Abstract:

This study aimed to investigate how Grade 6 Social Sciences teachers enhance quality teaching and learning through formal assessment in the Lejweleputswa area, in South Africa. It was inspired by the theories of social constructivism and cognitive constructivism, specifically, Piaget’s cognitive constructivism and Vygotsky’s social constructivism. It explored the following question: How do Grade 6 Social Sciences teachers enhance quality teaching and learning through formal assessment? Concurrent triangulation research design was and the respondents to the questionnaire were chosen through simple random sampling whilst purposive sample was used to select interviewees. The sample consisted of 106 Grade 6 Social Sciences teachers who responded to the questionnaire and ten teachers who were interviewed. The results revealed that most teachers aligned assessment in Social Sciences with the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement. Teachers understood and considered the importance of setting quality assessment tasks and apply Bloom’s taxonomy levels. However, the findings revealed that project question(s) modestly provide learners with opportunities to draw deductions and create universal trends, teachers modestly award marks for simplifying and drawing deductions, modestly grant marks for each ability tested in the project including presentation skills, and modestly award marks for conveying project ideas with suitable clarifications. The findings further revealed that teachers’ implementation of formal assessments did not differ according to their gender, age, teaching experience, professional teaching qualification, class size and school quintile. This research recommends that teachers must work in collaboration and share project tasks. Social sciences subject advisors should conduct in-service training workshops to provide teachers with information and competencies for setting sensible project tasks that would allow them to evaluate learners’ skills as set out in the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement.

Keywords:

Assessment, formal assessment, project tasks quality learning, quality teaching.