Underachievement is a perennial problem in many secondary schools in South Africa. One of the reasons for this state of affairs, is the inhibitive learning climate in such schools. This study attempts to determine the extent and causes of the problem and to develop guidelines for parents, teachers, learners and school management teams to resolve some of the issues that cause the problem. This is a qualitative study using focus group and individual interviews. The main findings contributing to underachievement among learners, include lack of parental guidance and supervision, negative attitudes of teachers towards learners, inflexible teaching methods, overcrowded classrooms, lack of resources and facilities in schools, lukewarm attitude of learners towards their work and the absence of positive role models in communities. The findings highlight important factors, which contribute to underachievement among learners in an inhibitive learning climate. The recommendations are an attempt towards solving this important issue. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Special Needs Education)

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:06:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FranciscoAS_DISSERT.pdf: 5581713 bytes, checksum: 220b0356180283ae2dc6bdb4eca95850 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-12-06 / This study focuses on the teaching and learning of English based on a new theoretical perspective concerning the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), which points to the apprehension of metacognitive processes as the way to reach learning autonomy. The theoretical set underline this study is those of a new pedagogy based on the symbiosis of Bruner‟s (2002) and Freire‟s (2009) concepts and in the metacognitive theory. In a social context dominated by the Communication and Information Technologies (CIT), the integration between teacher and learners with the support of the internet has been used as the way to operationalize this new emergent proposal of the theoretical perspectives. The analyses have been conducted through Systemic and Integral Action Research. The results at the end of this study corroborate our hypothesis that the enlargement of spontaneous knowledge of the learners can facilitate the understanding of scientific concepts, stimulating their metacognition and thus promoting their autonomy. / Este trabalho trata de um estudo sobre o ensino-aprendizagem de l?ngua inglesa baseado em uma No??o Expandida da Zona de Desenvolvimento Proximal (NEZDP) que tem seu vi?s voltado para a conscientiza??o dos processos metacognitivos como forma de alcan?ar a autonomia na aprendizagem. Faz parte desse conjunto te?rico, tamb?m, uma nova perspectiva pedag?gica baseada na simbiose entre os estudos de Bruner (2002) e Freire (2009), e na teoria da metacogni??o. Com base no contexto sociocultural atual, permeado pelas Tecnologias da Informa??o e da Comunica??o, a integra??o professor-aluno no processo de ensino-aprendizagem com o suporte da internet, foram utilizadas como meio de operacionalizar a proposta emergente dessa perspectiva te?rica. A an?lise foi desenvolvida por meio da Pesquisa-a??o Integral e Sist?mica (PAIS). Os resultados obtidos ao final deste trabalho corroboraram a nossa hip?tese de que a amplia??o do conjunto de conhecimentos espont?neos dos aprendizes, juntamente com a integra??o professor-aluno, pode facilitar a aprendizagem de conceitos cient?ficos, estimulando a metacogni??o e, consequentemente, a promo??o da autonomia.

Le contenu de ce travail de recherche est une analyse comparative des interactions en classe d’espagnol langue étrangère (quatrième et terminale). Il est essentiellement axé sur les productions verbales enseignants/apprenants des classes de quatrième et de terminale, dans des établissements situés à Libreville, capitale du Gabon. Cette analyse prétend répondre à un questionnement sur le déroulement d’une classe de langue espagnole. Applique-t-il les règles préconisées par les institutions gabonaises ? Ce déroulement est-il le même selon les niveaux d’apprentissage des élèves (quatrième-terminale) ? Quels types d’activités sont pratiqués en classe ? Ces types d’activités favorisent-ils l’interaction comme moyen d’échanges et de communication ? Comment coexistent gestion d’interaction, de classe et du cours ? Quel est rôle de chaque interactant (enseignants/apprenants) pour une interaction pluridirectionnelle ? Quelles sont les adoptées stratégies dans la construction des énoncés pour faciliter compréhension des élèves ? Dans une démarche quelque peu sociolinguistique mais fortement didactique, ce travail s’inscrit dans l’enseignement des langues étrangères avec une approche interactionniste. Elle oriente de façon générale la formation des enseignants dans la gestion de la classe. En effet, en Europe comme en Afrique, il se pose, de façon permanente, ce problème de gestion des classes et des effectifs en classe de langue étrangère. Nos résultats montrent que l’enseignant emploie régulièrement les phénomènes langagiers tels que : la reformulation, la répétition et l’allongement syllabique, comme stratégies énonciatifs, afin de solliciter l’attention et la participation des élèves. Il arrive ainsi à assurer la gestion de la classe, des séquences du cours, du matériel et des élèves aussi bien en classe de quatrième qu’en classe de terminale. / A comparative analysis of interactions in Spanish classes at high school level (8th and 12th grade is the basis of this research. Indeed, it provides an insight into the interactions between teachers and students in Libreville-based high schools. So the on-ground research was done in Libreville, Gabon's capital city. This analysis is an attempt at answering questions on the teaching of Spanish as a second language. Does this teaching comply with the rules worked out by the Gabonese Ministry of Education? Is it similar for all grades? What are the various activities during Spanish classes? Do these activities foster interactions as a means of communication and exchange? How does the teacher handle interactions, students' behaviour and the class? How do the teacher and the student contribute to an intense interaction during the class? How do educators do to render their Spanish classes comprehensible for their pupils? By adopting both a sociolinguistic and above all didactic method this work is focused on the teaching of foreign languages. Its objective is to help educators better understand the mechanisms to handle a grade. Handling a grade is more and more complex both in western countries and developing ones due to the ever-growing number of students in language classes. Our findings show that the teacher steadily employs a wide range of teaching strategies like rephrasing, repetition and the prolonged pronunciation of syllables to get students' attention and participation. Thanks to this panoply of teaching techniques, the teacher succeeds in handling the class and students at 8th and 12th grade level.

