Kuwait National Curriculum State of Kuwait Ministry of Education ELT General Supervision School Year: 2017-2018 Kuwait National Curriculum (KNC)

What is Curriculum? Curriculum is the system of learning experiences and opportunities that are planned for children and young people through their education, wherever they are educated. Curriculum represents a multifunctional but highly organized system of knowledge, skills and attitudes that all individuals are offered by a given education system (and society) – and that is useful for personal fulfillment and development, inclusion and employment in a well-functioning society.

The main idea of competency-based curriculum illustrates: Instead of objectives, think “competences” Instead of content, think outcomes Learner activities will be based on performance of learners. Teaching activities are learner centered 5.Formative evaluation is necessary

What are the Competences? Competences are integrated systems of knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and beliefs developed through formal (and non-formal) education that allow individuals to become responsible and autonomous persons, able to solve a diversity of problems and perform in everyday life-settings at the quality level expressed by the standards. The Kuwait National Curriculum operates with three types of competences: key competences general competences specific competences.

What are the Competences?

What are the Key Competences?

What are the Key Competences? key competences(NON-SUBJECT )specific represent a transferable, multifunctional package (system) of knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, beliefs, and personal/social attributes that all individuals need to acquire for their personal development, inclusion and employment (i.e. for being successful in their personal and social life, as well as in their professional career). key competences are supposed to be achieved by the end of the Secondary Education period. They are cross- curricular (i.e. non-subject specific), transferable and multifunctional competences – so that, in principle, all subjects can/should contribute to their development.

Key Competences by the end of Grade 12 The Key Competences students should master by the end of Grade 12 are: Islamic Religious and Ethical Competences Communicative Competences in Arabic Language Communicative Competences in English and other Foreign Languages Mathematical Competences Social and Civic Competences Scientific, Technological and Digital Competences Personal Development and Learning to Learn Competences Life and Work, Economic and Financial Competences

What are the General Competences? As compared to the key competences General competences are subject-specific. They define the most general subject-based knowledge, skills and attitudes/values embedded/integrated in students’ expected outcomes by the end of Grade 12.

Examples of general competencies General competencies developed through the study of English Listening to oral messages by means of different strategies in a variety of contexts for effective comprehension Speaking by using strategies of individual and interactive speech in a variety of communicative contexts Reading and viewing a range of texts by means of different strategies in a variety of contexts Writing a range of texts adapted to a variety of communicative purposes www.themegallery.com

What are the Specific Competences? The specific competences are structured and developed in students during a school year. As compared to the General Competences: Specific Competences define more specific systems of integrated knowledge, skills and attitudes/values. They can even cover specialized, topic-based competences students are supposed to display by the end of each grade. The specific competences are clustered in the following four dimensions: A range of realities specific to the subject (knowledge); A range of operations (skills and strategies) A range of personal and social responses (attitudes, values) A range of connections with other subjects and domains.

Specific competences 2. Speaking by using strategies of individual and interactive speech in a variety of communicative contexts A range of language realities   2.1. Using simple words, expressions and sentences to express themselves about self, family, food and other items in small conversations or individual speech A range of operations 2.2. Responding to simple communicative situations in mini dialogues related to everyday topics A range of attitudes 2.3. Building up positive personal motivation to speak with peers and adults using simple phrases and sentences A range of connections 2.4.Using the knowledge and abilities acquired in other subjects when producing sounds of English or speaking about their family or school www.themegallery.com

Overview of the specific competences for English – Grades 1 to 5

Specific Competences S A C K

Competences knowledge Skills They enable Students to effectively perform activities to the standard expected They provide a framework for distinguishing between poor performances and exceptional performance Connections Attitudes

What are the Standards? All competence-based curricula – including the new Kuwait National Curriculum – introduce and largely use the concept of standards.

Standards Standards are statements about what is valued IN LEARNING. They describe expectations and are used to judge the level of performance in a field or domain. An operational decision, requirement or regulation related to the quality level to be achieved by a certain aspect of the education system”, (in our case, student’s learning) Standards are the WHAT of education while curriculum and instruction are the HOW.” There are two types of stanards : Performance Standards Curriculum Standards

What types of standards in KNC Performance standards They refer to the quality level to be achieved by students’ in performing their general competences by the end of each of the school stages – i.e. Primary, Intermediary, and Secondary. The measurement of the performance standards is a matter of different forms of national summative assessments or examinations. Curriculum standards They refer to the quality level to be achieved by students in attaining the specific competences. Curriculum standards describe to what extent the specific competences should be achieved by the end of each grade. In the Kuwait Curriculum, curriculum standards are related to specific competences defined in the subject curriculum. Curriculum standards are a matter of school- and class-based formative and summative assessment.

Performance standards Key Competencies To be achieved by the end of grade 12- cross curricular General Competencies To be achieved by the end of grade 12 subject specific Performance standards Level of achievement by the end of each stage 5,9,12 Specific Competencies To be achieved by the end of each grade Curriculum standards

Performance Standards   General Competences Performance Standards 1. Listening to oral messages by means of different strategies in a variety of contexts for effective comprehension By the end of grade 5, students who have fully developed their competence to listen to oral messages by means of different strategies in a variety of contexts for effective comprehension, as described in the primary curriculum, are able to: Understand simple, standard speech when spoken slowly, clearly and carefully articulated; Understand everyday English language expressions and recognize familiar words, basic phrases concerning themselves, their family, and school, simple facts about their country and immediate concrete surroundings or needs when people speak slowly and clearly and include pauses to allow them to get the meaning; Identify the topic of discussion when it is conducted slowly and clearly and catch the main point in short, clear, simple messages and announcements; Understand simple directions and instructions to fulfill a variety of tasks.

Performance standards Measurement Process Performance standards By the end of grade 12 By the end of grade 9 By the end of grade 5

Grade 1/ curriculum standards

New curricula To Moving from Competency and standard based 1.Content /skill/ based curriculum Skills/performance focus 2. Knowledge / skills /performance focus Student’s centered class ( PPP) 3. Teacher’s/student centered class ( PPP ) Formative & summative evaluation ) Ps and teachers) 4. Summative / evaluation

To Moving from Parents are involved and know the standards 5.Parents are not much involved and are not aware of standards A range of language realities A range of operations 6. Mastery in the domain PROFICIENCY DOMAIN Range of attitudes 7. Affective domain A ranges of connection 8. Integration of school subjects Progression of skills is clearer , organized , and a good guide for teachers 9.Progression of skills from one grade to another was not among teachers priorities Activities designed made standards more applicable 10.Ambitious,hard to achieve standards/objectives

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