Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012

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dc.contributor.advisorHoadley, Ursula Kateen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorMoore, Colleen Patriciaen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2015-07-03T08:33:37Z
dc.date.available2015-07-03T08:33:37Z
dc.date.issued2014en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractPost-apartheid curriculum reform in South Africa has impacted the constitution and organisation of English language knowledge, including grammatical knowledge and its pedagogy. Additionally, changes in theoretical viewpoints on grammar instruction and early literacy instruction have influenced the conceptualisation and teaching of English grammar. This study aims to determine how grammar and its pedagogy have been constituted and explicated in the South African Intermediate Phase (IP) English Home Language (HL) curricula through curriculum reforms after 1997. It also seeks to explore how the constitution of grammar within Curriculum 2005 (C2005), the Revised National Curriculum Statements (RNCS), and the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) have been influenced by changing grammar and early literacy instruction theories and language teaching methodologies. The study analyses and compares the organisation and structure of grammatical knowledge and its suggested pedagogy in the three curriculum documents using Bernstein’s concepts of classification and framing. Grammar instruction theories and conceptualisations of grammar types as prescriptive, descriptive and rhetorical (drawn from a variety of grammar instruction commentators including Lefstein, Thornbury and Hudson & Walmsley) are identified in teacher guides and other supporting literature accompanying the three curricula. These documents are also analysed to identify the predominant early literacy instruction theories - skills/phonics-based, whole language, and balanced language approaches – underpinning curriculum development. The analysis shows that through the curriculum reforms, grammatical knowledge has been more strongly classified and framed resulting in a more explicit constitution of grammar as a skill to be acquired by learners for the development of an English meta-language. The CAPS English HL IP syllabus has returned to a contents- or knowledge-based curriculum. This clearer constitution of grammatical knowledge mirrors the re-emergence of explicit grammar instruction internationally, most notably in the UK. The analysis also shows that indistinct progression requirements, pertaining to the acquisition of specific grammatical knowledge, with an arbitrary basis between grades are a consistent concern in all three curricula. It also finds that conceptual ambiguity, regarding early literacy instruction approaches in curricula and accompanying guides, present since the inception of the RNCS and continuing in the CAPS, makes the task of curriculum interpretation difficult. The study concludes with some possible implications the areas of concern may have for teacher training and suggestions on grammatical knowledge organisation for clearer curriculum interpretation and implementation.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationMoore, C. P. (2014). <i>Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13353en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationMoore, Colleen Patricia. <i>"Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13353en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationMoore, C. 2014. Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Moore, Colleen Patricia AB - Post-apartheid curriculum reform in South Africa has impacted the constitution and organisation of English language knowledge, including grammatical knowledge and its pedagogy. Additionally, changes in theoretical viewpoints on grammar instruction and early literacy instruction have influenced the conceptualisation and teaching of English grammar. This study aims to determine how grammar and its pedagogy have been constituted and explicated in the South African Intermediate Phase (IP) English Home Language (HL) curricula through curriculum reforms after 1997. It also seeks to explore how the constitution of grammar within Curriculum 2005 (C2005), the Revised National Curriculum Statements (RNCS), and the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) have been influenced by changing grammar and early literacy instruction theories and language teaching methodologies. The study analyses and compares the organisation and structure of grammatical knowledge and its suggested pedagogy in the three curriculum documents using Bernstein’s concepts of classification and framing. Grammar instruction theories and conceptualisations of grammar types as prescriptive, descriptive and rhetorical (drawn from a variety of grammar instruction commentators including Lefstein, Thornbury and Hudson & Walmsley) are identified in teacher guides and other supporting literature accompanying the three curricula. These documents are also analysed to identify the predominant early literacy instruction theories - skills/phonics-based, whole language, and balanced language approaches – underpinning curriculum development. The analysis shows that through the curriculum reforms, grammatical knowledge has been more strongly classified and framed resulting in a more explicit constitution of grammar as a skill to be acquired by learners for the development of an English meta-language. The CAPS English HL IP syllabus has returned to a contents- or knowledge-based curriculum. This clearer constitution of grammatical knowledge mirrors the re-emergence of explicit grammar instruction internationally, most notably in the UK. The analysis also shows that indistinct progression requirements, pertaining to the acquisition of specific grammatical knowledge, with an arbitrary basis between grades are a consistent concern in all three curricula. It also finds that conceptual ambiguity, regarding early literacy instruction approaches in curricula and accompanying guides, present since the inception of the RNCS and continuing in the CAPS, makes the task of curriculum interpretation difficult. The study concludes with some possible implications the areas of concern may have for teacher training and suggestions on grammatical knowledge organisation for clearer curriculum interpretation and implementation. DA - 2014 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2014 T1 - Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012 TI - Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012 UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13353 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/13353
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationMoore CP. Constituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education, 2014 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/13353en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentSchool of Educationen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherEducationen_ZA
dc.titleConstituting grammar and its pedagogy : the reform of the South African English Home Language intermediate phase curriculum between 1997 and 2012en_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMEden_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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