HED4802/101/0/2024

Tutorial Letter 101/0/2024

Curriculum Studies

HED4802
Year Module

Department of Curriculum and Instructional

Studies

IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Please register on myUnisa, activate your myLife e-mail account and
make sure that you have regular access to the myUnisa module
website, HED4802-2024-0, as well as your group website.

NOTE: This is a fully online module. It is therefore only available on myUnisa.

BARCODE
HED4802/101/0/2024

CONTENTS

Page

1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 4
2 OVERVIEW OF HED4802 ............................................................................................................ 6
2.1 Purpose ........................................................................................................................................ 6
2.2 Outcomes ..................................................................................................................................... 6
3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ........................................................................................... 6
4 LECTURER AND CONTACT DETAILS ....................................................................................... 7
4.1 Lecturer ........................................................................................................................................ 7
4.2 Department ................................................................................................................................... 7
4.3 University ...................................................................................................................................... 7
5 RESOURCES ............................................................................................................................... 7
5.1 Prescribed book ............................................................................................................................ 7
5.2 Recommended book ..................................................................................................................... 7
5.3 Electronic reserves (e-reserves) ................................................................................................... 8
5.4 Library services and resources ..................................................................................................... 8
6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES .............................................................................................. 10
6.1 First-Year Experience Programme................................................................................................ 10
7. STUDY PLAN ............................................................................................................................. 11
8 HOW TO STUDY ONLINE .......................................................................................................... 11
8.1 What does it mean to study fully online? ..................................................................................... 11
9. ASSESSMENT ........................................................................................................................... 12
9.1 Assessment criteria..................................................................................................................... 12
9.2 Assessment plan ........................................................................................................................ 12
9.3 Turnitin........................................................................................................................................ 13
9.4 Assessment due dates ................................................................................................................ 14
9.4.1 Types of assignments and descriptions ........................................................................................ 14
9.5 Submission of assessments ........................................................................................................ 15
9.6 The assessments ........................................................................................................................ 16
9.7 Invigilation/proctoring .............................................................................................................. 16
10. ACADEMIC DISHONESTY ........................................................................................................ 17
10.1 Plagiarism ................................................................................................................................... 17
10.2 Cheating ..................................................................................................................................... 17

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11. STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES .................................................................................. 18
12. IN CLOSING ............................................................................................................................... 18

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1 INTRODUCTION
Dear Student

Unisa is a comprehensive open distance e-learning (CODeL) higher education institution.

The comprehensiveness of our curricula encapsulates a range of offerings, from strictly
vocational to strictly academic certificates, diplomas and degrees. Unisa's "openness" and its
distance elearning character result in many students registering at Unisa who may not have
had an opportunity to enrol in higher education. Our CODeL character implies that our
programmes are carefully planned and structured to ensure success for students ranging
from the under-prepared but with potential to the sufficiently prepared.

Teaching and learning in a CODeL context involves multiple modes of delivery ranging from
blended learning to fully online. As a default position, all post graduate programmes are
offered fully online with no printed study materials, while undergraduate programmes are
offered in a blended mode of delivery where printed study materials are augmented with
online teaching and learning via the learner management system – myUnisa. In some
instances, undergraduate programmes are offered fully online as well.

Furthermore, our programmes are aligned with the vision, mission and values of the
University. Unisa's commitment to serve humanity and shape futures combined with a clear
appreciation of our location on the African continent, Unisa's graduates have distinctive
graduate qualities which include:

• independent, resilient, responsible and caring citizens who are able to fulfil and serve
in multiple roles in their immediate and future local, national and global communities.

• having a critical understanding of their location on the African continent with its
histories, challenges and potential in relation to globally diverse contexts

• the ability to critically analyse and evaluate the credibility and usefulness of
information and data from multiple sources in a globalised world with its ever-
increasing information and data flows and competing worldviews

• how to apply their discipline-specific knowledges competently, ethically and creatively

to solve real-life problems

• an awareness of their own learning and developmental needs and future potential

Whether a module is offered either as blended (meaning that we use a combination of printed
and online material to engage with you) or online (all information is available via the internet),
we use myUnisa as our virtual campus. This is an online system that is used to administer,
document and deliver educational material to you and support engagement with you. Look
out for information from your lecturer as well as other Unisa platforms to determine how to
access the virtual myUnisa module site. Information on the tools that will be available to
engage with the lecturer and fellow students to support your learning will also be
communicated via various platforms.

