Exploring teacher initiatives on teaching digital literacies in English

Curriculum change and innovation due to technological development has necessitated the inclusion of digital tools and digital literacy in the teaching of English as a second language in the South African curriculum. The need to improve English proficiency and inclusion of digital literacy in language teaching has resulted in teachers having to develop new teaching strategies incorporating digital tools. Economic and income disparities in South African communities and schools account for resource constraints challenging teachers to take initiatives in the teaching and use of digital literacy in English. In literature and education policies, the teaching of digital literacy is recommended, but teachers are not pedagogically capacitated to teach digital literacy in English. To explore the experiences of such teachers, this study explored township secondary school teachers’ pedagogical initiatives on the teaching and use of digital literacy in English. An interpretive, qualitative case study was undertaken to explore how teachers use digital literacy in teaching English as a second language in township secondary schools. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, non-participant lesson observations, field notes and document analysis. Data were analysed using an inductive thematic framework to answer the key research questions. Teachers’ voices, actions and documents on the teaching of digital literacy were collected for analysis yielding themes and patterns on teacher initiatives on digital literacy in English. The findings of the study indicate that collaboration, networking, social media communication and other digital literacy practices, including the out-of-school digital literacy practices, are teacher initiatives leading to the utilisation of digital connection platforms for socialisation and teaching and learning. In addition to dividends of connectivism, visual communication and cyber linguistics have become critical for digital-age learners. The creation of English language learning communities, the development of multiliteracy skills and the contribution to cyber linguistics, are eventual products of learner and teacher participation in the digital landscape. In the light of these findings, I recommend that curriculum reform should incorporate new pedagogical strategies for teaching and use of digital literacy to improve English proficiency by learners. Teacher initiatives are a crucial part of adaptive resilience, as teachers need to adjust to shortages of digital technology resources and connectivity.Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2018.Humanities EducationPhDUnrestricte

A survey of undergraduate students’ attitudes towards studying isiZulu at university

The study’s main objective was to investigate the attitudes held by undergraduate students towards studying isiZulu at university. The purposive sampling method was used to gather data from 100 students who studied the language as major subject, as well as three lecturers who taught the language at the same university. The study was a descriptive survey that used questionnaires to gather quantitative data and face-to-face interviews to gather qualitative data – mixed methods were used. The following five variables, namely: (1) sex, (2) age group, (3) years at university, (4) location of nurture and (5) linguality, were used to test the extent to which they influenced respondents’ attitudes towards the phenomenon under discussion. It was found that all five variables influenced respondents’ attitudes towards studying their L1 at university level. The findings revealed that respondents generally held positive attitudes towards studying isiZulu at university level. The study explored secondary phenomena and found that respondents believed that there were adequate job opportunities for those who studied isiZulu at university level and that they were proud to be the Zulu people

Linguistic challenges faced by foreign migrant workers and informal traders in Gauteng

The research project takes a hard look into the linguistic challenges faced by foreign migrant workers and informal traders in Gauteng province, South Africa. The research makes a panoramic view into the linguistic challenges faced by foreign migrant workers and informal traders. The focus of the research is on the challenges regarding language use in business domains. It dissects into business communication dynamics and the cultural contexts in the developing economies of Southern Africa. The study focused on finding out language challenges for immigrants as a consequence of migration. The research undertakes to discover language policy frameworks operating in industries and informal business environment in Gauteng. It seeks to establish the strategies that could be used to solve the language problems faced by foreign migrants taking into consideration that most of the immigrants in the construction industry and informal sector are semi-literate or illiterate. In other words, the research explores alternatives and the different roles of different organizations in the approach to language challenges when doing business. The study attempts to make some recommendations that can rescue immigrant challenges. These include language training programmes and changing attitudes as they have to learn the indigenous languages used in Gauteng province. The discussion reviews the sociolinguistic aspects in view of the changing demands of the developing economies of Africa where languages are used as vehicles for economic development and technological innovation. It attempts to reflect on why European languages continue to dominate business operations in Africa while African languages remain marginalized.African LanguagesD. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages

Language actively reproduces the socio-economic inequalities in society:an exploration of gender power dynamicsin the Gutu District of Zimbabwe

This paper examines how language usagein society perpetuates and duplicates gender differences. Our relations in society as men and women are determined and expressed by the language we speak. However, language does not passively reflect society but rather actively reproduces the inequalities in society. Language is a cognitive process involving the production and understanding of linguistic communication as representations of feelings, emotions and attitudes. In psychological terms, language includes the human being's cognitive faculty of creating and using language. The paper seeks to explore how language duplicates the inequalities in society. We do not merelyconstruct and maintain social interaction by means of our sense of certain mannerisms, styles and behaviours – both verbal and non-verbal – but also use this to express our sense of identity. This simply means that our everyday behaviours towards and interactions with othersare crucial in creating and maintaining the roles we play, the status we occupy (social identities) and the personalities we feel ourselves and others to have (our personal identities). The inequalities between menand womenin the rural Gutu District of MasvingoProvince in Zimbabwe are perpetuated by the languages the peoplespeak as discovered in a qualitative study conducted in the province.The study used the qualitative research design to investigate the inequalities between men and women as perpetuated by the languages we use.Differences in the economic, political and social status of men and women are advanced by the languages we speak, and mental images are created in support of the different roles we play in society.Keywords: language and gender, social inequalities, social identit

Remote learning as an option by resilient English teachers in Gauteng resource-constrained secondary schools

