Browsing by Author "Ridge, Elaine"
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- ItemApplied linguistics and second language teaching : an exploratory error analysis of the written English of Afrikaans-speaking std 6, 7, and 10 pupils at schools in four sociolinguistic areas(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1983) Ridge, Elaine; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of . Dept. of .
- ItemBeyond mere communication(Stellenbosch University, 2000) Ridge, ElaineThis article argues that language teaching must involve the systematic development ofdiscourses which will empower learners to use language effectively in particular situations.At present many language teachers concerned with teaching English as a second language(now generally referred to as English as an additional language in South Africa) operatewithin a communicative teaching paradigm and tend to be concerned chiefly with creatingopportunities for enjoyable interaction. It is also significant that textbooks written forteachers in training and textbooks for learners within the outcomes-based approach adoptedin South Africa have been more concerned with procedures than with the development ofdiscourse. Illustrations from observed classroom practice or .from textbooks are used tosupport these observations. This article argues that teachers have a responsibility forsystematic development both of concepts (those which relate specifically to the area oflanguage, as well as those which are mediated through language) and discourses so they canbecome strategic tools. In sum, in order for learners to be empowered to use language in thecomplex ways necessary for successful participation in a variety of contexts, they need togain an understanding of what particular social contexts require and to be able to select andproduce the appropriate social languages or discourses necessary.
- ItemTime-on-task as an index of situated language proficiency in academic performance(Stellenbosch University, 2004) Faure, Mary; Ridge, Elaine; Van der Walt, ChristaTransforming higher education in South Africa involves, among other things, finding ways of enabling a broader group of students to perform successfully in high-stake assessment. This paper recounts work in progress to that end. The focus is on the effect of time constraints on the performance of physiotherapy students whose first language is other than the one in which the classes and the assessments are presented. The concept of working memory is investigated by using C-tests based on physiotherapy material and the results are correlated with students’ home languages and their performance in other academic subjects. The paper concludes by reflecting on C-tests as a trustworthy instrument to measure situated language proficiency and the implications of the results for higher education.