I examine how teachers employ a questioning strategy in supporting Grade 9 learners doing science investigations in South African schools. A particular focus of this study was how teachers use questioning in contributing towards the autonomy of these learners. The research adopted a qualitative approach which involved the collection of data by…

Using seven waves of data, collected twice a year from the 8th through the 11th grades in a low-resource community in Cape Town, South Africa, we aimed to describe the developmental trends in three specific leisure experiences (leisure boredom, new leisure interests, and healthy leisure) and substance use (cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana)…

This paper seeks to establish a research framework for an investigation into the extent to which pupils are able to visualise figural cues in multiple ways within the context of pattern generalisation. Enactivism, along with the constructs of knowledge objectification and figural apprehension, are identified as forming an ideal theoretical…

The study examined the difference in performance of boys and girls in solving problems on the properties of a rectangle. The conceptual framework of the study was based on the idea that teaching the learners content in a familiar context tends to facilitate geometry learning. The data were collected using semi-structured interviews with the…

This paper reports on the autonomy Grade 9 learners (13-14 years) are given when doing science investigations. The study adopted a mixed methodology research design which involved the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data were collected by means of questionnaires which were administered to 55 teachers. Qualitative…

In the transition years, Grades 7 to 9, the shift from natural numbers to rational numbers and the associated multiplicative concepts prove challenging for many learners. The new concepts, operations and notation must be mastered if the student is to thereafter rise to meet the challenges of algebra and more advanced and powerful mathematics. The…

I draw on empirical research conducted among selected Grade 9 learners in schools in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape in regard to their perceptions and experiences on human rights. Throughout, a convergence of these learners' experiences and perceptions occurred in relation to "hair", as the marking on their bodies which was…

Reading ability is fundamental to teaching and learning (AFT 2004). This study assessed the reading ability of 25 in-service science educators at the University of Limpopo for three science texts: Grades 7, 8 and 9, using a cloze test and exploring materials that educators read. The scores were categorised as being independent, instructional and…

In the era of mobile devices and services, researchers in the educational domain have been interested in how to support learning with mobile technology in both local and global contexts. Recent human-computer interaction (HCI) research in the educational domain has particularly focused on how to develop mobile learning services and how to evaluate…

Aggression is increasingly seen in most parts of South African society. Aggressive behaviour of boys in secondary school often results from frustrations caused by perceived high expectations of others regarding the role, locus of control, and personality of boys. Locus of control plays an important role in a person's perception concerning a…

SMS language is English language slang, used as a means of mobile phone text messaging. This practice may impact on the written language skills of learners at school. The main aim of this study was to determine the perspectives of Grade 8 and 9 English (as Home Language) educators in Gauteng regarding the possible influence of SMS language on…

International and national mathematics studies have revealed the poor mathematics skills of South African learners. An essential tool that can be used to improve learners' mathematical skills is for educators to use effective feedback. Our purpose in this study was to elicit learners' understanding and expectations of teacher assessment feedback.…

The study sought to understand adolescents' perceived career challenges and needs in a disadvantaged context using the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT). A qualitative research design based on semi-structured interviews was conducted with 12 Grade 9 and Grade 10 learners from a disadvantaged background. The results of the study indicated a…

The cross-sectional study investigated South African rural high school learners' choice of sexual abstinence in order to be able to develop tailored health education messages. All Grade 9 learners from one class at each of 10 randomly selected rural high schools participated. The Integrated Model for Motivational and Behavioural Change was used to…

This paper explores the impact of a specially designed programme of communicative strategies on English second language (ESL) development in a scaffolded case study that set out to promote teacher-guided, constructive learner talk in the outcomes-based education arts and culture classroom. The programme was implemented in a multilingual secondary…