Insights for lecturers teaching first-year students guided writing skills with readings at a South African university

Abstract

Mainstream education management systems and higher education institutions in South Africa appear to have sufficient provisions and advice for balancing in-person instruction and self-directed learning methods. However, examining first-year students' writing ability in relation to reading has been given less attention. Furthermore, research demonstrates that students are under pressure to memorize information when they first enroll in university, which prevents them from experiencing the pleasures of literacy, such as engaging in meaningful conversations with their lecturers and making critical or analytical observations about their environment and surroundings while also learning how texts are connected. Considering this phenomenon, in this study, I aim to offer first-year lecturers guided writing techniques and readings to aid first-year students in developing writing ability by utilizing the model texts in conjunction with one or two jigsaw reading days and a guided academic reading-writing interactive process. The central question has been: What are the best practices for first-year lecturers? With this work, I hoped to draw attention to the tremendous leverage potential of improving teaching methods and assisting higher education institutions. The research is qualitative. I used ethnographic observations and selected credible data strands from my students' technical research project report to pinpoint the disconnect underlying this phenomenon. Classroom-based pedagogical practice indicators that recognize instructors as curriculum architects support my findings. My paper also seeks to provide first-year lecturers and curriculum designers with suggestions for an evidence-based policy planning process for managing higher education systems.