South Africa Research Chair
The National Research Foundation and the Department of Science and Technology awarded a Tier 1 South Africa Research Chair to Elizabeth Henning in September 2015. She had received a number of NRF grants previously, including one for a Research Niche Area (RNA) for Ecologies of Learning, which included three separate projects, headed by herself, Prof Jace Pillay and Prof Duan van der Westhuizen.
The fruits of the research in this chair is evident in the development of the various projects and making study bursaries available to eleven Ph.D. students and nine MEd students from 2016 onwards. The research has also produced a variety of journal articles, and book chapters, as well as conference papers and symposia in South Africa and elsewhere. The Cognition and Assessment lab includes the research rooms dedicated to student work and inquiry into child learning, using state of the art technology. Here we test children for their competence in early reading, their reading of STEM texts in the middle grades, and early numerical cognition. The lab also epitomizes the advancement in test development, video production and it serves as a resource center for researchers with its library and video collection.
The Henning Lab
The research by the director of the CEPR and her students and associates since the founding of the Centre formed the basis of the newly established Henning Lab for child learning research. Individual children and groups are studied to search for evidence of individual learning of children in the primary school years and how learning happens through language.
Collaborators are recent Ph.D. and MEd graduates as well as current master’s and doctoral students and fellow researchers in the SARChI Chair portfolio.
Student Affairs
Current students
NRF Grant: Integrated Studies of Learning Language, Mathematics and Science in the Primary School
2018 – Current
Honors | Koketso Andile Nthimbane Title: Qualitative research data collection |
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Honors | Kelsi Jade Arends Title: Comprehension of concepts of the natural world from text |
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Masters | Emmanuel Azwidowi Libusha Title: Mapping the process of student teachers’ conceptual change of geometrical shapes according to the ’Van Hiele levels’ of development |
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Masters | Lerato Bernice Ndabezitha Title: Grade R teachers’ knowledge about the development of children’s numerical cognition |
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Masters | Frieda Nanewo Shingenge Title: The role of home classroom environment in developing children’s language and literacy skills in Pre-Schools of Oshana Region in Namibia |
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Masters | Dean van der Merwe Title: The academic language proficiency of primary school teacher education students at a South African university |
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Masters | Charis Fay Allison Title: The academic language of learners at an urban South African school |
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Masters | Ingrid Mostert Title:Teachers’ awareness of Grade R children’s science processing skills |
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Masters | Koketso Andile Nthimbane Title:The earth is a sphere: transforming the mental models of Foundation Phase learners’ EMS models. |
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Masters | Lufuno Belinda Tshidumo Title:Learning to read in Afrikaans the progress of a Grade 1 Setswana speaking girl |
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Masters | A Dlamini Title:Addressing learners mathematical challenges |
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Masters | Kelsi Jade Arends Title: Learning to use the imager of functional near-infrared resonance spectroscopy (fNIRS) |
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Masters | NC Nedambale Title: Early number concepts development and robot making in Tshivenda language |
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Masters | Koketso Andile Nthimbane Title: The earth is a sphere: transforming the mental models of Foundation Phase learners’ EMS models. |
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Doctoral | Hanrie Bezuidenhout Title: Input for young children’s number concept development |
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Doctoral | Poomoney Govender (Salosh) Title: Integrated teachers’ formative assessment practices in mathematics in two urban schools in Gauteng |
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Doctoral | Tionge Weddington Saka Title: An Exploration of mathematics classroom culture in selected early grade mathematics classrooms in Malawi |
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Doctoral | Hendrik Albertus Basson Title: Integrated teacher education for intermediate phase STEM education: Cultivating design- and engineering thinking |
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Doctoral | Shafika Isaacs Title: The life worlds of under-performing township boys |
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Doctoral | Ingrid Mostert Title: Grade 3 learners’ use of narrative in mathematics: A classroom-based design experiment in two rural schools in the Dutywa District |
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Doctoral | Ketso Maragelo Title: The contribution of parental engagement in numeracy development skills of their preschool children |
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Doctoral | Frieda Nanewo Shingenge Title: Research to practice: Initiated teaching phonemic of Oshindonga in grade 1 |
