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Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development
Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2026.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2026
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| _version_ | 1867613892921786368 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Mtsatse, Nangamso |
| author2 | Jansen, Jonathan |
| author_browse | Jansen, Jonathan Mtsatse, Nangamso |
| author_facet | Jansen, Jonathan Mtsatse, Nangamso |
| author_sort | Mtsatse, Nangamso |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136135 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:43:21.794Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136135 Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development Mtsatse, Nangamso Jansen, Jonathan Pretorius, Elizabeth Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Education Policy Studies. Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. Mtsatse, N. 2026. Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/5b03ea47-9889-4af0-81ad-6d0f36acfd04 This thesis investigates the oral questioning patterns of early-grade teachers in isiXhosa and isiZulu language lessons, their pedagogical understanding of how to identify and develop literal and inferential questions, and, through the design of an in-service structured pedagogy programme, the pedagogical and contextual considerations required to strengthen large-scale teacher professional development. Despite significant policy investments and national efforts to improve foundational literacy, reading comprehension results remain alarmingly poor, with many learners unable to read for meaning by the end of Grade 3. The study adopts a mixed-method, thesis-by-publication consisting of three stand-alone but integrated chapters that examine classroom oral instructional practices, teacher content and pedagogical knowledge, and the design of professional development within structured pedagogy reforms. Drawing on the theory of teacher knowledge of Shulman (1987), the pedagogic device of Bernstein (1996), and Elmore’s Instructional Core (2008), the three empirical chapters examine (1) how teachers’ questioning practices shape learner engagement with texts, (2) the depth and nature of teachers’ content and pedagogical content knowledge (CK and PCK) about reading comprehension and (3) how a structured pedagogy intervention Funda Wande was designed, implemented and scaled to strengthen instructional support for teachers. In these chapters, the findings show that comprehension instruction in early grades is characterised by surface-level questioning and limited inferential engagement, underpinned by conceptual and pedagogical gaps in teachers’ knowledge of reading theory and text complexity. At the systemic level, implementation misalignments between curriculum guidance, professional development, and materials constrain classroom enactment. Collectively, the study contributes a theoretically grounded account of how the quality of literacy instruction is shaped by the interaction between teacher knowledge, instructional design, and system support. The research argues that improving reading comprehension outcomes in low-resource contexts requires a simultaneous strengthening of teacher expertise, material design, and instructional coaching, an alignment at the heart of the Instructional Core. The study offers both theoretical and policy insights: it deepens understanding of oral questioning practices as a key instructional lever in African classrooms, clarifies the extent and nature of teacher content and pedagogical knowledge required to generate and scaffold literal and inferential comprehension, and identifies the pedagogical and contextual design principles necessary to build coherent, scalable, and contextually responsive in-service professional development within structured pedagogy reforms. Chapter Two investigates how early-grade teachers use questioning to mediate comprehension in isiXhosa and isiZulu home-language classrooms. Using lesson observation data from 120 literacy lessons in 60 schools, the analysis applies Shulman’s framework of pedagogical reasoning and Bernstein’s concept of framing to examine the nature and cognitive level of teacher–learner interaction. The findings reveal that classroom discourse is dominated by factual and literal questions, with limited opportunities for inferential reasoning or interpretive engagement. Teachers rarely prompt elaboration or provide formative feedback, which constrains the learners’ ability to construct meaning from text. Weaknesses in pedagogical framing and over-scaffolding practices further restrict learner talk. The chapter concludes that improving comprehension pedagogy requires a deliberate focus on teacher questioning repertoires and scaffolding strategies, emphasising the need for professional development that cultivates higher-order questioning and dialogic teaching. Chapter Three examines the Content Knowledge (CK) and Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) of 300 early-grade teachers on reading comprehension and text grading. Using teacher assessment data and qualitative interviews, the study explores teachers’ understanding of the Simple View of Reading, comprehension components, and principles to match text difficulty with learner ability. The findings indicate substantial misconceptions about reading as decoding, limited understanding of inferential processes, and inconsistent criteria for text selection. Many teachers equate text difficulty solely with word length or Phonics coverage, overlooking the syntactic and inferential dimensions of complexity. The chapter argues that sustained gains in literacy require professional development that explicitly targets teachers’ disciplinary and pedagogical reasoning, integrating theory with guided practice. Chapter Four documents the design, implementation, and scaling of the Funda Wande structured pedagogy programme, within the broader foundational literacy reforms in South Africa. Guided by Elmore’s Instructional Core, the study analyses how the programme integrated teacher knowledge, content, and coaching support to improve early-grade instruction. Drawing on interviews, programme documents, and evaluation data, the thesis identifies key implementation drivers: high-quality lesson materials, ongoing instructional coaching, and alignment between curriculum, training, and assessment. The analysis shows that, although the content development was rigorous, the early phases of implementation revealed key pedagogical and contextual factors that shape the effectiveness of in-service professional development. These included the need for a coherent Phonics scope and sequence, materials that reduce teacher workload and cognitive load, a wider variety of text types, and closer alignment with Department of Education expectations around pitching instruction at the right level. The analysis further highlights the importance of meaningfully integrating Life Skills into the reading programme to expand opportunities for comprehension and cross-curricular reading, addressing the limited evidence of effective Life Skills implementation in classrooms. Finally, the chapter highlights the role of collaboration with curriculum officials in ensuring coherence, relevance, and system-level ownership of structured pedagogy reforms. Over time, adaptive design and partnerships with government and NGOs strengthened system alignment and sustainability. The chapter distils six design principles for scaling structured pedagogy in low-resource contexts coherence, simplicity, contextualisation, feedback loops, government buy-in, and fidelity monitoring, providing a model for system-wide instructional reform. Doctoral 2026-04-23T08:20:34Z 2026-04-23T08:20:34Z 2026-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136135 en Stellenbosch University 193 pages application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Mtsatse, Nangamso Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development |
| title | Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development |
| title_full | Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development |
| title_fullStr | Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development |
| title_full_unstemmed | Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development |
| title_short | Teacher Questioning and Early Grade Literacy in Nguni Languages: Practice, Knowledge and In-Service Development |
| title_sort | teacher questioning and early grade literacy in nguni languages practice knowledge and in service development |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136135 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mtsatsenangamso teacherquestioningandearlygradeliteracyinngunilanguagespracticeknowledgeandinservicedevelopment |