This study explored the influence of irrational beliefs on adolescent secondary school learners’ Mathematics achievement in Zimbabwe. Learner, home and school factors which influence secondary school learners’ Mathematics achievement were discussed and relevant studies were scrutinised. The theoretical views of Albert Ellis regarding the characteristics, effects, acquisition and maintenance of irrational beliefs were discussed together with the major irrational beliefs and their possible relationship with learners’ Mathematics achievement. A sample of 306 randomly selected adolescent Mathematics learners comprising 182 girls and 124 boys in the 14 to 18 year age range participated in the study. A composite questionnaire with subscales on learners’ irrational beliefs, socio-affective variables and perceptions was used during the empirical investigation. Six major hypotheses were tested. The study established that learners’ irrational thoughts about Mathematics correlate negatively with their Mathematics achievement. Learners’ irrational thoughts about Mathematics correlated negatively with motivation, self-concept, parental involvement, and teacher-learner relationships and positively with stress, anxiety and faulty perceptions. Regression analysis proved that learners’ irrational beliefs, socio-affective variables and perceptions jointly explain a greater proportion of the variance in Mathematics achievement than any one of these factors on its own. Therefore, learners’ Mathematics achievement is affected by irrational beliefs together with their socio-affective variables and perceptions. Practical recommendations were given to Mathematics education stakeholders such as teachers, school counsellors, parents and learners to minimise poor Mathematics achievement attributable to irrational beliefs and the allied variables explored in this study. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

This study explored the influence of irrational beliefs on adolescent secondary school learners’ Mathematics achievement in Zimbabwe. Learner, home and school factors which influence secondary school learners’ Mathematics achievement were discussed and relevant studies were scrutinised. The theoretical views of Albert Ellis regarding the characteristics, effects, acquisition and maintenance of irrational beliefs were discussed together with the major irrational beliefs and their possible relationship with learners’ Mathematics achievement. A sample of 306 randomly selected adolescent Mathematics learners comprising 182 girls and 124 boys in the 14 to 18 year age range participated in the study. A composite questionnaire with subscales on learners’ irrational beliefs, socio-affective variables and perceptions was used during the empirical investigation. Six major hypotheses were tested. The study established that learners’ irrational thoughts about Mathematics correlate negatively with their Mathematics achievement. Learners’ irrational thoughts about Mathematics correlated negatively with motivation, self-concept, parental involvement, and teacher-learner relationships and positively with stress, anxiety and faulty perceptions. Regression analysis proved that learners’ irrational beliefs, socio-affective variables and perceptions jointly explain a greater proportion of the variance in Mathematics achievement than any one of these factors on its own. Therefore, learners’ Mathematics achievement is affected by irrational beliefs together with their socio-affective variables and perceptions. Practical recommendations were given to Mathematics education stakeholders such as teachers, school counsellors, parents and learners to minimise poor Mathematics achievement attributable to irrational beliefs and the allied variables explored in this study. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Psychology of Education)