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Doctoral | Delia Ruth Arends Title: The literacy history of an adolescent female: Moving from phonemes to expansive knowledge |
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Doctoral | Lydia-Anne Plaatjies Title: The use of SMS-technology as an early childhood development parenting and family intervention program in South Africa |
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Doctoral | Winnie Fikile Simelane Title: Learning to read in IsiZulu: The trajectory of foundation phase learners in an urban public school |
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Doctoral | Shafika Isaacs Title: The life worlds of under-performing township boys |
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Doctoral | Ingrid Mostert Title: Grade 3 learners’ use of narrative in mathematics: A classroom-based design experiment in two rural schools in the Dutywa District |
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Doctoral | Winnie Fikile Simelane Title: Learning to read in IsiZulu: The trajectory of foundation phase learners in an urban public school |
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Doctoral | Frieda Nanewo Shingenge Title: Research to practice: Initiated teaching phonemic of Oshindonga in grade 1 |
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Doctoral | Ketso Maragelo Title: The contribution of parental engagement in numeracy development skills of their preschool children |
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Doctoral | Hendrik Albertus Basson Title: Integrated teacher education for intermediate phase STEM education: Cultivating design- and engineering thinking |
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Doctoral | Hildefonsia Haingura Title: The Grade 1 teachers’ knowledge and practises of guided group reading during literacy teaching in Rukwangali. |
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Doctoral | Delia Ruth Arends Title: The literacy history of an adolescent female: Moving from phonemes to expansive knowledge |
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Post-doc | Sonja Brink Title: News for Kids Reading Assessment |
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Alumni (2016-2018)
Masters | Frieda Nanewo Shingenge Title: The role of home classroom environment in developing children’s language and literacy skills in Pre-Schools of Oshana Region in Namibia |
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Masters | Dean van der Merwe Title: The academic language proficiency of primary school teacher education students at a South African university |
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Masters | Lerato Bernice Title: Grade R teachers’ knowledge about the development of children’s numerical cognition |
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Masters | Emmanuel Azwidowi Libusha Title: Mapping the process of student teachers’ conceptual change of geometrical shapes according to the ’Van Hiele levels’ of development |
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Masters | Rolandi Minnaar Title: Teachers’ awareness of Grade R children’s science processing skills |
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Doctoral | Poomoney Govender (Salosh) Title: Integrated teachers’ formative assessment practices in mathematics in two urban schools in Gauteng |
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Doctoral | Tionge Weddington Saka Title: An Exploration of mathematics classroom culture in selected early grade mathematics classrooms in Malawi |
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Doctoral | Hanrie Bezuidenhout Title: Input for young children’s number concept development |
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Post-doc | Sarah Godsel Project title: Language, learning, and identity in History teaching in students for the intermediate phase |
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NRF Grant: Learning Science in and for Primary School
Masters | Refilwe Ntsoane Title: How student teachers engage with the making of teaching tools for mathematics pedagogy |
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Masters | Winnie Fikile Simelane Title: Early grade teachers and children’s difficulties with mathematics learning |
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Masters | Hayley van der Haar Title: Mentoring in a teaching school: How do teachers contrive mentoring encounters with student-teachers |
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Doctoral | Kathleen Fonseca Title: Title: Learning to become a teacher of mathematics as problem solving |
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Doctoral | Elsie Lyn Kok Title: Foundation phase student teachers pedagogical content knowledge for teaching of science concepts ‘floating’ and ‘sinking’ |
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Doctoral | Francois Naude F Title: Foundation phase learners’ concepts of the natural world |
Support for learning Mathematics in Grade 1
Masters | Roelien Herholdt Title: The utility of the South African MARKO-D test with regards to identifying grade 1 English First Additional Language speakers with mathematics difficulties |
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Masters | Ingrid Reyneke Title: Pre-Grade R children’s mathematic ability |
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Masters | Adele Van der Bergh Title: Mathematical cognitive development in early childhood: Assessing the competence of Grade 1 children |
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Doctoral | Gadija Petker Title: Student teachers learning in collaborative programme of a university and a teaching school |
Postdoctoral Research Fellows
Post-doc | DR Godsel | |
Post-doc | DR Spaull | |
Post-doc | DR Ogunyemi | |
Post-doc | PROF Roberts | |
Post-doc | DR Brink |