In this position paper we highlight language as a perennial factor contributing to compromised meaning-making in multilingual primary school mathematics classrooms. We note use of the term 'translanguaging' in discussions around mitigating this meaning-making challenge. The paper argues that, while much work remains to be done towards clarifying…

This paper explores the efficacy of implementing bilingual education in the Foundation Phase in South Africa. Doctrinal analysis was used as a data collection tool wherein English and Xitsonga were both used as mediums of instruction in the Foundation Phase. To acquire empirical evidence used to add doctrinal data, eight contact sessions were…

Classrooms across the world are becoming more diverse, forcing mainstream teachers to accept responsibility for teaching second language (L2) learners. As a result, pedagogical translanguaging has come to the fore as a potential practice to help L2 learners perform academically. In South Africa pedagogical translanguaging had not previously been…

Framed by decolonial theory, this paper explores how language and literacy ideologies, including Anglonormativity, or the expectation that children should be proficient in a standardised version of English and are deficient if not, shape language and literacy practices in South African classrooms. While not legitimised, the use of fluid language…

Novice teachers' use of English as the medium of instruction in curriculum delivery across all subjects in rural South African schools is the focus of this study. The duration of their entry into the profession as Post Graduate Certificate in Education holders is short and does not capacitate them enough, thus, making them weak and inexperienced,…

Despite less than 10% of South Africans claiming English as their home language, it has become the de facto language of instruction. Yet we cannot assume that teachers have sufficient command of this language when using it for instructional purposes. As a sub-study, in this article we report on the oral proficiency of isiZulu-speaking pre-service…

Language ideologies profoundly shape and constrain the use of language as a resource for learning in 'multilingual' or linguistically diverse classrooms. In this paper, we draw attention in particular to the ideology of languages as stable, boundaried objects and to the colonial invention of African languages. Against this backdrop, we analyse an…

This research reports on the findings regarding the perceptions of teachers towards creating space for the use of code switching as a teaching strategy in Afrikaans learning and teaching in the isiXhosa-speaking environments of the Transkei region. The aim of this investigation was to establish whether or not code switching can be used as a…

The low enrolment, lack of interest, exacerbated by the general poor performance in physical science in South Africa paints a gloomy picture about the status of physical science in the country. Despite the fact that there might be other factors at play, one factor which cannot be ignored is the discourse about the use of language in the science…

The nature of discourse within classrooms strongly predicts students' ability to think about, around, and with text and content (i.e. comprehension and critical-analytic thinking). However, little is known about the nature of classroom discourse in remote, rural South African schools, a context in which students face well-documented language…

Education for multilingual Physics students in South Africa still has a monolingual bias despite such pedagogy being repeatedly identified as the key factor in students' academic underachievement in the subject. The paper reports on the pivotal role language plays in the comprehension and subsequent academic performance of students in science…

This paper reports on the classroom languaging practices of a group of science teachers in rural and township schools in South Africa where the majority of learners learn through the medium of English, despite the fact that it is the home language of only a small minority; and learners' poor English proficiency frequently restricts their access to…

This paper seeks to explore at least one aspect of interactional practices in two different multilingual mathematics classroom contexts with learners drawn from different socio-cultural backgrounds. The data collection strategies for this ethnographic study of multi-age primary multilingual mathematics classrooms (with learners aged 12-14) in the…

The contemporary South African subject English classroom is a complex space requiring ongoing attention to issues of cultural and linguistic diversity, and frequently manifesting the need to work across historically constructed differences in race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status. This article reports on one aspect of a broader research…

The data discussed in this paper is drawn from research conducted in a multilingual urban primary school in Johannesburg, South Africa, where the official language of instruction is English and the majority of learners are African language speakers, frequently with very limited English proficiency. The paper presents a case study of one child who…