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We are pleased to welcome you to the module Curriculum Studies and hope that you will find it
interesting, useful, inspiring and rewarding. The module explores the integrated nature of
curriculum, learning and teaching. It will provide a base from which we can interrogate the roles
of the teacher as interpreter of learning programmes and materials, assessor and learning
mediator. We shall do our best to make your study of this module successful. You will be well on
your way to success if you start studying early in the year and resolve to do the assignments
properly.

HED4802 is a fully online module. You need to visit the module site to access the study
material and other important information. Your assignments must be submitted via myUnisa.

This tutorial letter, Tutorial Letter 101, contains important information about this module. We
urge you to read it carefully and to keep it at hand when working through the study material,
preparing the assignments, and addressing questions to your lecturers. This tutorial letter also
provides all the information you need about the prescribed study material and other resources,
and how to obtain them. Please study this information carefully and make sure that you
obtain the prescribed material as soon as possible. We have also included certain general
and administrative information about this module. Please study each section of the tutorial letter
carefully.

We hope that you will enjoy this module and wish you every success with your studies!

As this is a fully online module, you need to use myUnisa to study and complete the learning
activities for this module. Visit the website for HED4802 on myUnisa frequently. The website for
your module is [HED4802-24-Y].

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2 OVERVIEW OF HED4802
2.1 Purpose

The purpose of this module is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of

curriculum theory and to introduce them to a range of readings that will enable them to develop
innovative and contextually relevant responses to curriculum issues. The course aims to equip
students with the knowledge and skills they need to critically analyse and design curricula that
are responsive to the needs of diverse learners, as well as the broader social, cultural and
political contexts in which they operate. Students will explore various perspectives on
curriculum, including those informed by educational philosophy, psychology and sociology.
Ultimately, this module seeks to empower students to become informed and reflective
practitioners who can contribute to the ongoing improvement of educational practice.

2.2 Outcomes

Students who have completed this module successfully should be able to do the following:
• Trace the origins of the term “curriculum” and review the perspectives and approaches to
curriculum.
• Describe and discuss curriculum reform in Africa and chart the history of curriculum
development in South Africa.
• Investigate the link between curriculum and various ideologies and analyse the link between
educational assumptions and choice of curriculum activities and resources.
• Compare and critique various curriculum development processes.
• Explain the difference between various forms of assessment and apply them to their own
practice.
• Analyse the role of curriculum evaluation by describing and critiquing models and methods
of curriculum evaluation.
• Critically analyse the role of curriculum leadership and its effect on curriculum
implementation.

3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION
Unisa has implemented a transformation charter in terms of which the University has placed
curriculum transformation high on the teaching and learning agenda. Curriculum transformation
includes student-centred scholarship, the pedagogical renewal of teaching and assessment
practices, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and the infusion of African epistemologies
and philosophies. All of these will be phased in at both programme and module levels, and as a
result of this, you will notice a marked change in the teaching and learning strategy
implemented by Unisa, together with the way in which the content is conceptualised in your
modules. We encourage you to embrace these changes during your studies at Unisa in a
responsive way within the framework of transformation.

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4 LECTURER AND CONTACT DETAILS

4.1 Lecturer

If you experience any problems with academic work, for example with the content of the
module or the prescribed book (Du Preez & Reddy 2014) you can contact the following lecturer:

Prof P Biccard
6-67 Nkoana Simon Radipere Building
E-mail: biccap@unisa.ac.za
Tel: 012 429 6634

4.2 Department

The contact details of the Department of Curriculum and Instructional Studies are as follows:

Telephone: 012 429 4033

E-mail: lewisfb@unisa.ac.za

4.3 University

Contact addresses of the various administrative departments appear on the Unisa website at
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Contact-us/Student-enquiries.

