Promoting equal access to schools for researchers wishing to conduct educational research was one of the key tasks embedded in the educational transformation mandate of the new government of South Africa when it came to power in 1994. Drawing on data from five different research projects, this paper evaluates progress made by the democratic…

Socially inclusive strategies encourage empowering, progressive and sustainable responses to social challenges and needs. These strategies are made possible through inclusion and equitable consideration of diverse contributions of those affected by the problems, and who feel obliged to find solutions to the problems. In this paper, the principles…

This study investigated grade 4 learners' understandings about the Nature of Scientific Inquiry (NOSI) in primary schools within the South African context. A qualitative methodology was employed using a framework of five knowledge aspects about the NOSI in assessing learners' understandings about the ways scientists investigate the natural world.…

In this article, I reflect on my use of collage-making as an arts-based method in self-study doctoral research. My self-study was guided by sociocultural learning theories that assume education is an individual activity and a social phenomenon. I ask, "How did collage-making allow me to refine my teaching and learning?" I utilized…

A key concern today is the question of homework in our nation's public schools. In this study, an investigation was conducted with the first no-homework policy, which has been introduced in one of the primary schools in the Western Cape. This study seeks to determine whether a no-homework policy will validate a positive or negative effect on…

Previous research suggests that enhanced cognitive and metacognitive skills are achieved when translanguaging techniques are applied in a multilingual classroom. This paper presents findings on the effects of translanguaging techniques on teaching grade 4 learners how to apply relevant background knowledge when drawing inferences during reading.…

The multimodal world learners inhabit demands visual literacy among other literacies if learners are to effectively navigate its terrain. In this study, we sought to understand the extent to which five Grade 4 English textbooks currently used in some schools in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa facilitated the development of visual…

The present paper derives from a PhD study investigating the nexus between Grade 4 textbook vocabulary demands and Grade 3 isiXhosa-speaking learners' knowledge of that vocabulary to enable them to read to learn in Grade 4. The paper challenges the efficacy of the four current definitions of "word" for generating high frequency words…

This study explores the feasibility of implementing the curriculum and action-planning components of the HealthKick (HK) intervention in eight low-resourced schools in the Western Cape, South Africa. Process evaluation comprising workshops and personal interactions with teachers and principals were followed up with semi-structured interviews and…

Today's children are growing up in an environmentally damaged and technology orientated world. The advent and advances of technology, has resulted in the production of millions of electronic devices, which eventually become waste when they reach their end-of-life. These devices contain toxic components that are not only polluting the environment…

These proceedings contain papers of the 3rd International Baltic Symposium on Science and Technology Education (BalticSTE2019) held in Šiauliai, Lithuania, June 17-19, 2019. This symposium was organized by the Scientific Methodical Center "Scientia Educologica" in cooperation with the Institute of Education, Šiauliai University. The…

We examined the viability of using feedback from a learning environment instrument to guide improvements in the teaching practices of in-service teachers undertaking a distance-education programme. The 31 teachers involved administered a primary school version of the What Is Happening In this Class? (WIHIC-Primary) questionnaire to their 1,077…

The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2006 findings highlighted concerns about reading literacy teaching quality in South African primary schools (Howie et al., 2007). In response, the national Department of Education (DoE, 2008a, 2008b, 2008c, 2008d) has emphasised instructional practice improvement. However, little…

Language and education are interrelated because all teaching is given through the medium of language. Language is considered to be both a precondition for thought and a bearer of thought and therefore influences the extent to which a child's intelligence is actualised. In the South African context linguistic diversity is a complex issue. It has…

This paper addresses the controversial issues of improving the reading skills of young learners through technology-assisted reading programmes. On reporting the results of primary school learners from grade 2 to grade 7 who participated in a computer-based reading programme for seven months, we try to answer the critical questions of whether…