A STEP CLOSER TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE JOURNALISM OCCUPATIONAL QUALIFICATION
The South African National Editors Forum (SANEF) in partnership with frayintermedia oversaw the first workshop aimed at developing the assessments for the new journalism occupational qualification on Friday and Saturday, 20 and 21 April at Media24 Offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
The two-day workshop brought together 20 seasoned journalists, media experts and journalism trainers to contribute to the development of the national assessment standards. The process is funded by the Fibre Processing and Manufacturing (FP&M) Seta and quality assured by the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO).
“I am pleased with the level of participation so far. We are inviting experienced media practitioners and editors to attend upcoming meetings and contribute based on their experience. It is only in consultation with practitioners that the skills gaps in our newsrooms can be addressed.” says Tshamano Makhadi, Chairperson of SANEF’s Education and Training Sub-committee.
The workshop follows the official registration of the journalist occupational qualification with the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA). The new journalism qualification takes the fundamental journalism skills needed in modern newsroom environment to produce a qualification that meets the needs of the sector.
The qualification is at NQF level 5 and 6 and is aimed at entry-level journalists, school-leavers who wish to pursue a career in journalism, graduates who lack newsroom experience or experienced journalists working in converged newsrooms. It will enable journalists to create stories for radio, television, print and on-line using text, video, still images and sound. Part of the learning process will include work based skills development, during which learners will be placed in newsrooms to gain real-life experience.
SANEF calls industry experts including senior journalists, news editors and media trainers to participate in future workshops and meetings during the course of 2018 and help define and uphold standards for journalism education. The FP&M Seta also urges the industry to take advantage of this opportunity to contribute.
By the end of the year, SANEF will have a complete package with learners’ study guide and workbook, a facilitator guide, national external integrated summative assessment (EISA) tools and a registered learnership.
For more information please contact:
Tshamano Makhadi – SANEF Chairperson: Education & Training Sub-committee
0822230621
Prudence Tlhale – frayintermedia: Training Manager
0625073836
