Abstract
The current approach to reading comprehension instruction is not producing the desired outcomes. Provincial, national and international tests indicate that more than half of South African learners cannot read, understand and answer basic comprehension questions. This research project was informed by Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory. A case study was conducted with a ten-year old Grade 4 boy who experienced difficulty with understanding comprehension questions. A six-week intervention was designed to improve his comprehension abilities and to identify instructional principles that were appropriate for him. Interviews and observations were conducted and inductively analysed. Findings showed that the learner was well equipped to retrieve explicitly stated information but struggled with higher-order level questions such as drawing inferences or evaluating content. Certain instructional practices were more favourable than others when teaching reading strategies.
Highlights
South Africa participates in many provincial and national assessments for both Literacy and Numeracy, for example: provincially, the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) conducts annual Systemic tests - Annual National Assessments (ANA) were conducted nationally between 2011 and 2014 and internationally, the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) is conducted every five years
A case study was conducted with a ten-year old Grade 4 boy who experienced difficulty with understanding comprehension questions
Findings showed that the learner was well equipped to retrieve explicitly stated information but struggled with higher-order level questions such as drawing inferences or evaluating content
Summary
(National Department of Basic Education [NDoBE] 2014:1) Are these test results supposed to provide necessary diagnostic information to the schooling community but to lecturers and researchers in tertiary institutions where one of the authors of this research was a post-graduate student. This particular case study was conducted in her Grade 4 class in an urban quintile 5 school. The Department of Basic Education classifies schools in five quintiles, poorer and no-fee schools make up quintiles 1 and 2 while quintile 5 schools are considered the ‘richest’ This classification is based on the economic status of the learners who attend the school (Gower 2008:15). We begin by analysing the three assessments in order to answer the research question ‘What instructional principles are used to teach a Grade 4 learner more critical comprehension skills?’
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