Improving student's performance in English as language of learning and teaching in Teacher pre-service education

Abstract

This paper explores the necessity of a good knowledge of the language of teaching and learning (LOLT) in English for student-teachers in South Africa. The study reported in the paper focuses on communication skills and academic reading and writing skills: with defamiliarization as a research method. Defamiliarization creates a space free from fear and anxiety in which students can express themselves. Third-year students were asked to write a report based on their experiences in their major teaching subjects which form the data in this study. Students were also asked to write a needs analysis and state what they learnt during the report writing project. Multilingual glossing was a compulsory component in order to match the realities of school classrooms which had various language groups. The results showed that students engaged and participated; leading to conscious critical awareness and development. Student performance improved in English as language of learning and teaching (LOLT) in teacher pre-service education, and in their specialised teaching subjects. The study concludes that defamiliarization did create a space for student’s ability for reading and responding to texts as well as building self-confidence in their ability to synthesise information. It is therefore envisaged that through a community of inquiry framework (Garrison et al., 2000), students can collaboratively develop problem-solving techniques.