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The authors’ motive was to explicitly give the reader a clear visual ‘sign post’ on the curriculum’s expectations and assumptions on each page. The advantage of such an arrangement is that it motivates or allows the ACT student teachers to complete their tasks at specified times, to use the resources actively and encourage peer collaboration and consultation. In addition, this material design helps the student learners to develop personal critical and reflective minds, which is associated with the constructivism approaches to teaching and learning (Sapire & Reed, 2011).
The next section presents an overview of the conceptual frameworks which were used to analyse this document. First, I present the conceptual framework by Reed (2009), to unpack the domains of teacher knowledge in the LG4 in the next section.
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The seven domains of teacher knowledge: subject; pedagogy; learners; curriculum; context;
and self and academic skills knowledge from Reed’s (2009) conceptual framework became the criteria used to engage with the teacher knowledge privileged in Module 4. These domains were used as deductive categories and systematically assigned to the module’s text with the assumption that there was a relationship between frequency of content and meaning (Cohen et al., 2011; Kohlbacher, 2006; Mayring, 2000). This means that the seven domains of the teacher knowledge formed the deductive codes for the document analysis, facilitating a clear understanding of the kind of teacher knowledge privileged in the ACT literacy intended curriculum, which the FP teachers were expected to learn.
The following tables (Table 5.2–5.8) illustrate the domains of teacher knowledge established from Module 4 in relation to Reed’s categories and specific text examples coded from each of the established domains of knowledge. From the left, the first are the codes for the text, followed by the teacher knowledge domain category as provided by Reed’s conceptual framework and to the right, the indicators (aspects) that relate to the specific domains in the module. With each of the tables, an example of text (examples selected randomly) is provided in italics to illustrate the coding of the module text.
Table 5.2: The subject domain of teacher knowledge and the indicators analysed in the text Domains to be
coded Domains of teacher knowledge
provided by Reed Indicators (aspects) of the teacher knowledge domains in the text
Subject
knowledge Subject or content knowledge (material that relates to literacy theories at the FP)
Text that relates to:
Theories and elements of emergent literacy among young children
Theories on reading readiness
Child development theories which promote effective learning
Below, I have provided an example of a text (material that relates to literacy theories at the FP) which was coded as subject knowledge in Module 4.
Before children start learning the standard codes for reading and writing, they develop necessary pre-literate knowledge, skills and attitudes. This means that they begin to develop language and knowledge of print long before they begin formal school in Grade 1. The skills and attitudes that facilitate literacy in Grade 1 include: Metacognition: awareness of thinking processes;
Vocabulary: ability to learn and use new words; Motivation: curiosity about print; interest in using and decoding print; Use of symbols: ability to represent experience in pictures; Oral narrative skills: ability to have a conversation or tell a story about a topic… (Module 4, Pg. 8).
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The above coded text illustrates the content knowledge that a teacher should know about children’s literacy development in order to help the teacher understand the abstract knowledge and relate it to their experiences at practice level.
Table 5.3, presents the second domain of the teacher knowledge and the indicators (aspects) in relation to the conceptual framework used to analyse this module.
Table 5.3: The pedagogic domain of teacher knowledge and the indicators analysed in the text Domains to be
coded Domains of teacher knowledge
provided by Reed Indicators (aspects) of this teacher knowledge domain in the text
Pedagogic
knowledge Methods of teaching reading Text that relates to:
Strategies for building vocabulary and fluency
Strategies for developing active readers and writers at FP
Classroom management methods
Below is an exemplar of a text which was coded as pedagogic knowledge domain to illustrate the material that relates to methods of teaching reading in Module 4.
Activity 2.3.1 Shared reading
This activity should take you about 90 minutes.
Do this activity with your whole class, using a big book. If you don’t have a big book, you will have to do this with a small group of children. Every single child in the class or group needs to be able to see the book easily. Choose a book that you think your children will enjoy… (Module 4, Pg. 55).
This coded text presents an Activity icon which illustrates how a teacher should conduct shared reading as a strategy of reading to develop active readers.
Table 5.4 presents the teacher knowledge which explains how learners acquire literacy skills (Learners’ Knowledge) domain and its indicators (aspects) as coded in the module text.
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Table 5.4: The learners’ knowledge domain of teacher knowledge and the indicators analysed in the text Domains to be
coded Domains of teacher knowledge
provided by Reed Indicators (aspects) of this teacher knowledge domain in the text
Learners’
Knowledge Knowledge explains the processes and ways in which learners learn or acquire the literacy skills of reading and writing.
Text that relates to:
learners’ cognitive and social cultural processes
what makes reading difficult to learners
what makes reading meaningful to learners
benefits of an integrated curriculum to the learners (page 8-16)
Example of a specific text coded as Learners’ Knowledge domain from the LG4 in Unit 3 which is an illustration on how teachers should motivate learners to enable effective reading skills in their context.
We have already discussed the need for children to develop automaticity. This means that children immediately (automatically) recognise most of the words they read. Playing with phonics helps children’s working memories to retrieve letter-sound relationships automatically. Fluent readers do not have to stop to work out the phonics of each word. Children can use their knowledge of phonics in familiar words to work out the sound structures of new words (Module 4, Pg. 81).
This text addresses teachers on how to explore different strategies of teaching phonics since some learners do well with direct instruction of phonics elements, while others progress better when a teacher takes the ‘whole words’ learnt in natural setting and breaks them into syllables and phonemes, then identifies the phonics and makes up the word for the learners (Nomlomo
& Desai, 2014).
Table 5.5 presents knowledge of the curriculum domain which was coded in the Module.
