Abstract:
In this dissertation, I explore the reading strategies teachers utilise in their grade 2
classrooms when teaching English First Additional Language learners (EFAL) in English
home language contexts. Participants for this study were grade 2 teachers from three
former model-C schools in the Gauteng province. A qualitative research methodology was
employed, using a case study design. Data were collected using observation, focus group
interviews and one-on-one interviews. The findings that emerged from the study were
firstly, that teachers made use of a Balanced Literacy Programme in their classrooms but
also placed great emphasis on the development of English comprehension and vocabulary
among EFAL learners. Secondly, challenges faced by learners such as overcrowding, lack
of parental support and poverty negatively impacted their English reading development
and academic achievement. Teachers adapted their strategies to provide support for these
learners through adjusting the pace of teaching as well as providing much needed
individual attention during group guided reading sessions. Thirdly, teachers made use of a
combination of the whole-word approach and phonic approach when teaching reading to
EFAL learners. And finally it emerged that an inclusion of reading resources in the
learners’ home languages as well as technology in EFAL classrooms could positively
influence English reading acquisition among learners in future. Recommendations revealed
from the findings of the study included actively employing additive bilingualism in South
African schools due to the prevalence of EFAL learners in English home language
contexts, creating a language policy specifically for EFAL learners in the South African
context, improving parent education surrounding second language learning and introducing
technology into classrooms.