Please include your student number in all correspondence.

5 RESOURCES
5.1 Prescribed book

The following book is the prescribed textbook for this module. You need to buy it to study the
module successfully:

[1] Du Preez, P & Reddy, C. 2014. Curriculum studies: visions and imaginings. Cape Town:
Pearson.

5.2 Recommended book

Booyse, C. 2017. Curriculum studies: development, interpretation, plan and practice. Pretoria:
Van Schaik. ISBN: 9780627035876.

The recommended book can be requested online via the Library catalogue.

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5.3 Electronic reserves (e-reserves)

Waghid, Y. (2004). African philosophy of education: Implications for teaching and learning:
perspectives on higher education, South African Journal of Higher Education. 18(3) 56-64.

Yang, W., (2022). Artificial Intelligence education for young children Why, what, and how in
curriculum design and implementation. Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence, 3.

Council for Higher Education. 2017. Decolonising the curriculum: stimulating debate. Briefly
Speaking 3:1–12.

E-reserves can be downloaded from the Library catalogue. More information is available at
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/request.

5.4 Library services and resources

The Unisa library offers a range of information services and resources:

• For brief information, go to https://www.unisa.ac.za/library/libatglance.

• For more detailed library information, go to
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library.
• For research support and services (e.g. the services offered by personal librarians and
the request-a-literature-search service offered by the information search librarians), go to
http://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library/Library-services/Research-support.
• For library training for undergraduate students, go to
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library/Library-services/Training.

The Library has created numerous library guides. These guides are available at
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za.

Recommended guides:
• Request and find library material/download recommended material:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/request
• Postgraduate information services: http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/postgrad
• Finding and using library resources and tools:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/Research_skills
• Frequently asked questions about the Library:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask
• Services to students living with disabilities:
http://libguides.unisa.ac.za/disability
• A–Z of library databases:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/az.php

Important contact information:

• Ask a librarian: https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask

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• Technical problems encountered in accessing library online services: Lib-
help@unisa.ac.za
• General library-related queries: Library-enquiries@unisa.ac.za
• Queries related to library fines and payments: Library-fines@unisa.ac.za
• Social media channels: Facebook: UnisaLibrary and Twitter: @UnisaLibrary

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6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES
The Study @ Unisa brochure is available on myUnisa at www.unisa.ac.za/brochures/studies.

This brochure contains important information and guidelines for successful studies through
Unisa.

If you need assistance with the myModules system, you are welcome to use the following
contact details:

• Toll-free landline: 0800 00 1870 (Select option 07 for myModules.)

• E-mail: mymodules22@unisa.ac.za or myUnisaHelp@unisa.ac.za

You can access and view short videos on topics such as how to view your calendar, how to
access module content, how to view announcements for modules, how to submit assessments
and how to participate in forum activities via the following link: https://dtls-
qa.unisa.ac.za/course/view.php?id=32130

Registered Unisa students get a free myLife e-mail account. Important information, notices
and updates are sent exclusively to this account. Please note that it can take up to 24 hours
for your account to be activated after you have claimed it. Please do this immediately after
registering at Unisa, by following this link: myLifeHelp@unisa.ac.za

Your myLife account is the only e-mail account recognised by Unisa for official
correspondence with the University, and will remain your official primary e-mail address on
record at Unisa. You remain responsible for the management of this e-mail account.

6.1 First-Year Experience Programme

Many students find the transition from school education to tertiary education stressful. This is
also true in the case of students enrolling at Unisa for the first time. Unisa is a dedicated open
distance and e-learning institution, and it is very different from face-to-face/contact institutions. It
is a mega university and all our programmes are offered through either blended learning or fully
online learning. It is for this reason that we thought it necessary to offer first-time students
additional/extended support to help them seamlessly navigate the Unisa teaching and learning
journey with little difficulty and few barriers. We therefore offer a specialised student support
programme to students enrolling at Unisa for the first time – this is Unisa’s First-Year
Experience (FYE) Programme, designed to provide you with prompt and helpful information
about services that the institution offers and how you can access information. The following FYE
services are currently offered:

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FYE Website Email Support

www.unisa.ac.za/FYE fye@unisa.ac.za

FYE1500
Post
Registration myUnisa; Study
Orientation Referrals to Skills; Academic &
other support Digital Literacies;
etc
services i.e.
Counselling;
Reading & Writing
workshops

To ensure that you do not miss out on important academic and support communication
from the SRU, please check your myLife inbox regularly.

