1.We use the term 'practitioner' to denote those who are not yet qualified as ECD educators and the term 'educator' to refer to those who have a minimum of the National Qualifications Framework Level 4 qualification.2.'Large classes' refers to class groups of 60-90 children.Background: This article reports on the evaluation of a professional development programme for underqualified Grade R practitioners, many of whom work under challenging conditions. Aim:The study aimed to evaluate the practitioners' confidence, knowledge and practice of play.Setting: The programme involved a 5-week training programme for 1000 Grade R practitioners across three Eastern Cape districts. Methods:The study included three data sources: (1) self-reported shifts in confidence and practice solicited through closed Likert-type questions, ( 2) responses to open-ended questions on knowledge of play and (3) lesson observations of case study practitioners, using a lesson observation protocol to distil quantitative shifts in the practice of case study practitioners (n = 10), compared with control practitioners (n = 4). Results:The evaluation found positive shifts in practitioners' self-reporting on their confidence and knowledge of play. However, evidence of their knowledge of play was mixed.Practitioners offered very general conceptions of play, with specific attention on the expected 'form' of play. The use of materials for play, and changed classroom practice from whole class to small groups, were most strongly evident. Because it was short course of 5 weeks, lesson observations of case study practitioners were less positive, with no significant difference between treatment and control lesson observations. Conclusion:The study opens a window into the implementation of the 5-week professional development programme and the instrumentation used to reflect on practitioners' confidence, knowledge and practice of play. The discussion reflects critically on improving the instrumentation in future for measuring shifts in practitioner confidence, knowledge and practice of play.

No abstract

Summer weather conditions along the west coast of Africa near 34" S, 18"E are investigated using doppler acoustic sounder profiles. Case studies were selected from a two-year record to form composite analyses over the diurnal cycle. The SE trade wind exhibited a low level jet at the level of the temperature inversion due to a sharp reversal in the thermal wind vector aloft. Mean wind speeds reached 14 m s-i just before midnight as the surface and upper inversions strengthened. Seabreezes were categorised by the supporting gradient wind and found to have mean depths of 400 m, speeds of over 6 m s-r at the 200 m level, and advance/retreat times of 09 hr and 16-20 hr. During seabreezes and weak on-shore gradient flow conditions, the thermal internal boundary layer (TIBL) was monitored with sounder transects in the first 12 km of the coastal zone. The growth height was observed to be 1: 20 in the first 5 km and 1: 50 farther inland. The sounder climatology, together with surface network and aerial survey results, illustrate the four-dimensional characteristics of trade winds and seabreezes near Cape Town.

No abstract

However, none of the interventions included in this special issue are related to teachers (caring adults or parents) and their instructional practices for mathematics. Neither did any of the interventions consider the possibility of utilising mobile technologies in this quest. We share Ebrahim and Pascal's (2016:3) urgency relating to young children and their families. We offer a focus on mathematics and m-learning as contribution towards their call 'to continue knowledge production about early care and education in a disadvantaged context, especially from the Global South' (Ebrahim & Pascal 2016:3). This article is based at the confluence of three educational premises relating to early education in the Global South: that improving mathematics and reading outcomes is a global priority; that early interventions are necessary to try and reduce the learning gap evident between children Background: There has been little Southern African research attention on the potentials of m-learning to support quality mathematics learning for young children and their caring adults. This article argues that m-learning research has shifted from claims of being promising to claims of effect in educational settings of both classrooms and homes. This is particularly the case in mathematics, where there is increasing evidence of positive (although modest) improvement in learning outcomes. Aim: This article modifies an analytical framework for initial descriptions of m-learning interventions. Comparison between interventions in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) context is then possible. Setting: Three large-scale m-learning interventions focused on early grade mathematics in the SADC countries.Methods: Targeting the early grades and building on an existing framework for describing m-learning interventions, three large-scale m-learning interventions from within the SADC were purposively selected. The three interventions exemplify a possible way to describe the learning theory and pedagogical emphasis underlying the design of their mathematics programmes. Results:The cases themselves contribute to understanding the m-learning landscape and approaches to early grade mathematics in the SADC in more detail. Conclusion:A modified analytical framework is offered as a means of describing m-learning in ways that attend to children's and caregivers' use of mobile devices, as well as the underlying learning theories.