The teaching and assessment of reading in Grade 2 at two public schools in the Gauteng Province

Abstract: This study examined literacy in the Foundation Phase, specifically the teaching and assessment of reading in Grade 2 at two public schools in the Gauteng Province. Research on early reading instruction in South African classrooms is limited to some extent and South Africa is extremely challenged in achieving its language outcomes due to the eleven official languages and the “inequalities” within the public school system. When considering the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) survey (2006 and 2011), which examined the teaching and acquisition of reading, South Africa ranks amongst the lowest in the participating countries. The extent to which language factors contribute to the poor performance is not clear as language disadvantages are so highly correlated with other confounding factors such as the historical disadvantage, socio-economic status, geographical location of schools, the quality of practices of school management teams and teachers’ teaching competence levels. The researcher argues that reading instruction is a critical factor in determining reading success in schools. Reading instruction requires that learners use reading to obtain meaning from print. Scholars, who interrogate reading in the South African context emphasize that children learn about the nature of the alphabetic writing system and understand the structure of spoken words. In the assessment framework for PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study), developing reading literacy is a constructive and interactive process through which active constructive meaning is derived. Teachers need to utilise effective reading strategies and also reflect on reading successes or lack thereof. Meaning has to be constructed through an engagement “between the reader and the text in the context of the reading experience with the reader using a repertoire of linguistic skills, cognitive and metacognitive strategies and background knowledge in the process. The PIRLS report also reveals that comprehension is neglected in most schools and this may have contributed to South Africa being rated amongst the worst performing country, globally. Using the Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as a framework, the researcher utilised a qualitative approach to conduct an investigation into how reading is taught and assessed in Grade 2 at two public schools in the Gauteng Province.M.A. (Child Education