Exploring how the use of a mini-ecosystem enables and/or constrains grade 5 learners to make sense of scientific inquiry
- Authors: Tobias, Ruusa Taimi
- Date: 2022-10-14
- Subjects: Science Study and teaching (Elementary) Namibia , Health education (Elementary) Namibia , Education for sustainable development , Sensemaking , Inquiry-based learning Namibia , Terrariums , Social learning Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/405423 , vital:70170
- Description: The Namibian Science curriculum clearly states that learning of science should be promoted through using inquiry-based approaches. However, it does not state how teachers should go about promoting inquiry-based approaches in their classrooms, especially in under-resourced rural schools. This is exacerbated in part by the fact that there is inadequate or lack of professional development for science teachers which focus in particular on promotion of inquiry-based approaches. As a result, science teachers tend to ignore inquiry-based approaches in their classrooms. It is against this background that my study sought to explore how the use of a ‘mini-ecosystem’ enables and/or constrains grade 5 learners from an under-resourced rural school to make sense of scientific inquiry. The study is underpinned by an interpretive paradigm. Within the interpretive paradigm, a qualitative case study approach, using the Predict-Explain-Explore-Observe-Explain (PEEOE) framework was adopted. This case study was carried out in an under-resourced rural Namibian school and the participants were grade 5 Natural Science and Health Education learners. I also invited a teacher from the school to be my critical friend and a participant observer. Data were generated using the Views About Scientific Inquiry (VASI) questionnaire, observations, focus group interviews and learners’ reflections. Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory was my theoretical framework, and within this theory, I used mediation of learning, social interactions, the zone of proximal development and self-regulation as lenses to analyse my data. A thematic approach to data analysis was adopted. That is, qualitative data were analysed inductively to come up with sub-themes and thereafter common sub-themes were combined to form themes. The findings of the study revealed that the observation of mini-ecosystems enabled learners to interact and participate with each other in their respective groups. Moreover, learners were able to identify some scientific concepts such as evaporation, condensation, water cycle and rainfall. These findings are in contrast with the fact that they seemed to struggle to answer the VASI questionnaire that was conducted prior to observation. The study thus recommends that science teachers should make efforts to use easily accessible resources such as a ‘mini-ecosystem’ to promote scientific inquiry amongst their learners. , Thesis (MEd) -- Faculty of Education, Education, 2022
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Teachers’ knowledge and practice in Grade 3 Group Guided Reading: a case study
- Authors: Kitsili, Ntsikohlanga Anthony
- Date: 2022-10-14
- Subjects: Reading (Elementary) , Guided reading , Group reading , Teaching practices
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/405270 , vital:70156
- Description: Group guided reading (GGR) was introduced as part of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in 2012, but it appears that teachers are still experiencing great difficulty in teaching it (Hoadley 2018). Several interventions have been designed across South Africa to support teachers in no-fee schools to improve the teaching of reading. The evaluations of such interventions show that teachers receiving support such as coaching are able to master the procedural aspects of GGR but not the conceptual aspects, for example, teaching comprehension strategies and providing formative assessment (Fleisch & Dixon, 2019; Hoadley, 2017). The research reported in this thesis aimed to find out what kinds of knowledge are required to teach GGR and to what extent teachers enact this knowledge in their practice, using Shulman’s (1987) knowledge categories: subject content, pedagogical content and curriculum knowledge, general pedagogical knowledge and strategic knowledge. The research took the form of an interpretivist case study focusing on three Grade 3 teachers using GGR to teach reading in their classrooms. It was carried out in three no-fee, township schools where isiXhosa is the language of learning and teaching. Data was generated through observations, stimulated recall interviews, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. There are two policy documents that guide teachers’ practices in terms of how they should teach reading during GGR and that give clear guidance on what children should learn during GGR: the Foundation Phase CAPS and the National Framework for the Teaching of Reading in African Languages in the Foundation