<p>Research shows that there is a literacy crisis in many South African primary schools, especially in the Foundation and Intermediate Phases (Grades 1 &ndash /   / ). The latest Annual National Assessments (ANA) results released in 2011 indicate that learners performed below the acceptable literacy levels as  / the national pass rate for Grade 3 learners was 35% and was 28% for Grade 6 learners (ANA, 2011:6). Research on literacy focuses on reading and  / there is little known about how young learners develop writing skills. This qualitative ethnographic study investigated how writing skills are developed in Grade 1 learners by looking at the writing processes as well as the teaching methods used by teachers to develop learners&rsquo / writing skills. The research also  / analyzed the texts produced by Grade 1 learners and the languages used in their written texts. The sample group in this research was the Grade 1 learners  / to a multicultural school in Cape Town. Data were collected by means of classroom observations, interviews and document analysis. The thematic  / arrative approach was used to analyze data and the analysis was informed by the Writing Developmental Continuum model and the Multimodal  / Approach to literacy in order to gain a better understanding of how young learners use language and other forms of writing such as visuals and gestures to  / onstruct and convey meaning.  / The findings of this research show that Grade 1 learners make use of semiotic resources including the language(s)  /   /   / available in their immediate context to create multimodal texts that incorporate both visual and written features. This shows that young learners represent  / their world experiences through interpersonal and experiential meanings in language(s) exposed to them. The teacher has a big role to play in developing  / learners&rsquo / writing skills and has to employ a variety of pedagogical strategies that support learners to move through the different writing phases before they develop into early writers. The study concludes that writing is not a linear process but it is a gradual process which depends on a variety of resources and  / factors which build on learners&rsquo / prior experiences and creativity.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UNWC/oai:UWC_ETD:http%3A%2F%2Fetd.uwc.ac.za%2Findex.php%3Fmodule%3Detd%26action%3Dviewtitle%26id%3Dgen8Srv25Nme4_8894_1373278444 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Prosper, Ancyfrida |
| Source Sets | Univ. of Western Cape |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis and dissertation |
| Format | |
| Coverage | ZA |
| Rights | Copyright: University of the Western Cape |
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