COMPARISON BETWEEN O LEVEL AND CAMBRIDGE SYLABII

Syllabus is an outline and summary of topics to be covered in an education or training course.

Generally, Biology Syllabus is a document that shows the list of topics and concepts to be covered by the students and some suggestion on how the topic can be taught and evaluated in Biology subject.

Ordinary Level Biology Syllabus (2005) is the revised vision which has been prepared to replace that of 1996, it has been focused on change in paradigm from that of content based curriculum to a competence based curriculum (TIE, 2005).

Therefore, Ordinary Level Biology Syllabus is used for student from form one (I), form (II), form three (III) and form (IV). It has content which proceeded by class level competences and class level objectives for each form.

The Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Syllabus is a course control document accredited for use in England, Wales and Northern Ireland as a Cambridge International Level1/Level 2 Certificate (UCLES, 2010).

The Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) has been chosen by educators around the world because it is recognised by schools, universities and employers as equivalent to United Kingdom General Certificate of Secondary Education, also it provides support service for teachers and exams officers and it also develops successful students (UCLES, 2010).

The following are the differences between the Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Syllabus and Ordinary Level Biology Syllabus (2005) of Tanzania;

S/n.	Feature	Cambridge (IGCSE) Syllabus	‘O’ Level Biology Syllabus (2005)
1.	Author	-          University of Cambridge.	-          Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE).
2.	Publisher	-          © UCLES 2010.	-          Ministry of Education and Culture (2005).
3.	Code	-          Has code 0610	-          Has no code.
4.	Usage	-          It is used internationally.	-          It is used in Tanzania only.
5.	Origin of the syllabus	-          It does not show its origin.	-Its introduction has shown the origin of the new syllabus of 2005 which replaced that of 1996 and the reasons for paradigm shift.

Specific objectives; the Ordinary Level Biology Syllabus (2005) contains a column shown specific objective to be covered on each topic and subtopic, hence ensuring the specific and major part of each topic and subtopic are well covered to ensure learners competence. Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Syllabus does not indicate the specific objectives in each topic and sub-topic.

 Learning activities;  the Ordinary Level Biology Syllabus (2005) indicate only  the core but not supplement student learning activities while  Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Syllabus indicate both the core and supplement student learning activities. Therefore the IGCSE syllabus show the wide range of learning content to be covered by a student to ensure  the learners master the subject content.

The following are the similarities of the Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Syllabus and Ordinary Level Biology Syllabus (2005) of Tanzania.

1.)    Both have general objectives of studying Biology.

2.)    Both have topics arranged from simple to complex.

3.)    Both are competence-based syllabi, for example in Cambridge IGCSE syllabus, one of aims is ‘‘to develop abilities and skills that are relevant to study and practice of Biology, useful in everyday life, encourage efficient and self-practice and encourage effective communication’’ (pg. 7), also in ‘O’ level Biology syllabus one of the aim is to make appropriate use of biological knowledge, concepts, skills and principles in solving various problems in daily life (pg. iv).

4.)    Both have guided learning hours, for example in Cambridge IGCSE syllabus candidates have about 130 guided learning hours per subject over the duration of the course, also in ‘O’ level Biology syllabus the guided instructional time is approximately 194 instructional days per year, including two weeks reserved for mid-year and annual examination.

5.)    Both they use English language as language of instruction.

Generally, syllabus is a formal statement of what the course is about, what students are being asked to, and how their performance will be evaluated. Having a well-developed course syllabus requires the instructor to organize early and think precisely about teaching. It will help students know what is expected from them from the start of the course, and syllabus will allow them to plan their semester or term efficiently. ‘O’ level Biology syllabus of Tanzania can take into consideration some format of the Cambridge IGCSE syllabus such as specific time allocation for practical and written instruction when assessment can be carried out.

REFERENCES

Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE), (2005).Biology Syllabus for SecondarySchool (form I-IV).

                                                              Tanzania. Ministry of Education and Culture.

 University of Cambridge, (2010). Cambridge IGCSE Biology Syllabus code 0610. England. 

                                                      UCLES.