Presentation to the Nelson Thornes/Oxford University Press Sales Conference on 19 November 2015, by Cleveland Sam, AR(PICS). It addresses the New Generation CAPE Subjects and the benchmarking of CCSLC.

1. NG CAPE Subjects and CCSLC Benchmarking
NP/OUP Caribbean Conference 2015
Accra Beach Hotel| 19 November 2015

2. Headline Text
SUBHEADING TEXT
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3. Underpinnings
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• Attributes of the CARICOM Ideal Person
• UNESCO Pillars of Learning
• Wagner’s Seven Skills

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CAPE Growth
• Subjects/Units growing
• Offer 60 Units in 30 Subjects in 2014
• Candidate growth
• 29,379 candidates in 2014 compared with
28,228 in 2013
• Six New Generation Subjects
30 subjects
60 Units
29, 379 candidates

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Subjects Number of candidates taking NG CAPE Subjects in 2015
Unit 1 Unit 2 Total
Entrepreneurship 1388 71 1459
Tourism 524 17 541
Physical Education & Sport 495 1 496
Digital Media 208 70 278
Agricultural Science 225 32 257
Performing Arts 50 58 108

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International Benchmarking the
Caribbean Certificate of Secondary
Level Competence (CCSLC) by the
United Kingdom National Academic
Recognition Information Centre (UK
NARIC)

11. Objective
To facilitate greater understanding, and wider
recognition of the CCSLC qualification
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12. Scope
to conduct an international benchmarking of the
CCSLC by comparing it to programmes of similar level
in four well-established education markets:
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13. Methodology
• desk-based research
• critical comparative analysis
• in-depth questionnaire
• face-to-face meeting with CXC officials
• site visits to schools offering CCSLC
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14. Findings
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CCSLC competencies
•Working in groups
•Critical thinking
•Dealing with diversity and
change
•Handling conflict
•Positive self-image
•Social and citizenship skills
•Commitment to ethical and
moral societies
•Subject-specific
competencies
Australia capabilities

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• The Australian syllabus for mathematics
includes money and financial matters,
which could be considered similar to the
Conscious Consumer module of the
CCSLC that covers currency, household
bills and taxes.
• The Australian syllabus also includes data
representation and interpretation, which
is also an element of the CCSLC Data
Handling module.
• CCSLC requires students to apply
Pythagoras’ Theorem to find unknown
side in right angled triangles in the
module Spaces in the Environment.
Similarly, Pythagoras’ Theorem is a
requirement in the Australian Foundation
to Year 10 curriculum in Queensland at
Year 9

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UK
•As with the CCSLC,
Mathematics and
English are core;
•Science is core in the
UK’s Key Stage 3.
•Key Stage 3 students
also take several other
subjects, such as:
modern languages,
Music, Physical
Education, Art and
Design and Citizenship
•Assessed via school-
based assessment
CCSLC
Mathematics and English
are core;
Science is not core is
available as a CCSLC subject
French or Spanish, Social
Studies and developed
specifically for CCSLC;
 in addition, Music, Visual
Arts, Theatre Arts and
Physical Education and Sport
are available under the
Creative and Expressive Arts
category
Assessed both by SBA and
external exam

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• In the CCSLC’s Measuring Around Us module,
students are required to find the perimeter
and the area of regular and irregular plane
shapes. This relates to the Ontario Grade 9
(Applied) requirement for students to solve
problems involving the areas and perimeters of
composite two-dimensional shapes.
• CCSLC students are also required to calculate
the volume of a cylinder, cube and cuboid,
which is also evident in the Ontario Grade 9
(Applied) syllabus.

18. Findings – subjects
The comparative analysis has revealed clear similarities between the
CCSLC curriculum in English, mathematics, integrated science and
modern languages with subjects in the first two or three years/grades of
secondary education in schools in Queensland, Australia; Ontario,
Canada; United Kingdom and New York, United States.
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English
• CCSLC English syllabus compares well to the reference points identified in each
education system: Year 9 in Australia, Grade 9 and 10 in Canada, Year 9 in the UK
and Grade 9 in the USA.
• CCSLC English is more indicative of the standards expected in the Australian
Curriculum Foundation to Year 10 syllabus at Year 9. Evidence of this is in the
CCSLC Exploring New Frontiers module, CCSLC students are required to give
feedback to peers on the accuracy and clarity of instructions they produced to
conduct a particular task.
• In relation to the UK, overall, the learning outcomes of the CCSLC English syllabus
compare well to the Key Stage 3 attainment targets in reading, writing, grammar
and vocabulary, and spoken English.

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Mathematics
Covers similar content to that
expected in:
•Australia at Year 9
•Canada in Grade 9
•UK at Key Stage 3
•Grade 9 and 10 in the USA
“The breadth of subject content for mathematics in the CCSLC is broadly similar to that
found in Australia, Canada and the UK in the first two or three years of secondary
education.”

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Science
Syllabus compares well to the general science skills
covered in:
• Queensland (Year 9)
•Ontario (Grade 9 and 10)
• UK (Key Stage 3)
• USA (Grade 9-10) syllabuses
These skills include planning and designing experiments,
predicting and hypothesizing and following scientific
report formats.
Aspects of the Working like a Scientist module of the
CCSLC Integrated Science syllabus are similarly found in
the Australian, Ontario and UK syllabuses.

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Languages
With the exception of the USA, where
languages are not part of the school syllabus,
comparing the CCSLC modern languages
syllabus to:
• Queensland Curriculum (Year 9)
• Ontario syllabus (Grade 9)
•UK at Key Stage 3
…has identified comparability in similar areas
such as producing different language forms,
delivering presentations and performing role-
play.

23. “Consistency in standards is sufficiently assured through the moderation
processes in place to ensure the validity of the assessment and the
appropriateness of the marking.”
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Findings – assessment
“The CXC has also developed an efficient means of external assessment and
marking, having successfully incorporated testing of a fair range and level of
skills within the multiple choice format.”
“In conjunction with the school-based assessment, the external examination
provides a fair assessment of the prescribed programme objectives.”

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“…the subject syllabuses are clearly underpinned with a core set of
objectives related to the development of critical thinking and
problem-solving skills that will help prepare students for higher level
secondary studies in the CXC participating territories but also
provide them with a range and breadth of skills that should enable
them to integrate with secondary studies in the four international
systems examined.”
Findings – assessment

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Conclusion
“UK NARIC confirms that individuals certified in the CCSLC
demonstrate the overall knowledge, skills and competencies
required to enter secondary education at Key Stage 4 (Year 10) in the
UK, Year 10 in Australia, Grade 10 in Ontario and Grade 10 in the
USA.”

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