1.1 Read the case study below and answer the questions that follow.

Events that unfolded at XYZ Secondary School

XYZ Secondary School is a new school that has been in operation for two (2) years. In all the years it has been in operation, the school has been led by Mr Num who has just started on his role as the principal. Even though the school is still new, the expectation is it must follow all rules and regulations as mandated by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) on how the school needs to operate. When the DBE conducted some investigation focusing on its recording and reporting of learners’ performance, it emerged that teachers do keep current mark sheets of learners’ progress. It also emerged that parents receive their children’s report cards in the second and fourth term only. When submitting learners’ end of year report cards, the school only released marks for Term 4 in the report cards. When questioned about such acts the principal’s response was, “What is important is for learners to get marks for that term. The previous terms’ marks are not important.” The DBE also realised that the school has no schedules as they are only completed once a year which is at the end of the year. Furthermore, the schedules only had a school stamp and the principal’s signature. When asked why the schedule did not include number of years learners spent in a phase, the principal mentioned that he was not sure if such information must be included in the schedule. It was however pleasing to learn that in the midst of all the challenges, teachers’ file were always availed for moderation whenever they were requested.

1.1.1 From reading the case study above, which of the NCS Grade R-12 policy documents do you think addresses matters that transpired at XYZ Secondary School and explain the reason for your answer? (2)

The National Protocol for Assessment Grade R-12 document addresses matters that transpired at XYZ Secondary School. This document provides guidelines on how assessment should be conducted, recorded, and reported in schools. The issues of teachers not keeping current mark sheets, parents only receiving report cards in the second and fourth term, and only releasing marks for Term 4 in the report cards are all in violation of the assessment guidelines outlined in this policy document. Additionally, the lack of schedules and incomplete information on the schedules also go against the requirements set out in the National Protocol for Assessment Grade R-12. Therefore, it is clear that these issues fall under the jurisdiction of this policy document.