Exploring the complexities of describing foundation phase teachers’ professional knowledge base

Bertram, Carol; Christiansen, Iben Maj; Mukeredzi, Tabitha Grace

doi:10.4102/sajce.v5i1.355

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Further, it makes explicit the ways in which English language and literacies knowledge for primary school teachers is being assessed, at entry and exit levels, through a standardised PrimTEd English assessment. Tests of teacher knowledge are common in North America, as Bertram et al (2015) have remarked, but South Africa has not the same history. It is precisely this that PrimTEd wishes to accomplish, believing that this testing of student teachers' English language and literacies knowledge and skills offers the possibility of turning around South Africa's poor school results in the long term.…”

Section: )mentioning

confidence: 99%

Designing an English language and literacies knowledge and skills test for Initial Teacher Education students in South Africa

Roberts¹,

Mort²

2023

J. educ. (Univ. KwaZulu-natal)

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Since 2016 the Primary Teacher Education (PrimTEd) project has assessed first and fourth year student teachers' English language and literacies knowledge and skills with a view to optimising what is offered in teacher education courses. In 2021, after a critical review of these English language assessments, a process of test redesigning that also provides professional development opportunities for language teacher educators, was initiated. In this paper, we report on this process of modifying an existing test and discuss a new design that is still a work in progress, in order to make it more responsive to the English language needs of the student teachers. We argue that the emerging test has the potential to contribute to improved English language teacher education at universities and to improved teaching and learning of languages and literacies in South African primary schools.

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Section: )mentioning

confidence: 99%

Designing an English language and literacies knowledge and skills test for Initial Teacher Education students in South Africa

Roberts¹,

Mort²

2023

J. educ. (Univ. KwaZulu-natal)

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“…This would be supported by data that we collected from the teacher tests which the cohort of teachers wrote when they enrolled in the module (February 2013) and when they completed (October 2014). The non-response to many of the test questions showed that at least 30% of teachers did not understand the questions (Bertram, Christiansen & Mukeredzi 2015), and thus would have found some of the text in the learning guide difficult to understand.…”

Section: Barriers To Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating teacher learning from a university programme for Foundation Phase teachers

Mukeredzi

Bertram

Christiansen

2018

SAJCE

Self Cite

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Background: There is a growing focus in South Africa on teachers developing appropriate knowledge, skills and dispositions for teaching to support young learners’ development and learning. One such teacher development programme is the Advanced Certificate in Teaching for Foundation Phase teachers, offered by the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). This research sought to establish the learning of this sample of teachers as this was the first time the programme was offered at this level in South Africa and in UKZN. Aim: The study investigated the knowledge the teachers said they gained, how they acquired it and ways in which they said learning improved their classroom practices. Methods: This was a qualitative study. Data were generated from 26 participants through two rounds of focus group interviews in June 2013 and in November 2014. Data were analysed thematically using concepts of accommodation or assimilation, and practical or conceptual knowledge. Results: Respondents’ statements indicated development of a range of practical knowledge about planning and teaching strategies, and conceptual knowledge like child development, creative play, circle of courage and others. Teachers also reported ways in which their classroom practices had improved. However, both institution- and student-related learning barriers emerged during the first semester around programme demands and poor curriculum delivery. Conclusion: Respondents reported more about acquiring practical than conceptual knowledge and having improved practices in many ways. Participants also reported gaining conceptual knowledge around child development, circle of courage, and learning barriers. They acquired these kinds of knowledge through both assimilation and accommodation.

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“…One of Winch's central claims in his work on Dimensions Expertise (2010, p.104) is that "the possession of relevant systematically organised knowledge is a prerequisite for action". Whilst the debate about which domains teacher knowledge consists of is important in showing that enacting a lesson plan takes place amidst a complexity of teacher knowledges (see Ball, Thames & Phelps, 2008;Gess-Newsome, 2015;Bertram, Christiansen and Mukeredzi, 2015), what is core to the contribution made by Winch on expertise is that the crux of professional practice lies in making professional judgements.…”

Section: Teacher Knowledge Matters For Enactment Of Slpmentioning

confidence: 99%

The what and how in scripted lesson plans: the case of the Gauteng Primary Language and Mathematics Strategy

Shalem

Steinberg²,

Koornhof³

et al. 2017

Journal of Education

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Lesson plans are advocated as useful forms of teacher support because they can expand a repertoire of teaching practices. But what kinds of scripted instruction can effectively guide and improve teachers' instruction and how can lesson plans achieve that? This article examines the nature and purpose of the scripted lesson plans (SLPs) used in the Gauteng primary education system and then investigates how teachers enacted these routinised SLPs. Through a review of the literature on teaching English language and on SLPs, the article assesses the opportunities and challenges afforded by the Gauteng Primary Language and Mathematics Strategy's (GPLMS's) lesson plans for Grade 3 English as First Additional Language (FAL). Then, through an analysis of an English FAL lesson taught differently by two teachers, it points to the many professional judgements made by the teachers as they enact the prescribed teaching routine. Our analysis suggests, firstly, that the knowledge resources given to teachers need to be considerably more detailed and, secondly, that teachers need strong subject matter knowledge to transmit the conceptual relations that underlie the teaching routines of the lesson plan.

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Exploring the complexities of describing foundation phase teachers’ professional knowledge base

Abstract: Abstract

Cited by 9 publications

References 29 publications

Designing an English language and literacies knowledge and skills test for Initial Teacher Education students in South Africa

Designing an English language and literacies knowledge and skills test for Initial Teacher Education students in South Africa

Investigating teacher learning from a university programme for Foundation Phase teachers

The what and how in scripted lesson plans: the case of the Gauteng Primary Language and Mathematics Strategy

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