Summaries in Afrikaans and English / Die doel van hierdie studie was om te bepaat of 'n hulpverleningsprogram die laerskoolleerder wat taalhindemisse ervaar kan help om sy probleme op 'n kreatiewe wyse te benader. 'n Algemene oorsig van leerhindemisse wat laerskoolleerders ervaar, is gegee. lndien 'n leerder taalhindernisse ervaar, sal dit 'n direkte invloed op sy ander skoolvakke ook he omdat taal vir die leeraksie benodig word. Die kreatiwiteitsbegrip is ook van naderby beskou. Kreatiwiteit kan as die skep van iets wat oorspronklik, maar ook bruikbaar is, gedefinieer word. Dit sluit egter ook die Ie van ongewone verbande tussen twee of meer sake of voorwerpe in. Die program wat ontwikkel is, het as onderbou die teorie oor taalintelligensie van Howard Gardner, 'n opvoedkundige sielkundige aan Harvard Universiteit. Gardner meen dit is deur 'n kreatiewe ingesteldheid, multisensoriese tegnieke en gepaste leerstyle rnoontlik om taalintelligensie teverbeter. Hy is van mening dat taalintelligensie nie iets is wat op 'n bepaalde tydstip gemeet kan word en onveranderd bly nie. Soos met alle intellektuele vermoens, kan taalvaardighede ook uitgebrei en ontwikkel word. Beproefde remedierende tegnieke, wat reeds deur die navorser in die praktyk met welslae uitgetoets is, is op 'n vars, nuwe manier .in die hulpverleningsprogram gebruik. Die hulpverleningsprogram het op die verbetering van perseptuele, mondelinge stelwerk-,lees- en spellingvaardighede gefokus. Dit het gedurende die empiriese studie duidelik geword dat leerders wat op 'n bepaalde leergebied nie na wense presteer nie, dikwels 'n "sielkundige blokkasie" ten opsigte van daardie leerareas ontwikkel. Hulle assosieer Jaasgenoemde in die meeste gevalle met leeronvermoe en leermislukking. Die enigste manier om hierdie gevoel van leermagteloosheid aan te spreek, is om die problematiese leerareas met 'n minder ernstige akademiese aanslag, waarin die pret-element sterk aanwesig is, te benader. Wanneer die leeraksie as 'n aangename ondervindingervaar word, kan leerders hulle leervrese aanspreek en meer waagmoedig begin optree. / The purpose of this study was to investigate the success of an innovative support programme aimed at assisting primary school learners with language barriers to overcome these. An overview was given of learning barriers primary school learners may experience. A learner with a language barrier will find that the other learning areas are negatively influenced because language is essential for learning. The concept of creativity, defined as the creation of something original, yet useful, was adhered to. It included the idea that creativity allows for the connecting of unrelated issues or objects. The theories of Howard Gardner, an educational psychologist at Harvard University, concerning language intelligence, supported this study. According to Gardner it is possible to improve language intelligence through creative awareness, multi-sensory techniques and appropriate learning styles. Gardner postulates that language, as in the case of other intellectual abilities, can be developed and expanded. Remedial techniques successfully used by the researcher in practice, have been presented in this support programme in a novel and innovative form. The creative support programme compiled for this thesis focused on the 1 improvement of perceptual, oral, reading and spelling skills. The need for a more informal support approach was evident in the empirical research of this study. Learners sometimes develop a "psychological block" when experiencing repeated difficulties in a specific learning area. Such learners associate these difficulties with failures and the inability to learn. In order to overcome the experience of learning dispair, the feelings of anxiety associated with the problem learning area, have to be replaced with a less rigid approach in which play encourages feelings of enjoyment and ease. When learning becomes a pleasant experience, learners start overcoming their fears and become risk takers. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Sielkundige Opvoedkunde)

Students who study through the medium of a second language often have reading/listening comprehension and general study problems. This study focuses on particular aspects of these problems only, namely, identification of main ideas, summarisation and note-taking. The aim of this study was w determine the effect of teaching L2 students a combination of metacognitive and cognitive strategies for reading and listening comprehension (the main idea, summarising and note-taking by means of dictation). An intervention programme was designed in order to teach students these skills. There were ten students in both the experimental and the control groups. Both groups were assessed before and after the intervention programme. The findings reveal that the intervention was successful, with the experimental group showing greater improvement than the control group. The findings of this study have implications for second language tertiary learning and teaching theory and practice / Linguistics and Modern Languages / M.A. (Linguistics)

