Department of Language Education, Arts and Culture
https://hdl.handle.net/10500/6423
2024-03-29T09:42:52ZThe impact of mobile reading devices on the reading habits of a group of adolescent learners in Zimbabwe
https://hdl.handle.net/10500/27715
The impact of mobile reading devices on the reading habits of a group of adolescent learners in Zimbabwe
Bachisi, Ivan
The pace of technological advancement and growth in the twenty-first century continues to soar at unprecedented levels and beyond human imagination. As the fourth industrial revolution unfolds, it has become increasingly difficult to predict the direction technological innovation will take in the not too distant future. Digital technologies have
become an integral part of every aspect of human existence (work, play, schooling and personal relationships). The purpose of this study was to explore the various ways mobile technological gadgets like cell phones, tablets and laptops could be leveraged to promote a culture of leisure reading amongst a group of Zimbabwean adolescent learners. Data was collected using the literacy practices interview, mobile reading diaries, focus group interviews and the researcher’s personal field notes. Theoretically, the study was guided primarily by Urie Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological systems theory. Also, the study was
supported by Guthrie and Wigfield's reader engagement model and Turner and Hicks' connected reader model. The empirical data collected through the data collection instruments were analysed inductively. The findings revealed that adolescent learners are
a digital generation whose reading needs are ever growing and expectations are ever changing. The adolescent participants expect their reading to be like the rest of their digital lives, which is quick, uninterrupted, personalised and smart. It was found that the
adolescent participants like to read on their terms, as they dislike being told when to read or what to read. Three reader identities were revealed namely; the eager reader, the ‘fifty fifty’ reader and the non-reader. The adolescent participants who were not already mobile
readers readily accepted and adopted mobile reading as it afforded them vast reading opportunities. Besides, the findings of the study revealed that participants encountered many challenges, which in some instances militated against their mobile reading endeavours. These challenges were because of mobile phone use restrictions in schools, prohibitive data costs, a strong emphasis on academic reading as opposed to leisure reading and internet connectivity problems amongst other issues. In this study, the recommendations and guidelines outlined provide a framework with which schools, parents, mobile reading application developers and policymakers can adopt to support a robust mobile reading culture amongst Zimbabwean adolescent learners. The researcher concluded that mobile reading devices are a novel, noble and credible means through which they can foster positive leisure literacy practices amongst Zimbabwean adolescents.
2021-02-01T00:00:00ZA wiki-based process writing approach to academic writing in an ODL institution
https://hdl.handle.net/10500/26854
A wiki-based process writing approach to academic writing in an ODL institution
Sehlodimela, Catherine Tshegofatso
Writing, an important academic skill for university students to acquire, becomes more important in a distance education institution where assessment is primarily on written work. Successful teaching and learning practices for Open Distance Learning (ODL) incorporate multiple forms of interaction when using technology within a constructivist approach.
The study seeks to understand students’ perceptions of wikis within a process writing approach, and the suitability of Web 2.0 technology for tasks designed to teach academic writing. A participatory action research design was selected as it merges social action and research to solve educational problems while increasing human understanding of the phenomena.
The findings show that students may be open to using wikis within their actual learning environment. Of significance was the issue of the early integration and engagement of students into online learning communities. The challenges experienced in the study can be addressed adapting Chickering and Ehrmann’s (1996) principles to frame the development of online learning.
2020-11-01T00:00:00ZThe role of English academic vocabulary on reading comprehension of grade 11 English First Additional Language learners
https://hdl.handle.net/10500/26567
The role of English academic vocabulary on reading comprehension of grade 11 English First Additional Language learners
Zano, Kufakunesu
In this thesis, the researcher used an explanatory sequential mixed methods research design to investigate the role of English academic vocabulary on reading comprehension of grade 11 English First Additional Language (EFAL) learners in the Free State province, Fezile Dabi district in South Africa. The current study is an attempt to determine whether the breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge have a bearing on grade 11 EFAL learners' reading comprehension, and to examine which one of these variables, that is, breadth or depth of vocabulary knowledge, makes a more important contribution to reading comprehension. It also attempts to investigate the Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLS) used by grade 11 EFAL learners. For the non-experimental quantitative study, the participants of the study were thirty EFAL learners who were chosen based on available sampling. To collect the relevant data, two tests measuring breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge (Section A and Section B) and a reading comprehension were administered to all participants. To achieve its aim 1, two independent variables namely, the Vocabulary Levels Test (VLT) which measures vocabulary breadth and Word Associate Test (WAT) which measures vocabulary depth were used. Then, the dependent variable was the reading comprehension test in which the participants were asked to read the passages and answer some multiple choice questions. Pearson product-moment correlations and multiple regression were chosen as the dominant techniques for the statistical analyses. The results obtained from the analysis of the data indicated that while both depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge play an important role in EFAL learners' reading comprehension performance, depth of vocabulary knowledge makes a more important contribution. The results further revealed that depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge are positively correlated, that is, those learners who had large vocabulary size had a deeper knowledge of the words, too.
