Zimbabwe Form 1 School Syllabus - Indigenous Languages (Shona or Ndebele)

This syllabus covers the learning objectives and assessment criteria for Indigenous Languages (Shona or Ndebele) at the Form 1-4 level and the Form 5-6 level. The curriculum emphasizes listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, as well as non-verbal communication. It also aims to foster an appreciation for Zimbabwean heritage, cultural diversity, and Unhu/Ubuntu/Vumunhu (humanity, respect, and compassion).

Forms 1-4

The Forms 1-4 syllabus builds a foundation in listening, speaking, reading, writing, and non-verbal skills. It incorporates visual, tactile, and manual learning to cater to diverse learning needs. The curriculum emphasizes communicative approaches and contextual learning.

Topics Covered:

• Composition: Various types of compositions (narrative, descriptive, factual, letters), focusing on structure, creative writing, orthographic accuracy, and style.
• Language Usage and Registers: Figurative expressions, homophones, synonyms, antonyms, counting, relations, ancient and modern communication methods, directions, announcements, and appropriate registers.
• Comprehension and Summary: Understanding stories, news, songs, poems, folktales, reports, graphs, pictures, maps, puzzles, and cartoons. Developing skills in answering questions, inferring meaning, and summarizing.
• Language Structure: Parts of speech and their construction.

Assessment:

Continuous assessment (30%) includes practical assignments, theory tests, and creative projects. Summative assessment (70%) consists of two papers:

• Paper 1 (40%): Composition, comprehension, and summary.
• Paper 2 (30%): Language usage, registers, and language structure.

Forms 5-6

The Forms 5-6 syllabus expands on the Forms 1-4 foundation, consolidating language and literary appreciation skills at a higher level. It emphasizes critical thinking, problem-solving, leadership, collaboration, translation, decision-making, and patriotism.

Topics Covered:

• Composition Writing: Advanced composition types, structure, and stylistic elements.
• Creative Writing: Exploring different genres, style, publishing principles, copyright issues, and marketing strategies.
• Registers: Advanced application of registers in various contexts.
• Comprehension: In-depth comprehension of various texts, including drama, prose, and verse. Interpreting meaning, cultural and heritage aspects, and debating thematic issues.
• Summary: Advanced summary writing techniques for various text types.
• Language Structure: Substantival hierarchy, verbal hierarchy, and ideophonic hierarchy.

Assessment:

Continuous assessment (30%) includes practical assignments, theory tests, and creative projects, including a one-week internship. Summative assessment (70%) consists of two papers:

• Paper 1 (35%): Composition and comprehension.
• Paper 2 (35%): Language structure, registers, and summary.

Both syllabi integrate indigenous knowledge systems, cultural aspects, and cross-cutting themes such as heritage studies, gender, health issues (including HIV/AIDS), disaster risk management, children's rights, environmental issues, enterprise, and financial literacy. ICT skills are also emphasized throughout.