The notion of a curriculum that is relevant, aligned and properly implemented has prevailed in Swaziland as indicated by the change from a content-led curriculum to a skills-driven one. The process of curriculum alignment as being the cornerstone of educational relevance and development has prevailed since the country’s independence. In the 21stCentury, the process culminated in the development and implementation of the Swaziland General Certificate of Secondary Education curriculum at senior secondary school level. This thesis traces the process of ensuring that the SGCSE curriculum is aligned in local contexts through descriptive analyses of the critical post-implementation developments of eight schools in the Shiselweni region. The perceptions of language heads of departments (HoDs) in underprivileged settings are described. Established constructs for the curriculum to be aligned in the contexts are reviewed and local language department heads’ perceptions on curriculum alignment are analysed. The strengths and shortfalls of their attempts in aligning the curriculum in their contexts of implementation are highlighted. Recommendations for future development are then suggested. The purpose of the study was to describe the perceptions on policy change and curriculum alignment of language department heads from underprivileged schools in Swaziland. An examination of their documents showed that the HoDs applauded curriculum alignment. After interviews, it was revealed that the HoDs viewed alignment of the curriculum in the local context to be a strategy of ensuring that the curriculum was successful in the context of implementation. Language department heads in the schools believed that the government had a major role to play in ensuring institutional commitment towards the directives that the government itself was issuing, before the school principals could do anything. The HoDs also believed that there was a need for administrative support in the form of support from the principals of the schools, followed therein by a fundamental need for cross-departmental cooperation and support from the community within which the schools are located. Departmental teamwork was also considered essential for success. It was therefore concluded that aligning the curriculum was extremely frustrating in that while the HoDs were aware of the local needs of students, it was also clear that local curriculum decision-making could not take place effectively without external support from the governing body, the Ministry of Education. It was recommended that the Ministry of Education should deal directly with the HoDs with regard to issues relating to curriculum interpretation and implementation. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

Bibliography: leaves 211-227. This thesis addresses the implications of language policy for foreign language teaching practice. It specifically looks at the implementation of language policy on the practice of teaching English in Indonesian and Thai primary schools as well as on the practice of teaching Indonesian in Australian primary schools.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

The problem this study addresses is the continuing ineffective teaching of English as a Second Language (ESL) despite the popularity of in-service (INSET) programmes. As a means of situational analysis, ethnographic approaches were used to investigate the INSET participants in the four-year degree programme at the University of Botswana. Responses to one inventory containing second language teaching activities showed that the activities respondents know to characterize ESL classrooms do not facilitate much verbal teacher-pupil/pupil-pupil interaction. Responses to another inventory containing idealised course content showed evidence of needs the preparation programme was ignoring. This confirmed one of two study hypotheses that: there are specific second language teaching needs being ignored by preparation programmes for primary school language teachers. Document analysis verified the assumptions about what classroom English Language Teaching (ELT) was expected to achieve. However, lesson observation revealed that the products of the programme still taught and perceived English as a mental exercise, with the following results: the lessons were complicated, uninspiring, unenjoyable, restrictive, and ineffective. Questionnaire and interview results confirmed the second study hypothesis that: the confidence of non-native English-speaking teachers (non-NESTs) with regard to competence in English, which affects the effectiveness and efficiency of their teaching, is low. As a solution a model specifying the essential programme components for preparing ELT specialists in the primary school is proposed. The proposed model is however not prescriptive and the proposed content is neither exhaustive nor limiting, but only broadly suggestive of the content of each instructional component. It is hoped that the product of the proposed model will become not only a well-educated person in the arts but also a highly proficient and self-confident person in ELT. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Didactics)

South Africa is a multilingual country and this has certain implications on the development of cognitive-linguistic skills such as phonological processing (amongst others), which are essential for reading development. Research has, in the past, not adequately addressed the development of, and relationship between, a broad range of phonological processing and reading skills in South Africa. The study investigates the relationship between phonological processing skills and reading development in Northern Sotho-English bilingual children. Ninety-eight participants, divided into group 1 (n=48) and group 2 (n=50) based on their Language of Learning Language of Teaching were sampled. Group 1 received literacy instruction in Northern Sotho, whilst group 2 in English. Participants were assessed using a battery of phonological processing tests and on reading abilities in English and Northern Sotho. Correlations, multiple regressions and multivariate analyses of variance were conducted. Findings revealed that phonological processing skills are essential in reading development in both the first and second language of the participants. / African Languages / M.A. (Linguistics)

