In a landmark event for Zambia’s education system, Minister of Education, Douglas Syakalima has officially launched the 2023 Zambia Education Curriculum Framework in Lusaka today.
Here are the highlights;
✅️The new curriculum is a significant milestone reflecting government’s dedication to delivering high-quality, inclusive education to all Zambians.
✅️Honourable Syakalima has observed that education is a cornerstone of national development noting that the curriculum is crafted in such a way as to lay a foundation for the 21st-century skills needed to achieve Zambia’s Vision 2030.
✅️The updated framework follows a decade-long cycle from 2013 to 2023, has been designed to enhance students’ competencies and prepare them for global competitiveness.
✅️Key changes include the introduction of a competence-based approach to learning and restructuring of educational levels.
✅️Advanced-level education will now be offered under secondary school as Forms 5 and 6, while ordinary-level secondary education has been reduced to four years (Forms 1 to 4).
✅️Meanwhile, primary school will run for six years, from Grade 1 to 6.
✅️Prominence has also been placed on School-Based assessments (SBA), which will work alongside traditional summative exams to gauge learning outcomes effectively.
✅️In a related development, the Examinations Council of Zambia (ECZ) will align the syllabi with the new framework, ensuring students’ achievements reflect the competencies outlined.
✅️The Minister observed the need for training materials and teacher development to meet the framework demands in order to translate the aspirations of government and the citizens into reality.
✅️The launch was attended by representatives from the United Nations, Members of Parliament, Permanent Secretaries, Directors, Educators, Cooperating partners, and stakeholders in the education sector.