Postgraduate supervision at an open distance e-learning institution in South Africa

Effective postgraduate supervision is a concern at universities worldwide, even under optimal conditions where post-graduate students are studying full-time. Universities are being pressured by their governments to increase the throughput of postgraduates where there is a need for supervisory guidance in order to produce quality graduates within a shorter period of time than was previously thought possible. In an Open Distance E-learning (ODeL) context in South Africa, postgraduate supervision presents an even more formidable task as face-to-face communication between supervisor and student is restricted or totally non-existent. Informed by a review of the Community of Practice Theory, the researcher undertook a qualitative study to investigate the challenges of supervisors by means of a purposeful sample of postgraduate supervisors at a major ODeL institution in South Africa. Open-ended questionnaires were the means of collecting the data. The results indicated weaknesses in respect of the following: the selection and allocation of postgraduate students to supervisors without consultation; the requirements for intensive guidance during the process of writing the thesis to meet the needs of under-prepared students; and the difficulties inherent in the ODeL model, which depended primarily on written communication, especially for academically weak students. The recommendation is that experienced supervisors should conduct workshops and mentor novice academics on effective ODeL supervision procedures.Keywords: higher education institutions; open distance e-learning; postgraduate studies; postgraduate supervision; South Africa; supervisee; supervisor

Perceptions of lecturers on English as a primary medium of instruction at a selected university in South Africa

In the current era of globalization, English medium instruction (EMI) in higher education in non-English speaking countries has gained prominence worldwide. The reasons for this include to increase institutions’ international visibility and competitiveness in the global market, to attract international students and to ensure graduates’ chances of international employability. In addition, more academic conferences are conducted in English and more prominent authors and academic journals choose to publish in English. Thus, many higher education systems privilege English in academic discourse. In light of this, this study explored lecturers' perceptions of the recent implementation of English as a primary medium of instruction at a selected university in South Africa. Said’s and Bhabha’s postcolonial theories were used as theoretical lenses to inform the study and frame the data analysis. The sample chosen comprised three lecturers who are English Second Language (ESL) speakers. Data were gathered using classroom observations and individual semi-structured interviews. The results indicated that English as a primary medium of instruction diminished effective teaching and learning. The participants frequently code switched between African languages in the classroom. However, they acknowledged the role of English as a communication means in a multilingual context. It is recommended that students be adequately supported through the provision of adequately funded and quality English literacy programs and the implementation of African languages as media of instruction

Lessons from Small-scale Standardised Testing of English Reading and Writing Performance in Two Types of Primary Schools in South Africa

The multilingual composition of South African schools and the choice of English as the preferred language of teaching and learning (LoLT) have created welldocumented academic challenges for English second language learners (ESL) and their teachers. Poor performance in English is associated with poor performance among ESL learners across the curriculum. Small-scale standardised testing for ESL performance is an assessment strategy that can contribute to identifying specific needs at a particular school. Standardised testing, as a sub-component of the broader concept of assessment which includes a range of assessment options, is defined as any form of test that requires all test takers to answer the same questions in the same way. This paper reports on a study which implemented small-scale, standardised testing of English reading and writing performance of ESL Grade 7 learners in two types of primary schools in a semi-rural area in Limpopo Province (a public fee-paying school and an independent for-profit school). The overall findings indicate that learners in both schools performed extremely well in the English writing performance test; however, learners in the public school outperformed learners in the independent school in both English Reading and Writing performance tests, although the difference in the Writing performance test was minimal. The superior performance by the public school can partly be explained by teachers teaching experience, most of them have been teaching for more than ten years and greater community support for the school. It is recommended that data produced through small-scale standardised testing should be used by school management teams to design instructional improvement plans and by individual teachers to make datadriven decisions about improved language instruction.Keywords: Standardised Testing, Small-scale Language Testing, English Second Language, Writing Performance, Reading Performance, Primary Schools, Grade 7 Learner

Perceptions of lecturers on English as a primary medium of instruction at a selected university in South Africa

In the current era of globalization, English medium instruction (EMI) in higher education in non-English speaking countries has gained prominence worldwide. The reasons for this include to increase institutions’ international visibility and competitiveness in the global market, to attract international students and to ensure graduates’ chances of international employability. In addition, more academic conferences are conducted in English and more prominent authors and academic journals choose to publish in English. Thus, many higher education systems privilege English in academic discourse. In light of this, this study explored lecturers' perceptions of the recent implementation of English as a primary medium of instruction at a selected university in South Africa. Said’s and Bhabha’s postcolonial theories were used as theoretical lenses to inform the study and frame the data analysis.The sample chosen comprised three lecturers who are English Second Language (ESL) speakers. Data were gathered using classroom observations and individual semi-structured interviews. The results indicated that English as a primary medium of instruction diminished effective teaching and learning. The participants frequently code switched between African languages in the classroom. However, they acknowledged the role of English as a communication means in a multilingual context. It is recommended that students be adequately supported through the provision of adequately funded and quality English literacy programs and the implementation of African languages as media of instruction

