The Sparrow Combined Technical Skills School in Sophiatown, Johannesburg, and the Gauteng Department of Education have collaborated to introduce an ICT skills development pilot programme to help high school learners with cognitive disabilities enter the job market.
According to the school, after four years of study, the students will graduate with a qualification called the General Certificate of Education:Technical Occupational.
The curriculum comprises compulsory language studies in English and Zulu, mathematics and life skills. Learners then choose additional technical skills subjects in civil technology, business, commerce and management; health sciences and social services and hospitality.
The qualification, targeted at students with cognitive disabilities, is registered with the Higher Education Standards Authority and Umalusi, the private schools registration and quality assurance body. The NQF Level 1 Qualification is equivalent to Grade 9 and allows access to NQF level 2 courses at colleges, adds the school.
Warren Thompson, learner support unit manager of Sparrow Schools, says: "We are proud to partner with the Gauteng Department of Education in this unique, collaborative programme. It is a programme that we believe will provide those with barriers to learning with a chance to join the world of work.
"The pilot programme kicked off in February this year and our first graduates are expected in 2020. During this period we will fine-tune the curriculum and assess progress, enabling us to offer the accredited technical skills qualification throughout South Africa."
One of the unique selling points of the programme is that it will provide prospective employers with a profile of learners' competencies and skills matrix. Firms who participate in the programme have a pool of learners to employ as interns and later as job entrants, adds Thompson.
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