In literature and education policies, the teaching of English using remote learning strategies is recommended, but for the most part, teachers are not pedagogically capacitated to teach their respective subjects using technology in South Africa. To explore the experiences of such teachers, this study sought to understand the models and pedagogical initiatives on the teaching of English through remote teaching and learning. Emergency remote teaching by resilient English teachers is an intervention project for resource-constrained secondary schools in South Africa including the period after the Covid-19 outbreak. Circumstances leading to the use of remote learning strategies include lack of access to intellectual and material resources in some schools in Gauteng. An interpretive, qualitative case study was undertaken to explore how teachers use remote learning strategies in teaching English as a second language in township secondary schools. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews (phone calls) and document analysis. Data were analysed using an inductive thematic framework to answer the key research questions. Teachers’ voices, actions and documents on the use of remote learning strategies were collected for analysis yielding themes and patterns. Findings of the study indicate that collaboration, networking, social media communication and other digital literacy practices are teacher initiatives leading to the utilisation of digital connection platforms for socialisation, teaching and learning. The use of distance learning, blended learning, mobile learning and online learning as strategies in times of crisis and in resource-constrained environments help learners and teachers to achieve their outcomes

Resilient English teachers' use of remote teaching and learning strategies in Gauteng resource-constrained township secondary schools

In literature and education policies, the teaching of English using remote learning strategies is recommended, but for the most part, some teachers are not pedagogically capacitated to teach their respective subjects using technology in South Africa. To explore the experiences of such teachers, this study sought to understand the models and pedagogical initiatives on the teaching of English through remote teaching and learning. Emergency remote teaching is one of the initiatives taken by resilient English teachers in resource-constrained township secondary schools in South Africa, during and after the COVID-19 outbreak. An interpretive, qualitative case study predicated on a constructivist framework was undertaken to explore how English teachers use remote learning strategies in teaching English as a second language in township secondary schools in Gauteng. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews (phone calls) and collecting documents in the form of class worksheet texts and homework activities produced and used by learners during remote learning. Data were analysed using an inductive thematic framework to answer the key research question: What are the digital pedagogic initiatives and strategies used by resilient English teachers to support learners during remote learning? Findings of the study indicate that collaboration, networking, social media communication and other digital literacy practices are teacher initiatives leading to the utilisation of digital connection platforms for socialisation, teaching and learning. Findings emphasise that English teachers should use distance learning, blended learning, mobile learning and online learning as strategies in times of crisis and in resource-constrained environments to help learners achieve their outcomes. Conclusions drawn support the fact that focusing on digital literacies in the English classroom supports proficiency in the use of the language. Participation in online learning programmes and utilisation of digital platforms provide learning opportunities for English learners in resource-constrained secondary schools. Learners eventually improve digital writing and reading skills when they participate in selected remote learning platforms.https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/pie/indexpm2022Humanities Educatio

The innovative use of social media for teaching English as a second language

The need to improve English proficiency and inclusion of social media in language teaching have resulted in teachers having to develop new teaching strategies incorporating digital tools. In South Africa, English teachers in township settings have to develop teaching strategies suitable for teaching English using social media platforms, especially in resource-constrained secondary schools. From literature and education policies, teaching of digital literacy is strongly recommended, but teachers in some township environments are not pedagogically capacitated to teach and use social media in teaching English. To explore the experiences of such teachers, this study explored the use of social media for the teaching of English as a second language in township schools. The study used an interpretivist qualitative approach in an exploratory case-study design to understand teachers’ initiatives and strategies in teaching English as a second language using social media. Data collection was done using semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions and document analysis. Teachers’ voices, actions and documents on the use of social media were analysed inductively and thematically. The research findings indicate that the sampled English teachers used social media for collaboration, networking, communication and out-of-school digital literacy practices as their initiatives. These digital initiatives lead to the utilisation of digital connection platforms for socialisation and teaching and learning English. In addition to dividends of connectivism, visual communication and cyber linguistics were found to have become critically important practices for learners learning English as a second language. The implication is that the education policy-makers and planners in South Africa need to revisit the policy on e-learning and Information Communication Technology (ICT) usage in schools to incorporate the methodological requirements and competences for teachers to use in the teaching of English using social media. In addition to improvements in policy measures, English teachers in resource-constrained township secondary schools need to improve their digital literacy skills to line up themselves for online and out-of-school literacy learning requirements.http://www.td-sa.nethj2020Humanities Educatio

Exploring the attitudes of isiZulu first language students towards learning Sepedi as an additional language at university level

A significant number of isiZulu first language students enrolled for the Language Practice course at Tshwane University of Technology in  Soshanguve. Considering the linguistic diversity of South Africa, plurality of cultures and the different roles played by languages, this university has developed a programme that seeks to provide access to learning additional languages for first language students. This study sought to understand the attitudes of isiZulu students towards learning Sepedi as an additional language for communicative  purposes. The study adopted a mixed methods approach which used questionnaires and interviews for data collection. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics for quantitative data and thematic analysis for qualitative data. Findings from the study indicate that  isiZulu first language students have mixed feelings regarding the learning of Sepedi as an additional language at university level.   Respondents and participants from the selected samples confirmed that they acknowledge the importance of learning Sepedi as an additional  language because it might open career opportunities in business for graduates. Furthermore, the respondents and participants have a positive attitude and understanding that learning Sepedi as an additional language might also assist them in becoming multilingual