The roles of phonological awareness, rapid automatised naming and morphological awareness in isiXhosa

Maxine Schaefer; Tracy Probert; Siȃn Rees

doi:10.5785/36-1-878

Maxine Schaefer Linguistics and Modern Langauges Department, College of Human Sciences, UNISA https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5455-2762
Tracy Probert Linguistics Department Rhodes University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9897-3630
Siȃn Rees Linguistics Department Rhodes University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5460-469X

Keywords: phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming, naming speed, morphological awareness, fluency, isiXhosa

Abstract

The current paper examines the unique contributions of phonological awareness (PA), rapid automatised naming (RAN) and morphological awareness (MA) to oral reading fluency (ORF) in isiXhosa. No published study has yet explored the individual contributions of these three cognitive-linguistic skills to reading in isiXhosa. Sixty-six grade 3 home language isiXhosa learners were assessed on these cognitive-linguistic skills. Results from a linear regression analysis showed that only RAN and MA, but not PA, were significant concurrent predictors of ORF. These results suggest that the role of PA in reading in grade 3 learners in isiXhosa may have been overestimated because other important predictors of reading have not been controlled. Our data also suggest that grade 3 isiXhosa learners may make use of the morpheme as a grain size in reading. Our study highlights the need for longitudinal research which explores the roles of PA, MA and RAN in reading development in order to inform reading pedagogy in isiXhosa and other Southern Bantu languages.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Maxine Schaefer, Linguistics and Modern Langauges Department, College of Human Sciences, UNISA

Maxine Schaefer is a Lecturer and PhD candidate in the Linguistics Department at UNISA. Her research focuses on the relationship between cognitive-linguistic skills, primarily phonological processing skills, and literacy development in the Southern Bantu languages in South Africa.

Tracy Probert, Linguistics Department Rhodes University

Tracy Probert is a Lecturer in the Linguistics Department at Rhodes University. Her primary research interest involves the relationship between cognitive-linguistic skills and literacy in the Southern Bantu languages and English. Her additional research interest includes that of multilingual practices in the classroom.

Siȃn Rees, Linguistics Department Rhodes University

Siân Rees is a PhD candidate in the Linguistics Department at Rhodes University and a Materials Developer at Molteno Institute for Language and Literacy. She uses her research on the formal aspects of Bantu languages to develop literacy resources for various languages.