A mini dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master Of Education (Educational Psychology) in the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Needs Education at the University Of Zululand, 2017 / There is universal concern with regard to learners’ low reading levels (Klapwijk & Pretorius, 2016). Reading is one of the fundamental skills that learners need to master in their early school years of formal schooling in South Africa. Educators are expected to lay a good foundation of reading skills for the learners at this phase so as to build a strong learning foundation (DoE, 2011). Poor or incorrect teaching methods during these years may have an adverse effect on a learners’ schooling career. Teaching reading is a complex process in the classroom as educators are faced with challenges, which may result negatively in the learner’s capacity to understand and comprehend. Literature indicates that a large number of learners who cannot read and understand the text are mostly in the foundation phase. Thus, it was vital for the researcher to embark on this study. The aim of the study was to explore the phenomenon of the challenges educators experience in teaching reading in the foundation phase in Clare Estate Durban. The objectives of the study were: to explore some of the challenges foundation phase educators experience in teaching reading skills to learners; to determine the approaches that are used by educators to teach reading and lastly to explore some of the strategies that can be used to improve learners’ reading skills. This study employed a qualitative research methodology; a case study research design was used to gain an in-depth understanding of educators’ experiences in the teaching of reading. Information was derived by the use of focus group interviews. The study sample comprised of thirteen foundation phase educators. The findings revealed that some of the challenges that educators faced in teaching reading skills to learners in the foundation phase were as follows: language barrier, large class size, lack of parental involvement and the use of phonic and look and say approaches, which do not necessarily benefit all learners in class. The study explores strategies that could be used to improve reading in the foundation phase as well as the findings and recommendations towards minimising the challenges faced by educators teaching reading in the foundation phase.

This study sought to investigate challenges faced by teachers in applying reading strategies when teaching reading in the Foundation Phase in the Mthatha District in South Africa. The study was conducted at Four Junior Secondary Schools. It was prompted by a deep concern about challenges faced by teachers in applying reading strategies required in the Foundation Phase. While studies have been carried out on applying reading strategies in the Foundation Phase, few studies have looked at the factors impacting on reading in South African schools, especially in the Mthatha District where isiXhosa is the mother tongue. The method used in this study involved a qualitative approach. The study addressed the following research questions: What strategies are used in the Foundation Phase? What type of challenges are faced by teachers? To what extent are educators trained to teach reading in the Foundation Phase? Does the lack of resources affect the performance of learners? To what extent does the use of a second language affect the performance of Foundation Phase learners? Do teachers receive enough support from the Department of Education to teach reading? The study is a multiple-case study and data were collected through individual interviews and focus group interviews (sixteen teachers were interviewed). Content analysis guided the data analysis through themes derived from the subsidiary questions. Data reporting took the form of thick description and verbatim quotations in line with the qualitative approach of the study. A pilot study was conducted in two Junior Secondary Schools for the purpose of validity and reliability. ii The study`s findings revealed that: Different reading strategies were used by teachers in the Foundation Phase, teachers faced many challenges in applying reading strategies such as teacher training in the teaching of reading. This suggests that intervention is needed by the Department of Education such as providing relevant resources which are essential in order to address the problem of reading. Improvisation by teachers to improve reading material, insufficient allocation of time, multilingualism, teacher competence, lack of motivation and parental involvement in relation to learner performance in reading all need attention in order to solve problems. Furthermore, lack of resources hinders the reading ability of learners. The use of home language as a medium of instruction in teaching reading is highlighted. There is insufficient support by the Department of Education for Foundation Phase teachers to teach reading. Based on the study findings, the researcher has recommended that teachers should be urged to use reading strategies in a way that benefits learners. The use of reading strategies, therefore, needs more attention. Libraries should be built in these schools to enable learners to develop a culture of reading. Education development officers, subject advisors, lead teachers and parents should work together to improve the reading ability of Foundation Phase learners.