7. STUDY PLAN
You must work through the lessons on the module page together with the prescribed materials.

8 HOW TO STUDY ONLINE

8.1 What does it mean to study fully online?

Studying fully online modules differs completely from studying some of your other modules at
Unisa.
• All your study material and learning activities for online modules are designed to be
delivered online via myUnisa.
• All your assignments must be submitted online. This means that you must do all your
activities and submit all your assignments on the module page.
• All communication between you and the University happens online. Lecturers will
communicate with you via e-mail and SMS, and use the Announcements, the Discussion
Forums and the Questions and Answers tools. You can also use all of these platforms to
ask questions and contact your lecturers.

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The main tool that we use is myUnisa/myModules. This platform gives you access to the
content of and assessments for your module. At times, you will be directed to join discussions
with fellow students and complete activities and assessments before you can continue with the
module.

It is very important that you log in to myUnisa/myModules regularly. We recommend that you log
in at least once a week to do the following:

• Check for new announcements. You can also set your myLife e-mail account so that you
receive the announcement e-mails on your cellphone.
• Do the Discussion Forum activities. When you do the activities for each learning unit, we
want you to share your answers with the other students in your group. You can read the
instructions and even prepare your answers offline, but you will need to go online to post
your messages.

We hope that the extra ways to study the material and practise all the activities will help you to
succeed in the online module. To get the most out of the online module, you MUST go online
regularly to complete the activities and assignments on time.

9. ASSESSMENT
9.1 Assessment criteria

The assessment criteria for the module correspond to the outcomes outlined in section 2.2 of
this tutorial letter.
9.2 Assessment plan

This is a portfolio module.

The final assessment and final mark for this module is based on a 49% Year Mark (made up of
4 mandatory assignments) and 51% (Portfolio) weighting.

There is no examination for this module. The Portfolio is the summative assessment for the
module and is weighted at 51% of your final mark.

The Year Mark for this module is based on the following FOUR mandatory assessments:

• Assignment 01 (10% weighting) Quiz/Multiple-choice MANDATORY Assignment

• Assignment 02 (40% weighting) Written MANDATORY Assignment

• Assignment 03 (10% weighting) Quiz/Multiple-choice MANDATORY Assignment

• Assignment 04 (40% weighting) Written MANDATORY Assignment

CALCULATION OF FINAL MODULE MARK

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Year mark calculation: [Assignment 01 x 0.1] + [Assignment 02 x 0.4] + [Assignment 03 x 0.1] +

[Assignment 04 x 0.4]

[Year Mark x 0.49] + [Portfolio Mark out of 100 x 0.51] = FINAL MARK

Since the module mark is based on the assignments and Portfolio, there is NO supplementary
examination, NO aegrotat examination, and NO FI concession for this module. If you fail the
module, you will have to repeat it. Your success relies on the completion and timeous
submission of the assignments and Portfolio.

If you fail the module, you will have to repeat it. Your success relies on the completion and
timeous submission of ALL the assignments.

9.3 Turnitin

All written assignments and your Portfolio will be processed through Turnitin when you
submit them.

I (full names): ………………………………………………………………………………………

Student number: …………………… Module code: HED4802
Declare the following:

1. I understand what plagiarism entails and I am aware of the University’s policy in this
regard.
2. This assignment is my own, original work. Where I used someone else’s work, whether a
printed source, the internet or any other source, I give the proper acknowledgement. I
include a complete reference list.
3. I did not use another current or previous student’s work, submitting it as my own.
4. I did not allow and will not allow anyone to copy my work with the intention of submitting it
as their own work.

Signature: ………………………… Date: …………

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9.4 Assessment due dates

• No assignment due dates are included in this tutorial letter.

• Assignment due dates will be made available to you on the myUnisa landing page for this
module. We envisage that the due dates will be available to you upon registration.

• Please start working on your assessments as soon as you register for the module.

• Log on to the myUnisa site for this module to obtain more information on the due dates for
the submission of the assessments.

9.4.1 Types of assignments and descriptions

All assignments are defined as either optional, mandatory, compulsory, or elective.

• Elective assignments
- If not submitted, the student gets no mark for this item.
- The best of the required submissions will count.
• Mandatory assignments
- If not submitted, the student gets no mark for this item.
• Compulsory assignments
- If not submitted, the result on the student’s academic record will be absent.
• Optional assignments – You are encouraged as a student to do optional
assignment so that it may benefit your learning.

I. Elective assignments
a. the student is given a choice of which assignments within an identified group to
submit, only the best result(-s), the number of which is specified in advance, will
contribute towards the year mark.
b. elective assignments must also be grouped into an elective group.
c. for the student to select which assignment to submit, the elective assignments must
be grouped together. For such an elective group, relevant information must be
provided to the student, such as how many of the assignments must be submitted
and how many of the assignment marks should be combined into the year mark.
d. The selection criteria define how marks received for assignments in an elective group
are to be combined into the year mark. Three different criteria may be used for
calculating the year mark:
• The best mark should be used, or
• If the student submits fewer than the required number of assignments per group or
no assignment in a group, a mark of 0% will be used.
• 0% is awarded to all non-submitted or unmarked assessments. A best mark is
then calculated from all items.

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II. Mandatory assignments

a. contribute to the year mark.
b. If a student fails to submit a mandatory assignment, no mark is awarded and the year
mark is calculated accordingly. The student will therefore forfeit the marks attached to
this assignment when the final mark for the module is calculated.
III. Compulsory Assessment
a. when not submitted, the student will fail a Continuous Assessment module but will be
shown as absent from the examination in the case of other modules.

IV. Optional assignments – You are encouraged as a student to do optional assignment so

that it may benefit your learning.

9.5 Submission of assessments

• Unisa, as a comprehensive open distance e-learning institution (CODeL), is moving towards

becoming an online institution. You will therefore see that all your study material,
assessments and engagements with your lecturer and fellow students will take place online.
We use myUnisa as our virtual campus.

• The myUnisa virtual campus offers students access to the myModules site, where learning
material is available online and where assessments should be completed. This is an online
system that is used to administer, document and deliver educational material to students
and support engagement between academics and students.

• The myUnisa platform can be accessed via https://my.unisa.ac.za. Click on the myModules
2024 button to access the online sites for your registered modules.

• The University undertakes to communicate clearly and as frequently as is necessary to

ensure that you obtain the greatest benefit from the use of the myModules learning
management system. Please access the announcements on your myModules site regularly,
as this is where your lecturer will post important information to be shared with you.

• When you access your myModules site for your registered modules, you will see a welcome
message posted by your lecturer. Below the welcome message you will see the assessment
shells for the assessments that you need to complete. Some assessments may be multiple-
choice assessments, some tests, others written assessments, some forum discussions and
so on. All assessments must be completed in the assessment shells available on the
respective module platforms.

• To complete quiz assessments, please log on to the module site where you need to
complete the assessment. Click on the relevant assessment shell (Assessment 1,
Assessment 2, etc.). There will be a date on which the assessment will open for you. When
the assessment is open, access the quiz online and complete it within the time available to
you. Quiz assessment questions are not included in this tutorial letter (Tutorial Letter 101)
and are only made available online. You must therefore access the quiz online and complete
it online where the quiz has been created.
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• It is not advisable to use a cell phone to complete the quiz. Please use a desktop computer,
tablet or laptop when completing the quiz. Students who use a cell phone find it difficult to
navigate the Online Assessment tool on the small screen. They often struggle to navigate
between questions and to complete the quizzes successfully. In addition, cell phones are
more vulnerable to dropped internet connections than other devices. If possible, please do
not use a cell phone for this assessment type.

