Managing acceptable academic outcomes in a context of multiple deprivation: Making do in a South African township school

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 861-874
Author(s):  
Hettie Van der Merwe
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Academic Outcomes ◽  
Intervention Strategy ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Intervention Programme ◽  
Saturday Morning ◽  
Multiple Deprivation ◽  
School Year ◽  
South African Township

This article explores the intervention strategy used by the staff and school management team of a South African township school to ensure that final-year learners exposed to an environment of multiple deprivation are adequately prepared for the year-end standardised examination. Analysis of the interview data confirms literature findings on the debilitating effect of multiple deprivation, in the form of absolute poverty, on learners’ chances of learning successfully. Research findings reveal strategies related to an intervention programme to prepare final-year learners for the year-end examination. The intervention programme, consisting of Saturday morning and school holiday morning classes and a study camp event a fortnight before the final examination commences, counteracts inhibiting home and environment conditions, to support learners holistically to achieve acceptable academic outcomes. However, the negative influence on learners’ diligence of extending their final school year over two years and the constraint on knowledge and skills attainment of a pass mark of only 30% for some subjects are adverse factors limiting the chances of social mobility for learners with multiple deprivation.

scholarly journals How is their word knowledge growing? Exploring Grade 3 vocabulary in South African township schools

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth J. Pretorius ◽  
Lieke Stoffelsma
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Word Knowledge ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
School Year ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Grade 3 ◽  
South African Township

In this article, we report on a study that examined the active and receptive English vocabulary of two different groups of Grade 3 learners in South African township schools. The groups consisted of English Home Language (HL) learners in the Western Cape and Xhosa HL and English First Additional Language (FAL) learners in the Eastern Cape. The purpose was to document their different vocabulary trajectories during Grade 3. The Woodcock-Muñoz Language Survey was used to measure the active vocabulary levels of 118 learners at the beginning and the end of the school year. Another 284 learners from the same eight Grade 3 classes participated in a receptive vocabulary test at the end of the year. This test assessed their knowledge of the 60 most frequent words that occur in South Africa Grade 4 English textbooks. Results showed that although the HL learners knew almost double the number of words their English FAL peers did, both groups of learners increased their active word knowledge through the year by about 9%. Regarding their receptive vocabulary, the English FAL learners on average only knew 27% of the most frequent words at the end of their Grade 3. No significant gender differences were found. Learners in both language groups who were above their grade age had significantly lower scores than their younger peers. This confirms findings that children who start school with weak language skills tend to stay weak. Finally, initial active vocabulary knowledge was found to be a strong predictor of vocabulary development during the school year.

scholarly journals Community Viral Load and CD4 Count Distribution Among People Living With HIV in a South African Township

2013 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 498-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharina Kranzer ◽  
Stephen D. Lawn ◽  
Leigh F. Johnson ◽  
Linda-Gail Bekker ◽  
Robin Wood
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
South African ◽  
Cd4 Count ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Count Distribution ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
South African Township

scholarly journals “I’m not a teacher”: A case of (dys)functional parent-teacher partnerships in a South African township

2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Rockie Sibanda
Keyword(s):  
Parental Involvement ◽  
South African ◽  
Teaching Role ◽  
Role Of Parents ◽  
Teachers And Parents ◽  
Children's Schooling ◽  
Successful School ◽  
Pedagogical Function ◽  
South African Township

Teachers collaborating with parents is an axiom of successful school programmes. The parents’ role should be supportive and complementary to the teachers’ pedagogical function. A functional or dysfunctional parent-teacher partnership is a predictor of children’s success or failure in school. The functionality of parent-teacher partnerships is often measured through student achievement. The aim of this article was to illuminate how a coordinated parent-teacher partnership can be supportive to children’s schooling. Focus is on teachers’ teaching role complimented with the supportive and monitoring role of parents. Data were collected through interviews with parents and teachers at a township primary school. I engage the concern that a lack of parental involvement affects parent-teacher partnerships in township schools. Findings of this study demonstrate teachers’ lack of understanding of the sociocultural and economic circumstances constraining parental involvement, resulting in a chasm of understanding between teachers and parents on how to collaboratively support children’s learning positions at school and at home.

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