Speech-language therapists supporting foundation phase teachers with literacy and numeracy in a rural and township context

Abstract

Language is required for learning, but teachers often find it difficult to facilitate listening and language skills while they have to adapt to a new national curriculum with an outcomes-based approach for which they have not necessarily been adequately trained. A multi-faceted support programme was developed for foundation phase teachers to facilitate listening and language for literacy, with a particular focus on the language required for numeracy. The aim of the research was to determine the value of this particular support programme for foundation phase teachers in a semi-rural and township context. A mixed methods approach with a concurrent, equal status triangulation design was used, where qualitative data were transformed to quantitative data in order to be compared in a matrix. The results show that the participants benefited to varying degrees from the programme. The combination of workshops, practical and mentoring components proved to be an effective means of support. The results indicate a need for pre-training selection procedures as more effective support can be provided to homogeneous groups.