The social and economic environments in which children develop are regarded as important variables which relate to academic performance. In order to support learners in achieving academically, an understanding of the role of these different variables is essential. The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of additional educational support on the resilient behaviour and subsequent academic performance of adolescents in Grades 9 and 10. A sample of 117 high school adolescents was used. Schools that offer additional educational support tend, on average, to show a healthier teacher-learner relationship, more parental involvement, superior cognitive development and better study orientation. All these factors were also found to contribute to a learner’s potential to demonstrate resilient behaviour. Based on the literature study and the empirical investigation, recommendations to parents, teachers and schools have been made. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Guidance and Counselling)

Cette thèse s’inscrit dans la didactique des langues et des cultures étrangères ; il s’agit d’une recherche sur un enseignement du persan quotidien qui repose sur la nouvelle, en tant que lieu d’échanges interculturels. Justifiant, en premier lieu, pour le persan l’hypothèse de la diglossie, cette thèse montre que ce concept ne peut pas se concevoir sans considérer les différents paramètres socioculturels qui conditionnent l’emploi de chacune des deux variétés linguistiques : le persan quotidien et le persan littéral. La diglossie, la double relation de la langue et de la culture et par la suite l’étude du corpus des manuels de persan nous ont confortée dans notre réflexion sur la nécessité de réviser l’enseignement du persan « parlé-quotidien » et la présentation de la diversité culturelle en Iran. Cette recherche s’interroge sur l’impact du choix de la nouvelle littéraire pour la didactique du persan « parlé-quotidien » et sur son aptitude à susciter des interactions verbales interculturelles. La thèse pose qu’un élément concret ou un thème bien choisi dans une nouvelle, peut amener les apprenants à prendre la parole. Ce rôle tient à la présence, dans ce même ensemble textuel, d’éléments culturels saisissables. Ce choix didactique s’accompagne d’une sélection iconographique d’images destinées à attirer l’attention des apprenants sur le contenu de la nouvelle et sur les aspects culturels qu’elle véhicule. Nous nous proposons également d’étudier si la posture de l’enseignant et les relations interpersonnelles enseignant/apprenant sont interdépendantes et influencent le désir d’apprendre et de communiquer chez l’apprenant dans le contexte de l’enseignement du persan. Nous avons mis en place un projet didactique auprès d’étudiants en deuxième années de licence en langue et civilisation persanes à l’Institut national des Langues et Civilisations orientales, afin de vérifier ces idées. L’analyse des données enregistrées permet de présenter comment nous avons appliqué nos concepts et nos propositions. Elle est révélatrice de l’émergence d’une dynamique conversationnelle et interculturelle en classe et confirme ainsi nos hypothèses didactiques sur l’emploi de la nouvelle en classe de persan langue étrangère. / This thesis is in the field of teaching foreign language and culture. It represents a research on teaching ‘‘everyday Persian’’ based on short story as a place of intercultural exchanges. Applying the diglossia hypothesis to Persian, this dissertation demonstrates that this concept cannot overlook different sociocultural parameters which determine the use of two linguistic varieties: ‘‘everyday Persian’’ and ‘‘formal Persian’’. The diglossia, the mutual relation between language and culture and the study of Persian textbooks corpus have convinced us that teaching ‘‘spoken everyday Persian’’ and the presentation of cultural diversity in Iran need to be revised. This research examines the impact of using short stories on teaching ‘‘spoken everyday Persian’’ and also its efficacy to stimulate intercultural verbal interactions. The thesis raises if a concrete element or a well chosen theme in a short story can lead learners to speak. This role requires the seizable cultural elements in this very text. This educational choice is associated with an iconographical study of some selected illustrations intended to attract learners’ attention to the content of the short story and the cultural aspects it conveys. Another purpose of this research is to figure out whether the teacher’s posture, communication behaviours and the teacher/learner interpersonal relationships are interdependent and if they have any impact on the learner’s desire to learn and communicate in the context of teaching Persian. To verify these hypotheses, an educational project for the second year-students of Persian language and civilization at the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations was implemented. Analysis of recorded data can show how our concepts and proposals were applied. It is indicative of the emergence of a conversational and intercultural dynamics in the classroom and confirms our hypotheses regarding the use of Persian short stories in teaching Persian as a foreign language.

