Why the English Home Language Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement will not improve learners’ reading comprehension

Reading & Writing

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Why the English Home Language Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement will not improve learners’ reading comprehension
 
Creator de Lange, Maryna M. Winberg, Christine Dippenaar, Hanlie
 
Subject — reading comprehension; Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS); Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS); home language; intermediate phase; assessment.
Description Background: The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), and similar international assessments, have consistently shown South African intermediate phase learners’ performance to be among the lowest worldwide. Of particular concern is the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for Home Language in the Intermediate Phase and, specifically, the document’s treatment of the assessment of reading comprehension.Objectives: In this study, the CAPS requirements for assessing reading comprehension were examined, with the aim of laying the groundwork for an improved policy framework.Method: The research design of the study involved evaluating the assessment of reading comprehension in the CAPS document, using a social realist approach to uncover its underlying structures and mechanisms.Results: The study found that a principled approach to the assessment of reading comprehension was lacking, which had a cumulative effect across the CAPS document, resulting in random, yet highly prescriptive, requirements.Conclusion: The study concluded that CAPS does not provide adequate guidance for improving reading comprehension and, moreover, that the prescribed programme of assessment is not supported by the research literature on reading comprehension. The study recommends that better, more evidence-informed and consultative policies and guidelines be introduced to support teachers in the assessment – and, ultimately, the improvement – of intermediate phase learners’ reading comprehension.
 
Publisher AOSIS Publishing
 
Contributor
Date 2020-05-27
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — —
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/rw.v11i1.260
 
Source Reading & Writing; Vol 11, No 1 (2020); 9 pages 2308-1422 2079-8245
 
Language eng
 
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https://rw.org.za/index.php/rw/article/view/260/638 https://rw.org.za/index.php/rw/article/view/260/637 https://rw.org.za/index.php/rw/article/view/260/639 https://rw.org.za/index.php/rw/article/view/260/636
 
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Rights Copyright (c) 2020 Maryna M. de Lange, Christine Winberg, Hanlie Dippenaar https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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