High School Program of Study

Senior Phase

Grade 7 – 9

The Senior Phase of Orion College contains our Grade 7 to 9 learners. The classes are small, which offers educators the opportunity to provide differentiation and adopt remedial teaching styles to accommodate each learner’s needs.
Learners are taught the CAPS syllabus and complete all of the assessments that are required. Orion College offers support in the form of extended opportunities, which affords learners additional opportunities and support when they have not achieved adequate results in an assessment.

Additional support is offered in the form of extra lessons in English, Mathematics and Afrikaans; these classes are small and learners are able to receive individual attention during the sessions. Furthermore, learners who require one-on-one support are accommodated with weekly sessions with a Remedial Therapist, who will then work on areas in which the learner is struggling (e.g. spelling, reading, etc.) Senior Phase learners are encouraged to participate in Sport and Culture throughout the year, and are also given the opportunity to attend educational school trips which tie into the syllabus.

The following subjects are taught in the Senior Phase at Orion College: English Home Language, Afrikaans First Additional Language, Mathematics, Life Orientation, Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Economic Management Sciences, Creative Arts, and Technology.

FET Phase

The Further Education and Training Phase at Orion College follows the CAPS curriculum as prescribed by the GDE. Orion offers the following set of subjects:

• English Home Language
• Afrikaans Eerste Addisionele Taal
• Life Orientation
• Mathematical Literacy
• Consumer Studies
• Business Studies
• Computer Applications Technology

The number of learners in the Grade 10 to 12 classes is small, which ensures that the learners receive a lot of individual attention. Academic support is something that Orion takes very seriously in the FET phase, and many forms of support are offered to the learner.

Extra lessons in English, Afrikaans and Mathematical Literacy are offered on a weekly basis after school. Homework classes are run on a daily basis (apart from Friday) where learners may obtain extra support in any of the subjects.

Orion College provides holiday schooling for learners in order to cover more content and allow for extended opportunities to grasp the academic content. Particularly in Matric, learners attend Saturday classes as well.

Regular communication with the parents is key to our philosophy as it is essential that the parents are kept abreast of their child’s progress and challenges. Regular feedback and meetings are held, where necessary, to ensure that the learner is being given the best opportunity to reach their full potential.

Orion College is proud to announce that we have had a 100% Matric pass rate since our first learners wrote Matric in 2015.

The Vocational Phase

Learners who have completed Grade 9 successfully and learners from the Pre-Vocational class join the Vocational class where they complete the National Certificate: Information Technology: End user Computing NQF Level 3 (61591) and the Further Education and Training Certificate: Information Technology: System Support NQF Level 4 (78964). Successful learner receives SAQA certification.
National Certificate: Information Technology: End user Computing NQF Level 3 (61591)
This course empowers the learners to become efficient in working with computers. The Core Unit standards of this course include:
Word-Processing
Spreadsheets
Databases
Internet
Presentations
Further Education and Training Certificate: Information Technology: System Support NQF Level 4 (78964)
This course enables learners to work on the technical side of the information technology industry.
Learners complete unit standards that teach them about installing and maintaining computer systems. Learners cover all the theoretical work necessary to obtain the certification.

Skills Phase

At Orion we strive to give every learner the opportunity to gain academic achievement at their own level, despite the barriers and difficulties they face. Learners in the Skills Stream have an Individual Education Plan which personalises their learning opportunities and the required intervention to help them meet their full potential. The subjects covered are English, Maths and Life Skills.

The High School furthers the practical skills through woodwork, cooking gardening and other useful skills for life. The focus is on developing independence and preparing these learners for life outside of school and the world of work.

In 2018 the Skills Department will be accrediting all project work through the ASDAN International Centre, which will provide certification for learners in this stream. ASDAN is a curriculum development organisation and registered awarding body. Their courses explicitly grow skills for learning, skills for work and skills for life. The ASDAN programmes cater for all ages and abilities and will run across both the Primary and High School phases.