The social and economic environments in which children develop are regarded as important variables which relate to academic performance. In order to support learners in achieving academically, an understanding of the role of these different variables is essential. The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of additional educational support on the resilient behaviour and subsequent academic performance of adolescents in Grades 9 and 10. A sample of 117 high school adolescents was used. Schools that offer additional educational support tend, on average, to show a healthier teacher-learner relationship, more parental involvement, superior cognitive development and better study orientation. All these factors were also found to contribute to a learner’s potential to demonstrate resilient behaviour. Based on the literature study and the empirical investigation, recommendations to parents, teachers and schools have been made. / Psychology of Education / M. Ed. (Guidance and Counselling)

The study explored factors that affect learner academic achievement in Physical Sciences in Limpopo rural secondary schools. The motivation for the research was based on the high failure in Physical Sciences in South African schools. The new Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) has brought changes in the teaching and learning of Physical Sciences such as assessment processes, methodology and new content. It was worth pointing out that the achievement of Physical Sciences learners gives an indication of the effectiveness and efficiency of Physical Sciences teaching and learning. Therefore, identifying the factors entails important issues which are of great relevance to the way Physical Sciences should be taught in schools to improve learner academic achievement. The primary question was “Which factors impact on learners’ academic achievement in Physical Sciences in Limpopo rural secondary schools?” In order to answer this question a qualitative approach and qualitative survey design were used and individual interviews were carried out with Physical Sciences teachers, principals, parents and curriculum advisors. Data was further collected through focus group interviews with Physical Sciences learners. Purposeful sampling was used to identify the participants. Data analysis in this research was aimed at giving appropriate meaning to the views of the Physical Sciences teachers, Physical Sciences learners, principals, curriculum advisors and parents on factors affecting learner academic achievement in Physical Sciences. The data was audio-recorded, transcribed and printed. The interview transcriptions were organised into themes by coding. The coded data was used to form the true analysis of the activity system by identifying the purpose of the activity in order to get clarifications. This included the context of the Physical Sciences teaching and learning and learner academic achievement. The results according to the perceptions of Physical Sciences teachers, Physical Sciences learners, principals, curriculum advisors and parents showed that the main issues of high failure rate are lack of adequate resources, teacher effectiveness, lack of motivation, high teacher-learner ratio, workload, discipline of learners, supervision of teachers, parental involvement, management and leadership skills, and appropriate teaching methods. Recommendations for practice and policy are suggested and the indication was that provision of common tasks to teachers and formation of subject committees decreases the workload. The availability of resources allows learners to do practical work and improve performance. The goal was to engage learners in challenging and stimulating tasks with appropriate help from the teachers to improve achievement. In order for the teacher to provide assistance to the learners there must be maximum teacher-learner ratio. Effective supervision ensures that teachers and learners are punctual, which will ensure maximum use of available teaching time and timely completion of the work schedules or pace setters. A smaller number of learners per class could result in improved performance in Physical Sciences. It is important for principals to instil discipline in learners. The support and value of NGOs to assist in sharing workload by carrying out experiments in secondary schools was acknowledged. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

This study investigated the psychological approach and the classroom methodology needed by an educator to teach street children effectively in a special school created for them. Street children with their psychological trauma, their independent, self-sufficient outlook and educational deprivation make their adaption to the methods and educational environment of mainstream schooling difficult. To meet the special educational, psychological and emotional needs of street children, Masupatsela School was started. The study was carried out in this school. The qualitative research methodology used an action research design which consisted of a reconnaissance phase and three cycles. Each cycle made use of a planning, implementation and evaluation phase. A general plan was formulated after the reconnaissance phase and revised after each cycle. The teaching was done by the researcher using four grades of street children ranging form grade 7 to grade 10. Because of their specific psychological makeup, street children, who have lacked close, comforting and trusting relationships and role models, require a classroom environment, atmosphere and a relationship with the educator which is supportive, caring, warm and firm. To achieve this a client centred approach was used based predominantly on the therapeutic principles of congruence, empathetic understanding and unconditional positive regard. The interaction with the children was based on openness, tolerance, the affirmation of others and honest firmness. The teaching methodology was an eclectic one which made use primarily of a cognitive teaching style which was introduced incrementally over the three cycles. The main components of this style consisted of cognitive questioning, cooperative learning and strategic reading for information. The results of the study showed that both the psychological and educational approach in the classroom to be very appropriate and successful. However the wider negative contextual influences such as the school organization, staffing and curriculum made the classroom strategies difficult to sustain. It is recommended that a programme using these educational and psychological approaches and incorporating functional literacy and numeracy, vocational skills, recreation and a therapeutic programme be incorporated when designing a programme for street children in a formal setting. / Psychology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)