ICAP is a framework that classifies learning processes based on students' explicit behaviors. The framework is developed for testing the hypothesis that interactive exercises are better than constructive exercises, and active exercises are better than the passive exercises for higher cognitive engagement and better learning outcomes. The ICAP…

The purpose of this research is to analyse the support that lecturers need to be able to implement a blended learning approach successfully. Blended learning is now seen as an approach that can create engaging learning environments, to enhance students' self-directed learning and improve the whole learning experience. The study investigated the…

Few people who did not grow up speaking Zulu have learned the language later. There are limited resources for second language Zulu learning, whether textbooks, readers, or computerised resources. We set out to develop software for this purpose, to support learners' independent learning. Drawing on research on language learning, we used a number of…

This paper explores and compares the language learning strategies of high and low performing second language (L2) learners participating in peer tutoring. The participating learners were grouped into high and low performing learners based on their scores in English second language. The classification of strategies by Griffiths into base, core and…

Purpose: This study aims to examine six South African universities with a particular focus on the quality of teaching and learning. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative case study approach was adopted and data were mainly generated by means of open-ended questionnaires. The questionnaire was circulated to approximately 1,800 students and 746…

Background: In South Africa, developing criticality among learners is essential for their careers in school and outside school. However, knowledge and understanding of critical literacy within the schooling context is unclear, with only patchy guidance available for teachers. Objectives: An intervention project was set up to discover how community…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine teaching approaches adopted by teachers in ex-Model C English medium secondary schools (former mono-ethnic White Schools) currently in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, after schools became desegregated in 1994 and changed from being mono-ethnic to multi-ethnic. Design/methodology/approach: This study…

This study's focus was two-fold, first to look at forms of gestures teachers of multilingual mathematics classes use during teaching; and second to find out how teachers of multilingual mathematics classes utilize learners' home language, language of learning and teaching and gestures to foster understanding in the teaching of mathematics. This…

Teachers are actively encouraged to plan their lessons such that there is maximum classroom talk, namely accountability talk. However, many lessons do not display sufficient accountability talk. This study attempted to better understand the level and quality of accountability talk in six science lessons. The study aimed to provide teachers with…

Mapping the knowledge formations of language teachers within their pedagogic practices is underresearched, particularly for subject English, a multi-faceted, elusively defined discipline. Deeper knowledge of the pedagogy of subject English teachers is critical, especially within South African education, given the socio-economic power of English in…

Background: This article reports on an analysis of errors that were displayed by students who studied mathematics in Chemical Engineering in derivatives of mostly trigonometric functions. The poor performance of these students triggered this study. The researcher (lecturer) works in a mathematics support programme to enhance students'…

This study investigated the learning difficulties of grade 12 South African students in a national chemistry examination. A quantitative analysis of students' performance in the examination revealed there was a significant difference between student performance in questions where students needed to execute a transformation across levels of…

The paper presents findings of primary school children's performance on classification and generalisation tasks to demonstrate the fundamental connection between their verbal thinking processes and problem-solving, on the one hand, and the practical activities of their society and culture, on the other. The results reveal that, although children…

This article addresses an enduring concern in the sociology of education: how social class differences are reproduced through schooling. In particular it focuses on the functioning of pedagogy in this regard. The article presents a model that elucidates the inner logic of pedagogy in order to reveal the structuring of inequality with respect to…

This article reports on a case study of the e-learning production unit at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. Phase 1 of the study, completed in 2003, was the design and development of a process-based quality management system for web-supported learning (WSL) using a basic ISO 9000 approach (University of Pretoria, 2003). The second phase,…