Background: Poetry predates all other genres of literature, and it has been argued that the relationship between poetry and language is inextricable. The ability of African people to articulate their own stories was largely silenced by colonialism. Poems and lyrics have been known to create a bridge between individuals in meaningful words and…

Background: The need to examine teachers' learning activities in reading literacy instruction arises from concerns about reading proficiency levels in the Namibian Junior Primary phase, where reading literacy is a fundamental skill crucial for academic success. Aim: The study examined the learning activities used for reading literacy instruction…

Background: Several isiXhosa home language (HL) learners are excluded from meaningful mathematics learning because they are taught in English. Not only do teachers lack epistemological and pedagogical confidence in using multiple languages when teaching mathematics, but there are no mathematical registers for African languages that allow for…

Background: The context of this research is reading literacy instruction in Foundation Phase classrooms in South Africa. Although large-scale studies have researched learner performance, little is known of the nuances of teachers' practice, particularly in the non-verbal realm. This research seeks to address that gap. Aim: This research…

Background: South Africa is beset with violent, antisocial practices and ways of life hindering peaceful co-existence and participatory democracy. This makes a targeted early education programme to develop a socially responsible generation imperative. Aim: Based on a larger research project, this study aimed to highlight the value of participatory…

Background: Internationally, the teaching of division has noted that the use of sharing situations with sharing actions (one-by-one distribution) is the predominant division model at the beginning of schooling. In South Africa, research suggests a sharing situation with sharing actions is also preferred in the early grades. Aim: This paper aims to…

Background: This report is part of a study commissioned to provide evidence to inform quality improvements, and the rolling out of the public reception class programme (RCP) to all public primary schools in Botswana by 2020. The study adopted the Discrepancy Evaluation Model (DEM) as a theoretical framework. Aim: One of the specific objectives of…

Background: Teachers are responsible for developing and enhancing communication skills amongst young learners. Unfortunately, the overly structured pedagogy which many teachers adopt inhibits the optimal development of oral communication skills. Hence, the researchers investigated ways of strengthening group-work play-based pedagogy to stimulate…

Background: Teaching English as home language (EHL) could be a complicated process in a country like South Africa, where there are eleven official languages operating in a multicultural society. This requires capacitating teachers with appropriate and relevant strategies to strengthen their teaching, especially in the foundation phase. Aim: This…

Background: Children's holistic development includes physical, cognitive, socio-emotional, moral and affective development and lies in early childhood development education (ECDE). According to research, children learn through different age-appropriate teaching and learning pedagogies. Therefore, the importance of implementing a play-based…

Background: Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) learners have unique needs, and specific pedagogies, therefore, need to be employed to support the acquisition of their essential skills. A great deal of research has been conducted on the use of music-based pedagogies to teach mathematics, life skills, civics and literacy at various levels of…

Background: Over the years, the majority of the Basotho nation and many countries have known Lesotho as a country which has Sesotho and English as the only spoken languages and as medium of instruction in schools. Whereas, in reality, Lesotho has many spoken languages. Many tribes have their own spoken languages which, hitherto, have not been…

Background: Early childhood education (ECE) has recently been introduced in Zambian government schools, leading to a need to examine the quality of mathematics lessons. Aim: This study focussed on guided play lessons on shapes in pre-mathematics classes and examined how they could be implemented and what children could learn in the class. Setting:…

Background: South African-structured reading programmes have been implemented in schools in South Africa. The Early Grade Reading Study (EGRS) is an education triple cocktail programme, which attempts to improve home language reading in a number of schools. Aim: The objective of this research was to find out how the educators involved in the…

Background: A large body of earlier research has focused on studying children's self-regulation (SR) skills and frustration with different methods. However, considerably less attention has been given to hearing children's own voice. The current study sought to demonstrate children's own comprehension and highlight it as a valuable and unique…