Then, the findings from the qualitative study based on the data collected through eight focus group discussion participants about the VLS used by grade 11 EFAL learners, highlight that it is important to explore and broaden learners’ vocabulary learning strategic knowledge. Also, results reflect that learners can take control of their own vocabulary learning as long the teachers train and then offer them opportunities to learn and practice the strategies.The qualitative data for this study was analysed using the content analysis method.; Nyakisiso ye e tserwe ka mekgwa ye mentshi ye e hlakantshitsweng lebaka e le go nyakishisha ka karolo yeo polelo ya Sepediya poleloya tlatselletso e ralokang karolo dithutong tsa polelo ya go bala taodiso mphatong wa lesometee (11) polelong go bana kua porofenseng ya Foreistata e bitswang Fezile Dabi, districting (lefapheng) gona mo Aforika Borwa. Gonabjalo dithuto di ipontsha go ikemisetsa go tseba ka bophara le bogolo ba tsebo ka polelo ya sepedi ka seo e leng sona Mphatong wa le sometee (11), polelong ya tlatselletso ya bana ba mphato wa lesometee ka go bala ga taodisho. Go nyakega di nyakisiso ka mekgwa yeo oka e berekisang ke bana ba Mphato wa lesometee polelong ya tlatselletso. Go thuto yeo e tiilego batseakarolo ba masome a mararo (30) ba polelo ya tletselletso e leng bana ba sekolo bao ba kgethilweng ka mokgwa wa dinyakisiso tse di ntshitswego. Go humana palo ya mannete, dihlahlobo tse pedi (2) tseo ditlago go lekanetsa bogolo le bophara ba tsebo ya go bolela le go bala taodisho e filwe batseakarolo kamoka. Go humana maikemisetso a pele (1). Tseo di ikemetsego di bolelwe, le hlahlobo ya polelo ya mantswe eo e lekanyetsago polelo ka bophara e berekishitswe. Seo se ikemetsego e be ele go bala teko ya taodiso ye batseakarolo ba kgopetsweng go bala ditemana le go araba dipotsiso tse mmalwa tseo dikgethilweng. Dipoelo tseo di humanwego gotswa go dipalo tsa tseo ditserweng ka bophara le go bolela ga polelo kapa yona tsebo ya polelo yeo e ralokileng karolo e bohlokwa go polelo ya tlatselletso go baithuti ka go bala taodiso yeo e tsereng karolo ka bophara kapa bogolo ba tsebo ya polelo e dira gore go be bohlokwa gotseyeng karolo. Dipoelo go tswela pele di bontsha bogolo le bophora ka tsebo polelo di ya kopana di ya tsamaisana nang ka tsela ya maleba, Baithuti ba palo ya godimo bao ba nang le tsebo ya polelo yeo e tibileng ka mantswe le bona baya amega.
