Browsing by Author "Archer, Maureen"

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    Developing the reading comprehension skills of English second language primary school teacher trainees at an Afrikaans-medium college of education
    (1989) Souter, Colin W; Donald, David; Archer, Maureen
    There is evidence that many primary school teachers of English Second Language (EL2) are inadequately equipped to teach reading comprehension skills. They test their pupils on literal, at the expense of inferential, reading skills. This investigation therefore sought to test the literal and inferential reading comprehension skills of a group of Afrikaans-speaking EL2 teacher trainees and to design a reading comprehension programme which would improve their thinking skills over a period of nine months. The students were also instructed in a programmed reading course (the SRA Reading Laboratory) to determine its efficacy in improving their thinking skills. A further objective was to establish whether a programmed reading course or the author's cognitive reading development programme benefitted high-status (proficient in English) more than low-status (less proficient) EL2 students and what effects the two different programmes would exert on their reading comprehension skills a year after formal instruction in reading comprehension ceased. It was found that specific sequences of the two different instructional programmes were associated with significant changes in the students' reading comprehension scores. It was also found that, while high-status students benefitted sooner from the author's cognitive reading comprehension programme, that approach was also ultimately beneficial for low-status students. It is suggested that cognitive reading development programmes be implemented at primary, secondary and tertiary institutions where language skills and levels of meaningful reading need to be raised.
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    Educators' perception of school remedial education services rendered to pupils in the mainstream of education
    (1990) Roberts, Robert; Archer, Maureen
    Special Education encompasses a wide field. It is an expensive form of education and is often criticized for its shortcomings. One part of Special Education is remedial teaching for children with learning disabilities. In order to provide good quality services, it is necessary to evaluate what is currently being offered and what is envisaged as desirable for the future. This study focusses on those two factors by examining the perceptions of remedial teaching as held by educators (principals, regular class teachers and remedial teachers themselves) in fifty-two schools of the Department of Education and Culture - House of Representatives (DEC-HR). Current service provisions and the desired role of the remedial teacher are thus examined to determine whether educators perceive these as adequate and desirable. A study of the literature was undertaken and guided by those insights a questionnaire was drawn up. This was distributed to educators and the information was verified and augmented by personal interviews with remedial educators. Three hundred and twenty questionnaires were distributed. The views of principals, regular class teachers and remedial teachers were surveyed in those primary schools served by a remedial teacher. Descriptive statistical analyses were used to arrive at both quantitative and qualitative assessments of the position of Remedial Services in the Department of Education (House of Representatives). The study revealed a strong correspondence between the three groups of educators regarding their perception of remedial services. The author endeavours to illustrate that the lack of consensus about criteria for definition and classification of Learning Disability and consequently Remedial Education, leads to confusion of the role(s) remedial teachers are expected to fulfil. This affects the provision of adequate and effective remedial services to pupils in need of such specialised educational facilities. Results from this study led the author to draw up a proposed structure for Specialised Education, in particular, Remedial Education, in a unitary Education System in South Africa.