Vocational education and training curriculum development in South Sudan: a case study of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate, the status of technical vocational education and training curriculum development and implementation in South Sudan. The following objectives guided this study: To find out the steps taken so far by the government to develop TVET curriculum, to find out the challenges being experienced in making the curriculum, and to recommend ways of developing TVET curriculum for South Sudan. This research was based on descriptive survey design. It was following a qualitative approach. The following were the finding: Government is taking giant steps to address the curriculum problem in South Sudan. Key challenges hindering curriculum development are lack of capacity, experts, and insufficient funds. Lack of cooperation among partners/ministries implementing TVET insufficient funding, and insufficient good reference materials, insufficient number of experts and lack of policies/guidelines have to be addressed with urgency since these are fundamental issues that continue to hinder the curriculum development. The researcher recommend need to prioritize reform ofTVET. This is by developing a unified national curriculum that could offer the chances of those graduating from TVET and other educational institutions with credible certificates for employment. The Government of South Sudan needs to suggest new reforms in the education in general and TVET system in particular, changes within the curricula so as to produce graduates with knowledge and skills relevant to the changing demands of the labor market. South Sudan can evade of these problems by putting life skills as part of TVET education curriculum. The TVET curricula should have both academic and practical learning offeU!d every day and include modules to allow for maximum flexibility and allow students to move in and out of courses and build upon their skills in a sequential or appropriate manner.