Africa is fast becoming a continent of innovation and development. Hence it is not surprising that it is beginning to claim its place at the table of global education. Indeed, for too long, Africa has taken its lead in education from other continents and has not exploited its strengths and uniqueness in the education of its own children.
In 2014, education authorities in South Africa signalled that the National Senior Certificate (NSC) qualification could no longer be offered legally to learners outside the borders of the country. In response to this change in policy, the IEB was motivated to develop a qualification to accommodate schools that have been registered and writing the NSC with the IEB since its inception in 1989. Because this qualification would need to be offered in Eswatini, Mozambique and Namibia i.e., across different countries, that qualification would have to be 'international' in nature. That was the trigger for the birth of the IEB International Secondary Certificate (IEB ISC). This is a qualification that certifies achievement at the conclusion of 12 years of schooling and serves as an indicator of preparedness for further study at the tertiary level.
This assessment at the end of the 12th year of study is based on a curriculum which references perspectives, cultures and languages that have their roots in Africa, so that understanding of key concepts is embedded in contexts familiar to learners. Language study accommodates languages familiar to the learners and where practicable, the home language of learners is used in teaching, learning and assessment. Built into the qualification are Further Studies courses aimed at extending talented learners with specific areas of interest and aptitude, in key disciplines. These provide a more in-depth exploration of the discipline of study with the expectation of increased understanding and capability.
The curriculum and assessment documentation for the IEB ISC has been evaluated by Universities South Africa (USAf) and has been approved as an acceptable school- leaving qualification that enables successful applicants at South African universities to proceed with degree and other levels of tertiary study in this country. Hence successful IEB ISC learners from outside South Africa will enjoy the opportunity to access South African universities.
Furthermore, the UK National Information Centre for global qualifications and skills (UK ENIC) has conducted an evaluation of the International Secondary Certificate qualification. UK ENIC is the national agency appointed by the UK Government to provide official information and expert opinion on international qualifications in the UK. That report states that the IEB ISC subjects are broadly comparable to the GCE Advanced Subsidiary level, with the Further Studies Programmes comparable to GCE A-level.
In a world of fake news, there is a need to assure society that quality assessment is of primary concern to the IEB. To that end the IEB has established an arms-length relationship with Stellenbosch University, a well-established university with an international reputation for quality education. The Stellenbosch University Unit for International Credentialling (SU-UIC) conducts external quality assurance processes for the IEB ISC. This quality assurance process ensures prescriptions for examination procedures and processes, including external moderation of examination papers to ensure adherence to standards are in place and implemented as required. In addition, appropriate feedback is provided to educational institutions that offer provisioning for the IEB ISC. Hence a school-leaver examined against the ISC of the IEB receives a certificate with results endorsed by Stellenbosch University, once it is satisfied that its quality assurance processes have been fully met.
The IEB believes that it is through the assessment of the curriculum that its true worth and value as an educating tool can be exploited. The way in which a question is asked will either encourage the 'opening up' of young minds to see new ideas and possibilities or it will focus the mind narrowly onto the facts taught and presumably learnt during the year; the approach in assessment can either offer learners an opportunity to express their own opinions and show that they have used sound thinking skills and a reliable knowledge base to come to their conclusions or at the other end of the scale, it will encourage the regurgitation of learnt opinions.
The IEB aims to harness the positive impact of good assessment techniques on learning and teaching and through its instruments, open the minds of teachers and learners to the higher order thinking skills encouraged in the curriculum and required in our modern world. Schools have indicated to the IEB that parents choose IEB educational institutions because of the IEB school leaving examination which focuses on critical thinking and problem-solving skills of learners, preparing them well for the rigours of tertiary study.
The IEB draws its candidates from the independent school sector. Schools are required to abide by legal obligations of the state authorities in which they operate. Before a school is registered as an examination centre, the IEB conducts its own approval process, which includes a consideration not only of the facilities but the processes of teaching and learning, to assure the public that the schools offering the IEB ISC are committed to offering learners the very best standards of teaching and support, both in terms of physical resources and learning support. Contracted educational institutions are required to commit to a formal process of quality improvement.
There are many South African learners who have been educated from the age of 5 or 6 years in South African schools by South African teachers using the South African national curriculum and then, at the age of 15 or 16, change curriculum or school to offer the curriculum and examinations of international examining authorities for the final 2 or 3 years of schooling. It is not unusual to see the schools that these learners attend, advertise the prowess of their learners as being 'top of the world'.
While there is some debate whether it is possible to make such a claim, what is not in doubt is the academic quality of these learners. It is not surprising then that the IEB believes that schools in Southern Africa are able to provide a respectable and respected education for children on our continent using a curriculum and approaches that align more directly with our contexts, languages, and cultures. This belief in no way detracts from the quality that is espoused by international curriculum and assessment organisations. However, the success of South African learners in the examinations of such organisations does illustrate that there is education of rigorous quality and a high standard that takes place in schools in Africa where children study local curricula from a young age – success at seventeen depends on a solid foundation built at seven.
The IEB has a reputation for consistently applying rigour in the development of assessment and examination question papers that reflect the standard that the IEB claims. The IEB has efficient and effective assessment systems that are underpinned by sound values and the internalisation of such values by all who participate in the management and administration of assessments. The IEB ISC similarly is subject to this rigour of the IEB.