Table 5.5: The knowledge of the curriculum domain of teacher knowledge and the indicators analysed in the text Domains to
be coded Domains of teacher knowledge provided by Reed
Indicators (aspects) of this teacher knowledge domain in the text
Knowledge of the curriculum
Knowledge of the current
school curriculum Text that relates to:
curriculum statements about reading and writing
interpretation of this curriculum into practice.
The excerpt below is a text selected from the module to show the kind of curriculum knowledge privileged in Module 4 and the CAPS conceptualisation of the FP literacy teaching.
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Activity 1.5.3 Draft and write a letter to a newspaper This activity should take about 90 minutes.
The most recent South African curriculum policy, ‘CAPS’, says that children must start learning English as first additional language in Grade 1.
What do you think about this policy? (South Africa. 2011. DBE CAPS p.8-9) (module 4, pg.15).
The module’s objective was not to teach about the school curriculum; however, it is important to integrate the school curriculum with the teacher learning activities to enable a clear understanding of what is expected of teachers and subsequently helps teachers to make effective professional judgments (Shalem, 2014b).
Table 5.6 provides the contextual knowledge and its indicators which refer to the contextual knowledge that locates reading and the teaching in a socio-cultural context.
Table 5.6: The contextual domain of teacher knowledge and the indicators analysed in the text Domains to
be coded Domains of teacher
knowledge provided by Reed Indicators (aspects) of this teacher knowledge domain in the text
Contextual knowledge
Contextual knowledge that locates reading and the teaching in a socio-cultural context
Reading and writing context in SA - home and school
Status of the reading resources in schools
Status of the LoLT in the KZN province
An exemplar of a text from Unit 1, which emphasises the contextual knowledge that locates reading and teaching in a socio-cultural context is provided below.
Children are born with the ability to hear all the sounds of all languages… they begin to recognise patterns of speech sounds and rhythms used by the people around them. They imitate the general ‘tune’ of the language they are exposed to…, even though they do not know exactly what words mean, or how to say them….. Many early childhood literacy practitioners believe that it is important to use music, rhythm and rhyme to develop children’s phonological awareness (Module 4, p.73).
The text assumes teaching and learning literacy (HL and EFAL) in a socio-cultural context is natural and important to know. Thus, conceptual knowledge on phonological awareness was taught to enable teachers understand how children learn a new language and subsequently improve their personal knowledge and strategies for learners to acquire EFAL in their context (Parise & Spillane, 2010).
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The next table (5.7) is a presentation of self-knowledge domain as coded in the module.
Table 5.7: Knowledge that reflects teacher identity as a learner and as teacher Domains to
be coded
Domains of teacher
knowledge provided by Reed
Indicators (aspects) of this teacher knowledge domain in the text
Self-
knowledge Knowledge that reflects teacher identity as a learner and teacher (the past and present practices)
Text that relates to:
Factors influencing teacher identity formation
Teachers’ reflection as a young reader and adult reader
Teachers’ views about teaching reading and writing
Teachers’ reflection on their work experiences
The module assumes that an effective student teacher is the one who learns from the programme, reflects on the self as a FP learner (past) and as a professional teacher (present practices). The module suggests that when teachers reflect upon activities and strategies of teaching (past and present) with support, they are able to adopt new identities and practices on the basis of their reflections. See activity 1.5.3, the text excerpt coded as curriculum domain on Table 5.5.The module assumes the FP teachers have a clear understanding of the school curriculum. This activity is to assess the teachers’ reflection ability on their practice and the extent to which CAPS influences their classroom planning and teaching.
Lastly, Table 5.8 presents the academic skills domain and its indicators (aspects) as coded in the module.
Table 5.8: The Academic skills domain of teacher knowledge and the indicators analysed in the text Domains to be
coded
Domains of teacher knowledge provided by Reed
Indicators (aspects) of this teacher knowledge domain in the text
Academic skills Materials that aim to extend teachers’ academic reading and writing competencies
Text that relates to:
Making academic notes by the teacher
Understanding the module structure and tasks
Turning notes into academic discourse
The eight tables were compiled and adopted from Reed’s table, 2009 pp.181.
Below, I present a textthat aims to develop teacher’s academic literacy knowledge and is coded as Academic Skills (selected from Unit 4 of the Module).
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Academic skills – free writing: ‘Free writing’ is when you simply write down whatever comes into your mind when you respond to a word, idea, or opinion of an issue or a topic. It is unplanned and informal. (Module 4, pg.3).
In the above text, emphasis is on the importance of the teachers developing their own literacy skills for the purpose of teaching these skills to the learners. Tables 5.2 to 5.8 illustrate the relationship between the domain categories and the indicators (aspects) of the teacher knowledge, evidenced by the specific examples coded from the text. They also serve as a way to verify the specific coding method and evidence of the coded knowledge in the document for the purpose of the validity and trustworthiness of the study.
5.3.1 Description of the units of analysis
According to Gillham (2000) and Creswell (2009), the core of content analysis in research is to identify important statements which really say ‘something’ about the phenomenon. So, during the document analysis phase, I carefully scrutinised the table of contents, paragraphs of texts, all the icons and the teachers’ handbook in the Learning Guide (LG4), to determine the units of analysis. Drawing from the work of Reed (2009) and the design of the module, I delineated the units of analysis to paragraphs of text, activities and icons. Thus, bulleted, numbered or short sentences and small paragraphs comprised the specific units of analysis which were carefully read several times during the analysis. The stop and think (teachers’
reflection), comment and time management icon were excluded from the analysis because the information offered in these icons was basically the author’s comments or guide to an activity or key area of learning.
In the next section, the specific procedures used to analyse Module 4 using Reed’s conceptual framework are discussed in order to have a clear understanding of the findings which follow.