• For written assessments, please note the due date by which the assessment must be
submitted. Ensure that you follow the guidelines given by your lecturer to complete the
assessment. Click on the submission button on the relevant assessment shell on
myModules. You will then be able to upload your written assessment on the myModules site
for your registered modules. Before you finalise the upload, double-check that you have
selected the correct file for upload. Remember, no marks can be allocated for incorrectly
submitted assessments.

9.6 The assessments

No assignments are included in this tutorial letter. Assignments and due dates will be made
available to you on the myModules site for this module. We envisage that the due dates will be
available to you upon registration.

9.7 Invigilation/proctoring

Since 2020 Unisa conducts all its assessments online. Given stringent requirements from
professional bodies and increased solicitations of Unisa’s students by third parties to assist
them unlawfully in completing assignments and examinations, the University is obliged to
assure its assessment integrity by using various proctoring tools: Turnitin, Moodle Proctoring,
the Invigilator App and IRIS. These tools authenticate the student’s identity and flag suspicious
behaviour to assure credibility of students’ responses during assessments. The description
below is for your benefit as you may encounter any or all of these in your registered modules:

Turnitin is a plagiarism software that facilitates checks for originality in students’ submissions
against internal and external sources. Turnitin assists in identifying academic fraud and ghost
writing. Students are expected to submit typed responses for utilisation of the Turnitin software.

The Moodle Proctoring tool is a facial recognition software that authenticates students’ identity
during their Quiz assessments. This tool requires access to a student’s mobile or laptop
camera. Students must ensure their camera is activated in their browser settings prior to their
assessments.

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The Invigilator “mobile application-based service does verification” of the identity of an

assessment participant. The Invigilator mobile application detects student dishonesty-by-proxy
and ensures that the assessment participant is the registered student. This invigilation tool
requires students to download the app from their Play Store (Google, Huawei and Apple) on
their mobile devices (which must be camera enabled) prior to their assessment.

IRIS Invigilation software verifies the identity of a student during assessment and provides for
both manual and automated facial verification. It has the ability to record and review a student’s
assessment session. It flags suspicious behaviour by students for review by an academic
administrator. IRIS software requires installation on students’ laptop devices that are enabled
with a webcam.

Students who are identified and flagged for suspicious or dishonest behaviour arising from the
invigilation and proctoring reports are referred to the disciplinary office for formal proceeding.

IMPORTANT:

Students must refer to their module assessment information on their myModule sites to
determine which proctoring or invigilation tool will be used for their formative and summative
assessments.

10. ACADEMIC DISHONESTY

10.1 Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas and thoughts of others and presenting them as
your own. It is a form of theft. Plagiarism includes the following forms of academic dishonesty:

• copying and pasting from any source without acknowledging the source
• not including references or deliberately inserting incorrect bibliographic information
• paraphrasing without acknowledging the original source of the information

10.2 Cheating
Cheating includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• completing assessments on behalf of another student, copying the work of another student
during an assessment, or allowing another student to copy your work
• using social media (e.g., WhatsApp, Telegram) or other platforms to disseminate
assessment information
• submitting corrupt or irrelevant files, as stipulated in the examination guidelines
• buying completed answers from so-called “tutors” or internet sites (contract cheating)
• use of AI tools
For more information about plagiarism, visit
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/myunisa/default/Study-@-Unisa/Student-values-and-rules.

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11. STUDENTS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES
The Advocacy and Resource Centre for Students with Disabilities (ARCSWiD) provides an
opportunity for staff to interact with first-time and returning students with disabilities.
If you are a student with a disability and would like additional support or need additional time for
assessments, you are invited to contact your lecturer.

12. IN CLOSING
Do not hesitate to contact us by e-mail if you are experiencing problems with the content of this
tutorial letter or with any academic aspect of the module.

We wish you a fascinating and satisfying journey through the learning material, and trust that
you will complete the module successfully.

Enjoy the journey!

Prof P Biccard

biccap@unisa.ac.za

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