In this thesis I present a collection of semi-narrative poems about a rural Africa that is a place of folk-lore and tradition, but also a place of otherworldly, almost grotesque, incident. My characters are, similarly, range in type, from buskers, to guards, school-children, paupers and tycoons. Through the work a place that is both familiar and unknown, common-place and mysterious, emerge.

This study, which was carried out in Mdantsane township in the Eastern Cape, attempts to explain why some learners from the former Department of Education and Training, and whose mother-tongue is Xhosa, are more proficient English Second Language (ESL) writers than others. As one who grew up as an ESL learner, and has taught as an ESL teacher in this area, my interest in this field of study has been triggered by the concern of one who has experienced educational disadvantage. My understanding of what it means to be an ESL writer, given the status that English enjoys in South Africa presently, has been the motivating force behind this study. The study focuses on competent ESL writers. It is hoped that other researchers, teacher educators and teachers will learn something from the practices and strategies used by the learners in this study. In its investigation this study employs case studies. For purposes of triangulation, multiple sources of data collection have been used. The major areas of focus are on the learners and their ESL writing practices. Collection of data includes formal interviews with both ESL learners and their teachers, informal interviews with the learners' Xhosa teachers, observation as well as text analysis. The findings of the study suggest, among other things, that more often than not, it is learners who are motivated extroverts, ambitious go-getters and uninhibited survivors who become excellent ESL writers. Like any study, this has certain limitations. As a result the interpretation of data has been expressed in tentative terms. This does not mean that there is nothing to be gained from a study of this nature. Instead, the aim is to challenge more researchers to take up this issue, so that generalis ability across case studies can be achieved.

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One of the fundamental problems facing writing instructors who use collaboration is that traditional assessment measures, such as in-class essay exams, undermine rather than support such writing activities that are rooted in social construction theory. While the use of collaboration in writing classrooms continues to grow, the field of assessment remains virtually silent about the compatibility of traditional assessment methods with collaborative writing tasks such as group work and peer review. This thesis discusses social construction and assessment theories, their relation to collaboration, and the current role of both in writing classrooms.

This thesis shows how Stephen Gosson's The School of Abuse (1579) functions as a rhetorical composition. The elements of writer, readership, and text are each examined in order to elucidate the rhetorical decisions made by Gosson during the composition of The School.

Thesis (M. A. (English Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / This study evaluated the application of the ‘process approach’ to writing in secondary schools in Limpopo Province; The initial plan was to involve two rural and two urban schools. However, the urban schools did not cooperate as initially promised when preparations were made. It is for this reason that the sample was made up of two rural and two peri-urban schools. The study investigated English writing as a basic language skill that second language learners needed to acquire, in a process writing context. Related literature was reviewed to develop knowledge in the area of writing as a process. An exploratory research design was employed and a qualitative approach was followed to mainly collect in-depth data in a Grade 12 English language classroom. The Grade 12 learners and their teachers were interviewed and observed in their writing classrooms. The process that learners followed when engaged in writing an assigned essay was scrutinized in line with what is required by Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in order to confirm the teachers’ responses and the observations made during writing lessons. Thematic analysis was used for the data emanating from interview responses, an observation checklist and the learners’ essay marking rubric. The study revealed that the method of teaching writing and the learners’ writings resembled the process approach. This implies that teachers and learners implement process writing even though the teachers do so to a varying degree due to overcrowded classrooms and a lack of resources experienced more in rural schools than in the peri-urban ones

Many young children appear to take delight in manipulating common elements of their environment, e.g., sticks, stones, and mud. Our ancestors also used these and other elements in order to play, explore,, and eventually create written language. In a print-laden society, young children are budding literates. Within a few years their abilities and skills evolve to the level it has taken the human species thousands of years to reach. Associated with the evolution of written language is related technology. Humans have evolved from cave art and literacy to computer art and literacy. Again, what has taken thousands of years to evolve for the species takes only a few years for today's children. Within the past ten years computers have become common literacy implements in American schools. An understanding of childrens' use of this machine is important to educators in general and educational leaders in particular. The purpose of this study was to investigate kindergarten students' use of a word processor: What developmental sequences related to print literacy reveal themselves as kindergarten children use a word processor? In what ways are these sequences the same or different than those identified by researchers studying young children's use of pencil and paper? What time commitments do children make at each stage of these developmental sequences? How do the physical attributes of the computer environment, screen color for example, influence children's behavior associated with word processing? A review of literature incorporated readings associated with research in human evolution of print literacy, literacy of technology, language and cognition plus recent research on writing and computers. A research design incorporating qualitative methods was created. Six subjects, representing a variety of backgrounds in a kindergarten class of 26 full day students, were observed for 20 weeks. For one hour each day, this kindergarten class attended a writing lab which contained eight learning centers. One of the learning centers consisted of six word processors networked to two printers. In addition to collecting student documents, both in paper and electronic form. subjects' behaviors were observed and recorded. Observational recordings were analyzed, collapsed into manageable data and re-analyzed. Subjects' evolution of writing was similar to children using pencil and paper. In addition, subject's literacy of technology evolved. Each subject displayed individual episodes of development and incorporated less mature behaviors with more mature behaviors as they evolved along their print literacy and literacy of technology continuums. It was observed that subjects intertwined print and technological behaviors and skills as they wrote with a word processor. Time relationships associated with the development of writing and environmental aspects of the word processor center did not appear important. Information Age etiquette evolved as students controlled their writing, a computer system. and worked with others. The inherent publicness of monitors contributed to meta-linguistics, sharing knowledge about technology, and problem solving among students. Young children are capable of writing with and manipulating a word processor. They are also capable of trying to solve problems of written language and computers. Educators will find that young children quickly learn Information Age tool etiquette.

The purpose of this study was to develop a theoretically-based social studies curriculum that incorporated research related to schema theory, reading to learn theory, and writing to learn theory. Learning principles and instructional principles were derived from each theory to serve as guidelines for selecting instructional strategies from the research to be included in the curriculum. The content of the Heath Social Studies text (1985) and the instructional strategies together constitute the curriculum for this study. A preparation phase, a guidance phase, and an independence phase was developed for each chapter of the curriculum based on Herber's (1978) instructional framework. / Ed. D. / incomplete_metadata