Reflections on the Dilemma of the Implementation of Competence-Based Curriculum in Zanzibar schools for sustainable development

Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous country in Tanzania adopted a competency-based curriculum in 2009. The goal of competency-based curriculum’s was to solve problem facing society using theory, reinvested new knowledge in the... [ view full abstract ]

Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous country in Tanzania adopted a competency-based curriculum in 2009. The goal of competency-based curriculum’s was to solve problem facing society using theory, reinvested new knowledge in the society and to produce graduates who are employable and competent who will serve their society. For those particular purposes the competency-based curriculum was preferred to content-based curriculum. This study explored issues and dilemmas surrounding the implementation of competence based curriculum in Zanzibar schools. The study examined the teachers’ practical understanding of the competence based curriculum. The participants (students teachers and school teachers) were drawn from two teachers' domains (teacher training institutions and schools).The data were collected through interview schedules, observation schedules, and review of studies and existing documents on competence Based Education and Training (CBET). The data were analysed using thematic content analysis. The finding revealed that the implementation of competence based curriculum in these two teachers domains is still ineffective and at a crossroad. The In essence, content-based curriculum is still prevailing, alive and in operational.In view of these findings, we concluded that the continued use of competency-based curriculum in that situation will not meet sustainable development goals. So far, the education system requires reforms because it nurtures the vicious cycle of incompetent students taught by incompetent teachers and student teachers in incompetent education system. It is recommended that regular training for in-service teachers should be conducted in order to enable them acquire up-to-date teaching skills as required by the changes introduced in the school curricula. Importantly, to adopt competencies for sustainable development in education, there is a need to integrate competence-based practices within the existing teacher education curriculum to promote competence-based curriculum.