Gotswa go dinyakisiso tseo di fitisisago go humanwe gore dipalopalo go tswa go dihlopa tse sesawi tseo kapa bao batsereng karolo ka mekgwa ya nyakisiso kapa tsebo ya polelo yeo e berekisitswego go bana ba Mphato wa bo lesometee (11) polelong ya tlatselletso e hlagisa gore go bohlokwa gore bogolo ba baithuti bainyakisisetse ka tsebo ya mekgwa ya polelo. Dipoelo di bontsha thuto ya polelo go barutegi bao barutiwago ba filwe monyetla wa go ithuta le go tsea karolo go mekgwa ya go ithuta e fapaneng.; Mokgwa ona o tswakilweng wa ho hlahloba karolo ya puo ya Senyesemane ka ho bala kutlwisiso ya diithuti tsa Sekolo sa Pele sa Puo ea Senyesemane sa Pele (EFAL) seprofinseng sa Free State seterekeng sa Fezile Dabi, Arika Borwa. Phuputso ya morao tjena ke boiteko ba ho bona hore na bophara le botebo ba tsebo wa mantswe di na le sebopeho sa ho bala sekolo sa EFAL, mme ho hlahloba e nngwe ya mefuta ena, ke hore, bophara kapa botebo ba tsebo ya mantswe, e etsa monehelo wa bohlokwa haholwanyane ho bala kutlwisiso. E boetse e leka ho batlisisa mekgwa ya ho ithuta ya mantswe (VLT) e sebediswang ke barutwana ba 11 EFAL. Bakeng sa dipatlisiso tse ngata, barupeluwa ba thuto ba ne ba e-na le diithuti tse mashome a mararo tsa EFAL tse kgethilweng di thehilwe ho sampole e fumanehang. Ho bokella boitsebiso bo nepahetseng, diteko tse pedi tse lekanyang le bophara ba tsebo ya mantswe (Karolo ya A le Section B) mme kutlwisiso ya ho bala e ne e tsamaiswa ho bohle ba barupeluwa. Ho finyella sepheo sa yona 1, mefuta e mmedi e ikemetseng, e leng. Tlhahlobo ya disebediswatsa vocabulary (VLT) e lekanyang tekanyao ya mantswe le Testing (WAT) e lekanyang e tibeleng ya mantswe e sebedisitsweng. Jwale, moelelo o itshetlehile ka ho bala teko ya kutlwisiso eo barupeluwa ba ileng ba koptjoa hore ba bale dipatlisiso le ho araba dipotso tse ngata. Diphello tse fumanweng ha ho hlahlojwa boitsebiso bo bontshiitse hore ho tseba hore boitsebiso bo bongata bo tebileng le bobopeho ba tsebo ya mantswe bo phetha karolo ya bohlokwa haholo. Diphello di ile tsa tswela pele ho senola hore tsebo le tsebo ya tsebo di tsamaisana hantle, ke hore, baithuti ba neng ba e-na le boholo ba di-vocabulary bana le tsebo e tebileng ya mantswe, hape.
Jwale dithuto tse tswang thupelong ya boleng bo thehilweng boitsebisong ba dihlopha tse robedi tsa dipuisano tsa dihlopha tsa dipuisano ka sehlopha sa VLS se sebedisitsweng ka dihlopha tsa bo 11 ba EFAL di bontsha hore ke habohlokwa ho hlahloba le ho atolosa tsebo ya diithuti tsa ho ithuta tsebo. Hape, diphello di bontsha hore barupeluwa ba ka nka boikarabelo ba ho ithuta mantswe ha nako e telele matichere a ntse a kwetliswa mme jwale a ba fa menyetla ya ho ithuta le ho sebeisa manqheka.
Abstract in English, Sepedi and Sesotho
2018-06-01T00:00:00ZEvaluating the effect of academic literacy intervention programme on the SATAP English scores of first year students at a university in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
https://hdl.handle.net/10500/19031
Evaluating the effect of academic literacy intervention programme on the SATAP English scores of first year students at a university in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
Ludidi, Yolisa Yolande
The effect of the academic literacy intervention programme on the SATAP English scores was evaluated. This study begins as a longitudinal study in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology (FSET). 120 subjects from the Electrical, Civil, Building and Mechanical departments in the FSET were randomly selected to serve as an experimental group. The research design employed a quantitative methodology. Data was collected using the Standardised Assessment Tests for Access and Placement (SATAP) English Test. The test was administered to the experimental group as a pre- test and post-test measure at the beginning of the year and at the end of the year. The SPSS statistical programme with frequency tables and graphs was utilised to analyse the data obtained. The results indicated that the difference between the pre-test scores and the post-test scores was statistically significant. The post-test scores were significantly higher than the pre-test ones. It was concluded that the academic literacy intervention programme was effective in increasing the SATAP scores and therefore addressed some of the language needs of students.
2015-02-01T00:00:00Z