The development and implementation of an English language and literature programme for low-proficiency tertiary learners

[摘要] The University of the Free State, like most other tertiary institutions inSouth Africa, is faced with the challenge of establishing a frameworkwithin the university for redressing inequalities in education: inequalities suchas unequal access and opportunities for both students and staff along racial,gender and class lines. This research attempts to find ways of making tertiarylearning accessible to a group of underprepared students who would,traditionally, have been excluded from tertiary learning in the previousapartheid dispensation. The study focuses on the language needs of learnerswho, for multiple reasons, have low English language proficiency. Theproblem is compounded for these students in that English is their chosenlanguage of instruction. Thus, without English language proficiency, tertiarylearning is inaccessible or, at best, extremely difficult for these students.The main aim of this study is to develop and implement a programme oflanguage learning which will meet the requirements of the Department ofEnglish and, simultaneously, improve the English academic literacy skills ofthis group of SL learners so as to provide them with much-needed support toachieve academic success.The methodology selected to achieve the aim, is emancipatory actionResearch with its reflective cycles of planning, acting, observing and reflecting.The action research cycles involve planning to improve the process; acting toimplement that plan; observing the effects of the plan and finally, reflectingon the effects which, in turn, become the framework for the next cycle ofaction research. Two processes are central to action research, viz. data gatheringand an action component. Data-gathering occurred over a period ofour years and various techniques were used, viz. interviews, classroomobservations, samples of students' written work, a journal of facilitatormeetings, various monitoring techniques, questionnaires to learners andfacilitators, test and examination results.The study describes three action research cycles over a period of four years.Initially, it was intended that the course should include a literature componentwhich, as a result of this research, was abandoned in the second cycle of theaction research. The reasons for this decision are documented in the study.The findings of the research have led to the development of an academicliteracy course with the following broad goals, viz. to develop the ability toread academic texts with good comprehension and critical attention; todevelop thinking and study skills and to develop the ability to expressinformation and ideas clearly, relevantly and logically in expository writing.Several useful guidelines, for the development of an English language coursefor Iow-proficiency tertiary learners, have emerged from the study. Theseguidelines encompass the following key issues, viz. prior learning, learnerproficiency, learner motivation and interest, comprehensible input, learningcontext, learning strategies, extensive and intensive reading, teachingapproach, language and literature teaching, materials design and researchmethodology. This study has led to the development and implementation ofan academic literacy course founded on the following salient guidelines:•A teaching approach based on a combination of communicative languagelearning and input processing instruction;•Proficiency should be developed within the context in which students findthemselves, viz. the academic context. Thus, academic literacy skills aresystematically developed;•Comprehensible input is axiomatic to language learning at tertiary level,thus, reading and writing fluency should be developed through aprogramme which provides plenty of meaning-bearing input;Classroom instruction should be based on a combination of content-basedinstruction and task-based language teaching;•Reading and writing skills should be taught through a process ofsystematic strategy training; and•Contextual support, which facilitates SLA, should be provided in the formof strategy training, continuous evaluation, thorough feedback andactivities that replicate real-world tasks.

[发布机构] University of the Free State