Phase. These documents were analysed using Shulman’s (1987) knowledge categories. Transcripts of teachers’ reflections on their GGR lessons during stimulated recall interviews were read hand in hand with transcripts of the GGR lessons that were video and audio recorded, and these were analysed using Shulman’s knowledge categories. The findings of the research are that teachers’ subject content knowledge is largely tacit; it is knowledge-in-practice. The teachers in the study seemed confident in showing rather than explaining what it is that they are doing and why they are doing it. All three teachers have mastered, to a large extent, the procedural aspects of GGR and some of the more conceptual aspects, for example some aspects of fluency, the teaching of decoding strategies and formative assessment. However, there was limited evidence of the teaching of comprehension strategies and the use of higher order questions, and assessment was not evident in the recorded lessons. , Ukufunda ngokwamaqela kusetyenziswe njengenxalenye yoluhlu lwezifundo kunye novavanyo mgaqo nkqubo lexwebhuCurriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) lonyaka ka 2012, kodwa kubonakala ukuba ootitshala basatsala nzima ukusifundisa esisifundo (Hoadley 2018). Aliqela amaphulo aye ayilwa eMzantsi Afrika jikelele ngeenzame zokuxhasa ootitshala abafundisa kwizikolo zafelefele ukuba baphuhle kwisakhono sokufundisa ukufunda. Iziphumo zovavanyo zalamaphulo zibonakalise ukuba ootitshala abafumana inkxaso ekukuqeqeshwa baye bagqwesa ekufundiseni indlela ezilandelwayo ekufundiseni ukufunda ngokwamaqela, kodwa isengumcelamngeni ukufundisa izakhono eziphuhlisa ukufunda ngengqiqo nokuhlola inkqubela yabafundi ekufundeni, (Fleisch & Dixon, 2019; Hoadley, 2017). Ingxelo yophando lwale tyhisisi - belujole ekuboniseni ukuba loluphi ulwazi ekumele ootitshala babenalo ekufundiseni ukufunda ngokwamaqela, kwaye olulwazi lungancedisana njani nootitshala ekufundiseni ukufunda, ndisebenzisa iindidi zolwazi eziqulunqwe nguShulmna (1987): ulwazi ngomxholo wesosifundo, ulwazi ngeendlela ezifanelekileyo zokufundisa esosifundo kunye nolwazi oluqulathwe kuluhlu lwezifundo (curriculum), ulwazi oluphangaleleyo noluquka iindlela ezifanelekileyo zokufundisa, kunye nolwazi malunga namaqhinga athile ancedisana nokufundisa ukufunda ngendlela efanelekileyo. Oluphando lulandele indlela yokuphanda ebizwa ngokuba yi interpretivist case study ngokolwimi lwase mzini, eyona nto esisifundo besigqale kuyo ibi ngootitshala abathathu bebanga lesithathu abafundisa ukufunda kubantwana bengamaqela kumagumbi wabo okufundela. Oluphando luqhutyelwe kwizikolo ezintathu zafelefele (zikaRhulumente) elokishini apho isiXhosa ilulwimi olusetyenziswayo ekufundiseni nasekufundeni. Iinkukacha ziqokelelwe ngoku qwalasela okuqhubekayo egumbini lokufundela, nangokwenza uviwano ndlebe oluzindlela ezimbini: olokuqala lwenziwe emveni kwesifundo, ze olwesibini lwaqhutywa emveni kwesikolo apho utitshala uye wabukela umfanekiso oshicelelweyo wesifundo asiqhubileyo aze ahlatywe imibuzo ngesosifundo asijongileyo, kunye nangoku hlalutya okuqulathiweyo kumaxwebhu afana no CAPS. Mabini amaxwebhu aqulathe umgaqo nkqubo ochazela ootitshala ukuba mabakufundise njani ukufunda ngelixa abantwana befunda bengamaqela, kwaye angumkhombandlela ochaza gca okulindeleke abantwana bakufude ngexesha lokufunda bengamaqela: the Foundation Phase CAPS and the National Framework for the Teaching of Reading in African Languages in the Foundation Phase. Lamaxwebhu ahlalutywe ngokulandela iindidi zolwazi zika Shulmna (1987). Imibhalo ekhutshelweyo (transcripts) enika ingxelo ngokucingwa ngootitshala ngomsebenzi wabo wokufundisa abantwana bengamaqela ngexesha loviwano ndlebe ifundwe ngaxesha nye nemibhalo ekhutshelweyo yokufundiswa kwabantwana bengamaqela ebishicelelwe yangumboniso bhanyabhanya kunye nophulaphulekayo, oku kuye kwahlalutywa ngokusebenzisa iindidi zolwazi zika Shulman (1987). Iziphumo zophando zibonakalise ukuba ulwazi lootitshala malunga nomxholo wezifundo alubonakali ngokuthe gca, lubonakale ilulwazi olubonakala ngezenzo. Ootitshala abathathe inxaxheba kwesisifundo babonakale bezithembile ekuboniseni indlela abaqhuba ngayo, kodwa basilela ukucacisa ngokwamazwi abo into abayenzayo okanye unobangela wokwenza ngandlela ithile. Bonke ootisthala abathathu bagqwesile ekuboniseni ukuba bayayazi imigaqo ekufuneka ilandelwe xa kufundiswa isifunda samaqela ngamaqela, kwaye babonisile ukuba banalo ulwazi lokuphuhlisa izakhono zokufunda ngokutyibilika, nokufundisa abantwana amaqhinga athile abanowasebenzisa xabeguqula okufihlakele entethweni, kunye nendlela ezisesikweni zokuhlola. Nangona kunjalo nje ubungqina obubonisa ukuba abatitshala bathathu banaso isakhono sokufundisa amaqhinga okufunda ngengqiqo, kunye nokubuza imibuzo ekwinqanaba eliphezulu, kwaye namaxwebhu abonisa uhlolo luka titshala bunqongophele. , Thesis (MEd) -- Faculty of Education, Education, 2022
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