National Qualifications Framework Act, 2008 (Act No. 67 of 2008) Notices Policy and Criteria for Credit Accumulation and Transfer within the National Qualifications Framework (as amended, 2021) Definitions

 

 

means the process of forming systemic, specific and individual possibilities of connection between qualifications and/or part-qualifications to allow for the horizontal/ lateral, vertical and diagonal movement of learners through the formal education and training system and its linkages with the world of work:

 

means, for the purposes of this policy, the process used to identify, gather and interpret information and evidence against the required competencies in a qualification, part-qualification, or professional designation in order to make a judgement about a learner’s achievement; assessment includes evaluations that lead to judgements;

 

means the degree of similarity between two or more qualifications/ part-qualifications in terms of purpose, level, credits and learning outcomes in order to determine the extent of credit accumulation and/ or transfer within or between institutions. The matching of curricular properties should also be considered when comparability is determined;

 

means the totalling of relevant credits required to complete a qualification or a part-qualification;

 

means the practice of accumulating credits from one or more cognate learning programmes in an institution, and transferring those credits to be recognised towards a qualification/part-qualification in the same or a different institution;

 

means an arrangement whereby the diverse features of both credit accumulation and credit transfer are combined to facilitate lifelong learning and access to the workplace;

 

means a system in which learning outcomes can be arranged and compared in levels of increased complexity based on agreed groupings of credits, such as in modules/subjects or part-qualifications;

 

means the vertical, horizontal or diagonal relocation of credits towards a qualification or part-qualification on the same or different level, usually between different programmes, departments or institutions;

 

means the amount of learning contained in a qualification or part-qualification whereby one (1) credit is equated to ten (10) notional hours of learning;

 

means a statement of the training structure and expected methods of learning, teaching and assessment that underpin a qualification or part-qualification to facilitate a more general understanding of its implementation in an education system;

 

means any systems and processes that are designed to limit the opportunities of specific individuals or groups of people seeking to access further learning or professional development even when they meet the legitimate criteria for admission or professional registration. Unfair exclusionary practices limit opportunities and is based on illegitimate criteria, including but not limited to population group, disability, gender and affordability, and may be contested;

 

means learning that occurs in an organised and structured education and training environment, and that is explicitly designated as such;

 

means, for the purposes of this policy, learning that results from daily activities related to paid or unpaid work, family or community life, or leisure; it can include deliberate self-teaching;

 

means anyone, at any age, engaged in learning at any level of the NQF and in any NQF, work or social context, including formal, informal and non-formal learning; used inter-changeably with “Student”;

 

 

means a structured and purposeful set of learning experiences comprising modules/ subjects and other learning activities, which, together contribute towards the achievement of specified learning outcomes;

 

means a statement describing learning achievement at a particular level of the NQF that provides a broad indication of the types of learning outcomes and assessment criteria that are appropriate to a qualification/ part-qualification at that level;

 

means learning that takes place in all contexts in life from a life-wide, life-deep and lifelong perspective. It includes learning behaviours and obtaining knowledge, understanding, attitudes, values and competencies for personal growth, social and economic well-being, democratic citizenship, cultural identity and employability;

 

means the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation;

 

is a comprehensive system approved by the Minister for the classification, registration, publication and articulation of quality-assured national qualifications;

 

means, for the purpose of this policy, planned learning activities not explicitly designated as learning towards the achievement of a qualification or part-qualification; it is often associated with learning that results in improved workplace practice and can include deliberate self-teaching;

 

means the agreed estimate of the learning time that it would take an average learner to meet the defined outcomes, it includes consideration of contact time, research, completion of assignments, time spent in structured learning in the workplace, individual learning, group work, projects and others Ten (10) notional hours equate to one (1) credit;

 

means the South African National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Act No. 67 of 2008;

 

means the contextually demonstrated end-products of specific learning processes, which include knowledge, skills and values. Outcomes could be generic or specific;

 

means an assessed unit of learning that is registered as part of a qualification on the NQF;

 

means any statutory or non-statutory body that sets professional standards and registers individual expert practitioners in an occupational field;

 

means a title or status conferred by a professional body in recognition of a person’s expertise and/ or right to practise in an occupational field;

 

 

means a registered national qualification;

 

means, in South Africa, a public or private entity that offers any learning programmes that lead to qualifications or part-qualifications registered on the NQF, (1) that is accredited or deemed accredited as a provider by Umalusi to offer qualifications in the General and Further Education and Training Qualifications Sub-Framework (GFETQSF); or (2) that is accredited by the QCTO as a Skills Development Provider to offer qualifications in the Occupational Qualifications Sub-Framework (OQSF); or (3) where its programmes are accredited by the CHE and registered on the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework (HEQSF) – where independent schools must also be registered with the relevant provincial departments of education and private Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), private Further Education and Training (FET) Colleges and Private Community Education and Training (CET) Colleges must also be registered with the Department of Higher Education;

 

means the principles and processes through which the prior knowledge and skills of a person, learned informally and non-formally, are made visible, mediated and assessed for the purposes of alternative access and admission, recognition and certification, or further learning and development;

 

 

means the exposure and interactions required to practise the integration of knowledge, skills and attitudes required in the workplace.