The acquisition of English academic language proficiency among grade 7 learners in South African schools

Language proficiency in the language of learning and teaching (LOLT) is essential for academic success. In South Africa and elsewhere, many secondary school learners lack the required academic proficiency in English, the language of learning and teaching. The English language proficiency of Xitsonga speaking Grade 7 learners was evaluated in order to suggest ways in which these learners could be helped to maximise academic success. The author investigated theories of first and second language acquisition by means of a literature study and presented an overview of language policy in South African schooling before and after 1994. A sample of Grade 7 Xitsonga speaking learners was selected from three secondary schools in the Tshwane metropolitan area, Gauteng Province. Language proficiency levels were determined by means of the Human Sciences Research Council's Standardised English Reading and Writing Proficiency Tests. These tests were also translated into Xitsonga and administered to the learners. The tests were administered a month apart in each of the schools. The tests revealed that: * there is a significant correlation between the learner's performance in the reading and writing performance test for both languages * the learners' reading and oral skills in both languages correlate * irrespective of the level of language proficiency, most learners performed poorly in their reading skills, such as, recognising inferences related to tone, punctuation, different types of discourse as well as the prevailing atmosphere. The greatest weaknesses were in learners': * failure to understand instructions, which meant that their responses to task demands were inadequate * inappropriate use of tone register and spelling errors * incorrect use of punctuation and verb tenses. The analysis of the learner's performance in both English and Xitsonga showed that these learners were generally not capable of handling the requirements of the Grade 7 curriculum. It was recommended that the learners be guided to make optimal use of existing facilities, such as, libraries. This could enhance the learners' language development. Using learners' L1 as a medium of instruction for cognitively demanding texts and intensive in-service and pre-service training for language teachers are also recommended.Educational FoundationsD.Ed. (Comparative Education

Teachers’ professional development needs in supporting learners with specific learning disorders

M.Ed. (Educational Psychology)Abstract: The purpose of this study was to explore professional development needs of teachers in supporting learners with Specific Learning Disorders. This research was set within an interpretivist paradigm and utilized the qualitative approach to conduct research on this topic. The Bio-Ecological Theory of Human Development by Bronfenbrenner (1979) was used as the theoretical framework to support the literature review and the study findings due to its relevance to the professional development of teachers in supporting learners with Specific Learning Disorders. Five teachers from a Primary School in Johannesburg took part in this research. There were three sets of data collection methods namely; individual interviews, classroom observation and document analysis. Data was analysed through means of thematic content analysis, from which four themes emerged: (1) teachers‟ understanding of professional development; (2) teachers‟ understanding of Specific Learning Disorders; (3) teachers‟ need for support and lastly (4) challenges in providing support with for sub-themes which are namely: lack of resources, overcrowding, insufficient time for support and inadequate support structures. From the research, it was found that the participants were eager and willing to receive more professional development. Teachers are in urgent need of professional development that will enable them to support learners with Specific Learning Disorders

A public health approach to the impact of climate change on health in southern Africa – identifying priority modifiable risks

Anthropogenic climate change and anticipated adverse effects on human health as outlined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) are taken as givens. A conceptual model for thinking about the spectrum of climate-related health risks ranging from distal and infrastructural to proximal and behavioural and their relation to the burden of disease pattern typical ofsub-Saharan Africa is provided. The model provides a tool for identifying modifiable risk factors with a view to future research, specifically into the performance of interventions to reduce the impact of climate change.S Afr Med J 2011;101:817-820.&nbsp

Responding to climate change in southern Africa – the role of research

Projections show that the effects of climate change in Africa will not be uniform over the region. The region is extremely vulnerable to climate change because of poverty, a high pre-existing disease burden, fragmented health services and water and food insecurity. Despite the consensus that locally relevant information is necessary to inform policy and practice related to climate change, very few studies assessing the association between climate change and health in southern Africa have been conducted. More comprehensive information is therefore urgently needed for the southern African region to estimate the health risks from projected future changes in climate.S Afr Med J 2011;101:820-822