After independence, in 1990, the government of the Republic of Namibia perceived the need to replace the old Language-in-Education Policy (LiEP) for schools with a new one that promotes the use of the mother tongue alongside English in schools and colleges of education. Consequently, the new Language-in-Education Policy was implemented in all 13 educational regions. The aim of this study is to evaluate the implementation of this policy in the upper primary schools in Oshana Region. The findings of the study were analysed according to relevant literature to determine if they were in line with the theories of language policy evaluation. At least five major findings emerged from this study that are described in relation to relevant themes, namely; home language, language preferences, language practices, policy awareness and government support. The study revealed that the majority of learners in Oshana Region are Oshikwambi speakers, followed by Oshikwanyama speakers. In addition, the majority of teachers who teach Oshindonga are also not Oshindonga speakers. Furthermore, the study revealed that the majority of learners, teachers and principals preferred English as LoLT to Oshiwambo. Another major finding of the study is that despite the fact that English is the LoLT, both teachers and learners are still struggling to communicate in English. In general, successful communication often takes place in Oshiwambo. The study revealed that the majority of teachers, learners and parents are neither aware of the new LiEP nor were they consulted prior to its implementation. In addition, the LiEP related materials are not available in most of the schools. Finally, the study found that there is a serious shortage of textbooks and well qualified teachers in African languages. This shortage of textbooks prevents teachers from giving adequate homework to learners. Consequently, the LiEP cannot be successfully implemented. A number of recommendations are made regarding the shortage of textbooks in Oshiwambo, the use of the mother tongue as LoLT from Grade 1 to Grade 7 and the recognition of other Oshiwambo dialects. Ongoing consultation and awareness should be a vital part of the review process. / Linguistics and Modern Languages / M.A. (Sociolinguistics)

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the application of OBE principles such as the learner-centred approach, teacher facilitation and integration of knowledge in the teaching of African languages in the senior phase. The study was conducted in Vhembe and Mopani District in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Data were collected through observation, an interview schedule and documentary analysis. The constructivist grounded theory provided a theoretical framework for this study. Data were analysed simultaneously with the data-collection process informed by the constructivist grounded theory. This investigation revealed that teachers do not apply the investigated OBE principles in the teaching of African languages in the senior phase. Instead, they still teach in the manner they used before the introduction of the OBE approach. There were many reasons advanced by teachers for their failure to apply these principles in their teachings. A lack of knowledge and skills necessary to apply this new approach was prevalent. This lack of knowledge could be attributed to the inadequate teacher training received and noncommitment to OBE approach by the teachers. The study found that the investigated principles were not applied because of a lack of application strategies, the failure to interpret policy documents and resistance to change by teachers. In view of the findings in this study, the researcher deemed it imperative to make recommendations which could be used for further studies in order to achieve the proper application of OBE principles in the teaching of African languages. / D. Ed. (Didactics) / Educational Studies

The new higher education system of South Africa is in the process of transformation. Part of the transformation process involves raising the use and status of indigenous languages to become essential part of the country‟s higher education system. The constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996) laid a foundation responding to the imperative regarding the use and status of indigenous languages. The Ministry of Education (Higher Education) pays special attention to fitting their education policies to the constitution by incorporating subsection 27(2) of the Higher Education Act, 1997 (Act 101 of 1997) that states “subject to the policy determined by the Minister, the council, with the concurrence of the senate, must determine the institutional language policy of a public higher education institution and must publish and make it available on request”. The Language Policy for Higher Education was published by the Ministry of Education in November 2002. Lastly, the Ministry of Education appointed a Ministerial Committee “to advise on the development of African (indigenous) languages as mediums of instruction in higher education.” This committee published its report in 2005. This study investigates the fit between government language policies and institutional language policies. The focus is on indigenous languages in the South African higher education system. The main purpose is to argue for the design of an integrated institutional language policy framework in a holistic way. The study population consisted of the 23 universities and the indigenous language academic staff. A case study and survey were used. All twenty-three indigenous language units from the 23 universities‟ departments were used in the survey section of this research. A random sample of respondents was used, all the respondents were indigenous language academic personnel. Questionnaires were sent to each one who agreed to participate. This questionnaire was the main research instrument for collecting data. The research showed that there is no fit between government language policies and institutional language policies. It is recommended that improvements in fit between government language policies and institutional language policies be embarked upon across the 23 universities‟ staff members and stakeholders (students). / African Languages / Thesis (D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages))