Background: Formative assessment has been reported to improve learners' learning in affluent contexts. However, very few studies have reported the impact of formative assessment on teachers' knowledge and understanding in no-fee public schools located in a low socioeconomic context. Aim: This article investigates the impact of the Assessment for…

Higher-order comprehension skills are necessary to understand a text, yet many South African learners have not been taught these skills. The aim of this study is to explicitly teach higher-order reading comprehension strategies to a Grade 2 learner who could not read for meaning. This study is based upon Vygotsky's Social Constructivist theory.…

Background: Formative assessment, as an integral component of teaching, has recently gained prominence in educational environments globally. Poor performances in mathematics by learners in early grades, and its negative effect on later learning, have been an ongoing concern in South African schools. Several former studies tend to generalise the…

This study qualitatively explores expertise as a critical resource on which quality teaching depends. The study sample is comprised of six South African schools from the poorest poverty quintiles achieving relatively higher and lower academic outcomes. From interview data gathered over three years with teachers and other school staff, findings…

The extended lockdown in 2020 found South African educators employing innovative strategies to teach and assess Foundation Phase learners. Educators had to make do with reduced hours in the classroom and experienced new challenges in delivering curriculum content to learners that had barely grown accustomed to the formal classroom setup. Empirical…

Inclusive education remains a significant challenge in today's educational landscape, as K-12 classrooms and higher education institutions struggle to meet the diverse needs of all students. To address this pressing issue, "Developing Inclusive Environments in Education: Global Practices and Curricula," led by Kiyoji Koreeda, offers…

In this paper, we share the results of the piloting of national diagnostic assessments for strategic calculation with Grade 3 learners in South Africa. The diagnostic assessment pilot intervention was focused on promoting strategic use of calculation strategies and aimed to move learners on from the concrete one-to-one counting methods that…

This article reflects critically on the guidance offered to South African teachers in two canonical texts: the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) and Mathematics teaching and learning framework for South Africa: Teaching mathematics for understanding (TMU). I make explicit my philosophical orientation, and how 'teaching mathematics…

South Africa's policy on screening, identification, assessment and support (SIAS) stipulates that teachers support learners with barriers to learning and development in their mainstream classrooms. This includes learners living with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Yet, little research has been conducted regarding Grade 1 teachers'…

Background: Globally, teaching practice has been at the heart of teacher education programmes. For quality teaching and learning, literacy student teachers are expected to develop metacognitive attributes and critical thinking to integrate theory and practice. Because of the dominance of autonomous models in literacy teaching and learning…

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…

This article reports on Grade 2 teachers' perceptions of formative assessment in explaining the phenomenon of the underutilisation of formative assessment practices in mathematics teaching. A qualitative and interpretative case study investigated two Grade 2 teachers' enactment of formative assessment in priority schools in Gauteng. Data were…

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…

This study examined teachers' attitudes towards the inclusion of learners who experience barriers to learning in their classrooms. The study implemented the quantitative descriptive design. Sixty-three Foundation Phase (grades 1-3) teachers were recruited through the convenient sampling strategy from the Capricorn District in Limpopo Province in…

Discipline is essential to learning, but in culturally diverse groups it could become a challenge for teachers. Positive discipline, respect for human rights and the creation of a sense of belonging promotes culturally responsive and disciplined learners. This study investigated the social and cultural contexts of discipline in early grade South…