Business Insider (2017) published a famous letter on their blog in which the Singaporean principal encouraged parents to remember “amongst the students who will be sitting for the exams, there is an artist who isn’t required to understand Mathematics…There is an entrepreneur who is uninterested in History or English literature…There is a musician whose Chemistry grades are irrelevant…There’s an athlete… whose physical fitness is more important than his knowledge of Physics…”
This letter is an illustration of a distorted curricular distribution and misalignment problem. The Principal recognized that his pupils’ curriculum was inadequately distributed or misaligned, as pupils studying entrepreneurship were expected to pass English Literature, which had no impact on the students’ future success as entrepreneurs. The Principal additionally discovered that a particular career-oriented subject like Art is wrongly mixed up with other subjects that have no positive impact on his students’ academic progress toward becoming professional Artists, resulting in curriculum misalignments.
Based on the foregoing, distorted curriculum distribution can be described as a curriculum conundrum involving misaligned subject distribution – pertinent and career-oriented subjects coupled with imposed irrelevant subjects. In many countries, including South Africa, these extra imposed subjects as part of the curriculum tend to serve as a determining factor in students’ progression. Meaning that, when some of these subjects are failed, students’ progress is hindered, which explains the term “distorted curriculum distribution.”
The example of this phenomenon in the South African perspective is when students under CAPS curriculum system choose specific career-oriented subjects and additional, irrelevant subjects dubbed “core subjects” are imposed. According to Department of Basic Education (2021), there are four “core subjects”: two national languages (Home Language and First Additional Language), mathematics, mathematical literacy, and life orientation. Home language is required to be pass with at least 40%, with anything less than 40% indicating failure, regardless of other subjects’ results. Engineering and Graphic Design (EGD) students for example, are still expected to complete the English/Afrikaans/Indigenous language Literature component. No amount of English, Afrikaans, or indigenous language literature can help an aspiring engineer thrive in the engineering field. The imposition of this literary component for EGD students demonstrates curricular distribution distortion because there is no synergy or coherence between Literature and Engineering. According to DBE (2021), failing to pass English/ Afrikaans/Indigenous language as a home language results in failure for the student even if other subjects are passed with distinctions.
Camplin, (2013) argues that students in fields such as; Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM students)—need literature for sharpening their thinking. Further argument by Camplin is that in order to be more innovative in their respective fields, STEM students would be wrong to ignore literature. This argument completely struggles to cite direct relevancy and clear coherence between Literature and STEM subjects. The argument further lacks the ability to strike proper relationship dependence existing between the two. The reason for this is because Literature is an example of curriculum misalignment when it is imposed on STEM students, which becomes a curriculum injustice if that Literature is a “core subject” in particular for students who won’t need it in their career paths in the future.
Computer Application Technology (CAT) and Information Technology (IT) students who are required to study Language Literature to progress is another example of distorted curriculum distribution. The success of CAT and IT students is not dependent on their understanding of literature. It is also worth noting that this portrays not only curriculum misalignments, but also unnecessary curriculum imposition as a result of curriculum irrelevancies in the South African education system.
Therefore, pointing out the insignificance of literature component for STEM students imply that languages should be prohibited? Certainly not! This publication advocates for the elimination of curriculum distortions and misalignments. STEM students should not be burdened with literature because this component adds no relevance or correspondence to STEM areas of study. Continued imposition of literature would demonstrate a misaligned curricular distribution. The suggestion is that STEM students should study language for communication purposes. Language for Communication is a component designed to aid in appropriate and professional workplace communication. That is the language subject component that is important for STEM students, and it will guarantee appropriate curriculum distribution rather than distorted curriculum distribution as things currently stand.
This calls for a re-alignment of curriculum systems in schools with the goal of ensuring relevance and meaning in every area of study chosen by students. This realignment is significant because it serves as a fair yardstick for assessing students’ academic progress. In reality, this isn’t just about Literature versus STEM Studies; it’s about all fields of study that should include relevant subjects. The worst-case scenario is when subjects that are ineffective in contributing to the success of the study/course field are compelled to be included in the curriculum. The question remains as to why students are forced to pursue irrelevant subjects that have been imposed as part of the curriculum of fields of study students have picked for themselves?
It is for these reasons that the Personalized Education Curriculum System (PECS) aims to transform present curriculum irrelevancy into curriculum relevancy. The Personalized PECS is intended to save students from the enormous curriculum that drives them to study courses they will not need in the future. PECS is a disruptive education curriculum system that, by design, will end the confusion surrounding curricular disagreements. PECS will finally figure out the pass requirement standards. PECS aspires to restore the worth and dignity of our educational system. PECS allows students to get a taste of the job while still in school. That’s what makes PECS unique and highly relevant to inspire the education community of our nation, South Africa, and the whole of Africa. And that is how we believe the education system can be fixed.
Know more about PECS: https://simnandisolutions.co.za/personalized-education/
– Click on PECS PowerPoint presentation.
Please answer these 3 questions and submit them: https://simnandisolutions.co.za/pecs
– Questionnaires
Bibliography:
Department of basic education. 2021. Subject choice and career pathing. https://www.education.gov.za/Informationfor/Learners/SubjectChoiceandCareerPathing/tabid/980/Default.aspx#:~:text=The%20four%20compulsory%20subjects%20are,additional%20languages%20may%20be%20selected
Camplin, T. 2013. Scientists and engineers need literature. https://www.jamesgmartin.center/2013/04/scientists-and-engineers-need-literature/
Business Insider, 2017. The internet is freaking out over this note a principal sent to parents during exam week. https://www.businessinsider.com/principal-note-to-parents-testing-2017-11