes, for example tests (e.g., for content knowledge in maths, science and English grammar), essays, projects, case studies, portfolios, oral assessments (for pedagogical content knowledge and general educational knowledge) and examinations. In addition to the above assessments, an 'over-arching' integrated assessment is provided for. This normally uses the mode of a project or extended task, in which the practitioners initiate, execute and evaluate a current or new practice in relation to their teaching, learning or assessment in their authentic educational context. The Integrated Assessment assesses the following competences.

    Practical competence:
  • The demonstrated ability to choose teaching and assessment strategies relevant to the subject/learning area, phase and or specialism, to use the chosen strategies, and to assess the outcomes of the chosen strategies;the demonstrated ability to take responsibility in fostering co-operation and collegiality among colleagues.

    Foundational competence:
  • The demonstrated ability to use educational theory and subject knowledge in order to decide what actions need to be taken in order to initiate and execute a change in practice in their educational context.
  • The demonstrated ability to communicate effectively how the educational development task has been researched in their educational context.

    Reflexive competence:
  • The demonstrated ability to reflect on current practices, make decisions on curriculum or other innovations, and justify such decisions in their educational context. 
    		•

    INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY 
    N/A 

    ARTICULATION OPTIONS 
    This section specifies with which other qualifications of the University the qualification was designed to articulate, i.e. formal articulation; therefore the qualification can articulate informally with equivalent qualifications offered by the University, or with other qualifications offered nationally and internationally.

    Further, an applicant registered at another university for a similar qualification and who has successfully and satisfactorily completed the first half or less of the qualification, may be able to complete the qualification at the University, and may be granted credit for similar courses already completed.

    Entry to the qualification:

    At the entry level, the qualification will articulate with a 360 credit (REQV 13) degree or diploma, with the proviso that the degree or diploma gives qualified teacher status, and with the 480 credit Bachelor of Education (NQF level 6), and the current 480 credit Higher Diploma in Education for re-specialising.

    Articulation during the qualification:

    None.

    On completion of the qualification:

    At the exit level, the qualification will articulate with the Bachelor of Education (Honours) Degree of the University or other equivalent qualification (NQF level 7 REQV 15). The B.Ed (Honours) then articulates with the M.Ed. This enables career paths in subject or other specialisms, for example, through a B.Ed and M.Ed in Curriculum with subject specializations, in policy and leadership or in the education of learners with special needs. 

    MODERATION OPTIONS 
    Internal University measures govern how and by whom moderation is performed. For example, external examiners are appointed. Such moderation seeks, inter alia, to ensure that, where appropriate, our graduates will be able to comply with professional and statutory requirements. Further, whether an academic entity has a professional orientation or not, the University ensures that its activities are moderated by internal and external review quinquennially. The moderating body for qualifications of the University is the Higher Education Quality Committee of the Council on Higher Education. 

    CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS 
    Assessors are appropriately qualified staff of the University of the Witwatersrand School of Education approved by the Senate of the University. For in situ teaching practice and related field work, assessors are assisted by qualified educators on the staff of schools or learning institutions approved by the Senate for this purpose. The qualification is conferred by the University of the Witwatersrand, which is accredited by SAQA as a public higher education provider. Assessment is subject to moderation by external examiners, approved on an annual basis by the Faculty Board, and to review by and approval of a School of Education Board of Examiners appointed by the Senate. Moderation seeks to ensure that the levels and scope of assessment comply with professional and statutory requirements. Academic staff will:
  • Undertake adequate internal moderation processes among markers to enable consistency and fairness of assessment, and continually review the effectiveness of these processes.
  • Work with colleaques on an on-going basis in planning and implementing teaching and revise teaching programmes annually.
  • Undertake internal and external reviews and evaluations of course materials.
  • Undertake course material revision on the basis of reviews and evaluations in a 6-year cycle, i.e. each course should be fully revised every 6 years with smaller revisions in the interim.
  • Submit course outlines, examination question papers, scripts and marks to external examiners and set out in writing how external examiners' comments have been responded to, particularly in relation to subsequent course development.
  • Undertake internal course reviews every 3 years with appropriate colleagues, including some not involved in the programme according to quality assurance guidelines set out by the School of Education.

    The staff of the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, are registered assessors since SAQA has accredited the institution as a public higher education provider. Further, internal University measures govern how and by whom assessment may be performed. 
    		•

    REREGISTRATION HISTORY 
    As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2006; 2009; 2012; 2015. 

    NOTES 
    N/A 

    LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION: 
    When qualifications are replaced, some of their learning programmes are moved to being recorded against the replacement qualifications. If a learning programme appears to be missing from here, please check the replacement.
     
    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.
     
    1. University of Witwatersrand 


    All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.