Background: South African schools accommodate a wide range of learners with various learning abilities in accordance with the policy of inclusion. However, little is known about how learners with learning disabilities are supported in the classrooms. Aim: The study sought to explore how learners with learning disabilities are supported in…

Mathematics is a core subject in South Africa. Studies have shown that the performance of learners on this subject is not encouraging. Many factors have been alluded to by scholars as contributing factors to this poor performance. The gap between theory and practice of mathematics teaching can be bridged by the use of appropriate learning styles,…

Background: Information and communication technology (ICT) reading interventions can help children with reading difficulties, especially those in resource-constrained environments who otherwise might not have support. Objectives: (1) Provide an overview of ICT reading interventions used globally with primary school children. (2) Provide further…

Background: The co-establishment of social and sociomathematical norms in the microculture of South African classrooms and its possible effects on early number learning has largely been unexplored. Social norms are considered to be general classroom norms that are relevant in any teaching and learning space, whilst sociomathematical norms are…

Over the past few years, we have worked together in a citizen science project called "Diamonds on the Soles of our Feet" (see also Goldin et al. 2021, Goldin et al., 2023). In this project we engaged with 420 young learners in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. We came to see participating schools as collaborative ecosystems where…

In South Africa, the issue of learning to read is an area of concern. While studies have focused on reading problems in the Foundation Phase, little is known about this issue in full-service schools. In light of this, the aim of this study was to explore how Grade 3 teachers supported learners who experienced reading problems in full-service…

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…

Students' challenging behavior is impacting negatively on teachers' wellbeing worldwide. Currently, teaching for some teachers in South African primary schools has become exhausting and daunting to say the least. Teachers feel that they have had enough degradation and are not receiving the respect they, as professionals, deserve. Students'…

Background: Reading comprehension is one of the most important skills a learner needs for academic achievement and is something which many South African learners lack. Studies suggest that explicit teaching of comprehension strategies has the potential to improve literacy. Aim: The aim of this article is to determine the role of explicit teaching…

Participatory research is recognised as a tool to foreground the 'voices' of marginalised groups (Reason and Bradbury 2008). The context of migrant learners in South Africa's schools is often surrounded by regressive stereotypes about race, poverty and otherness, with xenophobia against foreigners a current concern (Ruedin 2019), but it is telling…

Violent crimes and domestic violence are notoriously high in South Africa, which leaves many children defenceless to struggle with emotions such as loneliness and sadness. The healthy development and socialisation of children can be difficult in a society characterised by domestic tribulations, poverty, crime, single-parent homes, and absent…

Background: The Progress in International Reading and Literacy 2021 results draw stark attention to an ongoing crisis in primary education in South Africa. Research attempting to understand and address continued underperformance has focused on literacy learning and teaching in schools where the language of learning and teaching (LOLT) is the same…

To understand the evolution and current status of qualitative research in School Psychology, we reviewed 4,346 articles published across seven school psychology journals between 2006 and 2021. The bibliometric analysis indicates that publication of qualitative research has increased over the years, but remains small (3%) when seen against the…

This study investigated the correlation and predictive capacity of verbal working memory (VWM) to the reading comprehension of children in their first language (L1) and second language (L2). The term verbal working memory refers to a cognitive system with a limited capacity that can hold and manipulate verbal and auditory information temporarily.…

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.…