The DBE workbooks, a project initiated by Basic Education Minister, Mrs Angie Motshekga during 2014, in addition to the existing Learning and Teaching Support Material (LTSM), added value to the improvement of quality education in South Africa.

During 2014 to 2019, the DBE has consistently provided Volume 1 and Volume 2 workbooks per semester to various provinces to strengthen quality learning and teaching from Grades R to 9.

Chief Education Specialist for LTSM, Mr Makondelela Tshitema, said: “For the past five years, the DBE has been providing high quality workbooks to schools across all nine provinces. The workbooks were designed to cover a wide scope of lessons in all eleven official languages, Mathematics and the Language of Learning and Teaching (LoLT) in General Education and Training (GET). During this period, the DBE sent a total of 346,836,020 Grades R to 9 workbooks to all public schools making it the most impactful project in the Basic Education Sector. Workbooks also provide worksheets that are tied to the pace and level of the curriculum requirements, whilst providing challenging tasks for learners to develop a constructivist approach to learning”.

In his reflection on the success of the project, Mr Tshitema added, “Learning aspects covered by the workbooks include quality activities and ideas that portray good practice aimed at improving learning outcomes. It further offers learners an opportunity to acquire and apply skills in a systematic way, and ensure that learners are given adequate opportunities to consolidate their skills through written responses. The workbooks project should be commended because it provides a model of good practice, which guides teachers to improve their teaching through a variety of activities to reinforce Mathematical concepts and skills, as well as literacy language skills at an early age of a child’s schooling”.

https://www.education.gov.za/Curriculum/Workbooks/tabid/574/Default.aspx