Tracking Changes in South African Reading Literacy Achievement : : A Developing Context Perspective / / edited by Surette van Staden and Celeste Combrinck.

• TeilnehmendeR: Van Staden, Surette,; Combrinck, Celeste,
• Place / Publishing House: Leiden, The Netherlands : : Brill,, [2023]; ©2023
• Year of Publication: 2023
• Edition: First edition.
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource

"Reading has been touted as the most crucial and lacking skill for young South African children. This book delves into the issues and measurement considerations surrounding reading literacy using the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) data. The contributors to this volume explore the complexities of measuring reading literacy with an international survey, curricula misalignment, and how the PIRLS framework can inform teaching and learning. Contributors are: Caroline Bo¨ning, Celeste Combrinck, Peter Courtney, Martin Gustafsson, Nompumelelo L. Mohohlwane, Nangamso Mtsatse, Elizabeth Pretorius, Karen Roux, Claudia Schreiner, Tobias Schroedler, Nick Taylor, Stephen Taylor, Surette van Staden and Hans Wagemaker"-- Provided by publisher.

Table of Contents

Intro -- Contents -- Foreword -- Acknowledgements -- Figures and Tables -- Figures -- Tables -- Notes on Contributors -- 1. The Complexities of International Large-Scale Assessments in a Developing Context -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 2 An Overview of the South African Education System: Changes, Challenges and Growth -- 3 Who Participate in PIRLS? -- 4 Meet South Africa in the PIRLS Context -- 5 South African Participation in PIRLS-Design Choices per Cycle -- 6 Methods and Data Sources for the Purpose of This Book -- 7 An Overview of Chapters -- Note -- References -- 2. The PIRLS Assessment Framework: Implications for Teacher Education -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 What Does It Mean to 'Read with Understanding'? -- 2 Three Types of Teacher Knowledge and Skills -- 2.1 Disciplinary Knowledge -- 2.2 Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) -- 2.3 Pedagogical Competence -- 3 Teaching Reading -- 4 Pre-Reading: The Importance of Oral Literacy -- 5 Low International Benchmark: From Oral to Reading Comprehension -- 5.1 Disciplinary Knowledge -- 5.2 Pedagogical Content Knowledge -- 5.3 The Continuing Quest for Comprehension -- 5.4 Reading Letters, Sounds and Words -- 5.5 Materials -- 5.6 Continuous Assessment -- 6 Intermediate International Benchmark: Make Straightforward Inferences -- 7 High International Benchmark: Interpret and Integrate Ideas and Information -- 8 Advanced International Benchmark (AIB): Examine and Evaluate Content, Language, and Textual Elements -- 9 Teacher Preparation and Learner Achievement in South Africa -- 9.1 Initial Teacher Education -- 9.2 In-Service Teacher Education -- 10 Implications for Teacher Education -- References -- 3. Explaining Improved Learning Outcomes in South African Primary Schools -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 2 The Magnitude and Nature of the Post-2002 Improvements.

3 Methods for Explaining National Gains in Learning Outcomes -- 4 Policy and Contextual Changes -- 5 Data Completeness and the Selection and Transformation of Variables -- 6 An Oaxaca-Blinder Decomposition -- 6.1 Basic Exposition of a Model -- 6.2 Taking into Account Variable Selection -- 6.3 Taking into Account the Non-Randomness of Missing Data -- 7 Explaining the Improvements -- 8 Conclusion -- Notes -- References -- 4. Reading Literacy in Multilingual Societies: An Exploration of Relevant Learning Opportunities -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 2 The Role of Language(s) and Multilingualism in Teacher Education -- 3 Multilingualism and Teacher Education in South Africa -- 3.1 Multilingualism in South Africa -- 3.2 Teacher Education in South Africa -- 4 Surveying OTL in PIRLS -- 5 Discussion -- 6 Conclusion -- Notes -- References -- 5. When Comprehension Barely Occurs: Examining Low Performance in South Africa -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 2 How Do Readers Understand Text? -- 2.1 The South African Context within the PIRLS Framework -- 2.2 Contributory Factors to Reading Comprehension -- 2.3 The Reading Trajectory: Getting to Meaning-Making -- 2.4 Research Focus -- 3 Methodology -- 3.1 Participants -- 3.2 Data Collection Instruments -- 3.3 Procedure -- 4 Results -- 5 Discussion -- 5.1 Implications for Pedagogy and for Monitoring Reading Comprehension Development at a Systemic Level -- 5.2 Implications for Monitoring Reading Comprehension Development at a Systemic Level -- 6 Conclusion -- Notes -- References -- 6. Shaping National Use of International Large-Scale Assessment Data: Translating Descriptive -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Interrogating Classroom Practice Differences between Countries -- 3 Results -- 3.1 Capturing Reading Instruction -- 3.2 Descriptive Results -- 3.3 Inferential Results.

4 Limitations -- 5 Conclusion -- Notes -- References -- Appendix: Scale Score Creation -- 7. Bridging the 20-Year Literacy Divide: African Language Reading Progress in South Africa -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Background and Overview -- 2 Language in Education Policies in South Africa -- 3 Classroom and Societal Implementation of the Language in Education Policies -- 4 Language and Literacy Studies: Lessons from South African and International Contexts -- 5 Comparing Matched and Unmatched Reading Scores -- 6 The Rationale of Assessment -- 7 Purpose of Comparing Language Assessments -- 8 Multilingual Assessment Methodologies -- 8.1 Language of Assessment -- 9 Data Analysis and Discussion -- 10 Discussion and Conclusion -- Notes -- References -- 8. Looking Back, Looking Forward: The Future of Reading for South African Children -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Reflections on the Findings from the Book -- 3 Addressing the Sceptics: Various Ways in Which ILSA s Are Challenged -- 3.1 Primary Education (Target 4.1) -- 3.2 Early Childhood (Target 4.2) -- 3.3 Skills for Work (Target 4.4) -- 3.4 Equity (Target 4.5) -- 3.5 Learning Environment (Target 4a) -- 3.6 Teachers (Target 4c) -- 4 Where Are We Now? South Africa's Participation in PIRLS 2021 during the COVID-19 Pandemic -- 5 Themes Emerging from the Book, Conclusion and Future Directions -- 5.1 Theme 1-Socioeconomic Status and Intersections Remain the Biggest Challenge to Reading Literacy in South Africa -- 5.2 Theme 2-The Limitations of ILSA s and Self-Reported Data: Time to Re-evaluate Our Measurement Approaches -- 6 Conclusion -- References -- Index.