Department of Modern Foreign Languages

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Abenteuer mit Werner und Roswitha : a multimedia program based on suggestopedic principles for the teaching of German in the first year at university
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2005-03) Van der Merwe, Cornelia Christina; Du Toit, R.; Dos Santos, I.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
Suggestopedia, as an innovative method of teaching, inter alia, second and foreign languages, has reportedly achieved exceptional results. With the development of this multimedia program it was decided to base the program on suggestopedic principles. In this thesis, I discussed the theory of adult second language acquisition, cognitive learning theory, constructivist learning theory and the consequences these theories have on language teaching. The overview of literature incorporates a description and analysis of Suggestopedia and looks at Suggestopedia from the following perspectives: • a description of suggestion • a description of suggestology • the basic premises of Suggestopedia • the purpose of Suggestopedia • the principles of Suggestopedia • the suggestopedic cycle • the suggestopedic text • the classroom module • the computer program. The multimedia computer program was developed to enhance the classroom module of the first year students of German at the university. In this thesis, I describe the interface and design of this program in terms of colour, incorporating colour theory, the name of the program, the overall design and the structure of each scene.
Addressing the digital divide : using CALL material to teach grammar to learners of English First Additional Language in classrooms with limited computer and multimedia resources
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2012-03) Forbes, Deidre; Du Toit, R. O.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Because English is the most widely-spoken second language in South Africa, it is becoming increasingly important for learners to be able to master the English language, including English grammatical structures; not only to do well at their internal and external school examinations, but also to communicate effectively in a progressively anglicised educational, occupational and commercial society. Educators of English First Additional Language (FAL) often have to augment existing textbook material, especially in the field of grammar teaching and learning, as many of the more recent textbook publications do not make sufficient provision for the communicative teaching and learning of grammatical structures. One way in which textbook material could be augmented would be to develop interactive multimedia learning material for the teaching of grammar. However, many South African English FAL classrooms are underresourced in terms of computers and other technological tools needed to use such interactive computer assisted language learning (CALL) material. The learners being taught in these technologically barren classrooms may fall far behind their peers in terms of exposure to interactive educational technology, i.e. they may become victims of the digital divide. The objective of this study was to investigate whether the digital divide could be addressed with the development and use of computer assisted language learning material that makes provision for learner interactivity and could be used in classrooms with minimal access to technological tools. To determine the attitudes of educators with regard to grammar instruction in general, as well as the use of technology in the teaching and learning of grammar and the general accessibility of technology in English FAL classrooms, educators of English FAL at nine rural, Afrikaans-medium schools situated in low-income communities in the Western and Northern Cape were asked to complete a questionnaire. The results of this survey were used to ascertain what kind of multimedia learning material would be suitable for use in technologically challenged English FAL classrooms. As part of this study, exemplar material has been developed to make a recommendation regarding the type of multimedia material that could be used in technologically under-resourced classrooms.
Afrikaans as kommunikasietaal in sy elementêre vorm by derdetaalsprekers by Hoërskool Weston
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2007-03) Vraagom, Elvin; Du Toit, R.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
Over the past three years, Weston High School has received an increasing number of Xhosa-speaking learners. They come from remote rural towns in the Eastern Cape. At present, there are approximately forty Xhosa-speaking learners at the school. Many of these learners understand very little English or Afrikaans while others speak “broken” Afrikaans and / or English. They have a lack op prior knowledge and their exposure to Afrikaans was limited. As part of this project, a computer programme was designed to support the Afrikaans language needs of these learners. The programme endeavours to develop the limited vocabulary and language abilities of these learners in elementary Afrikaans. The emphasis is on Afrikaans as a medium of communication. The programme has been developed according to the language needs of these learners. The design and composition of the project is based on general theoretical principals of computer-assisted language learning (CALL). The project is discussed and analysed within the CALL environment.
Alain Resnais et l engagement documentaire: Une affaire de morale en trois temps
(Presses Universitaires de Bordeaux, 2011-12) Du Toit, Catherine
Without history there can be no political engagement. But history can only surpass its analytical, abstract and factual dimensions by the operation of memory. From his first short documentaries, such as Guernica, Les Statues meurent aussi (Statues also die) and Nuit et Brouillard (Night and Fog), the problem of the past is present in Alain Resnais’ cinema. Reconstructing the past does not only occur on the level of text and image but also through cinematographic techniques. This article examines the way in which lived memory in Alain Resnais’ politically engaged documentaries becomes conscience, participating in the imaginary of mnemonic reconstruction.
An neue Sprachufer übersetzen: Zur Didaktik der Literarizität und dem Potential eines erweiterten Übersetzungskonzeptes im Kontext von Deutsch als Fremdsprache
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-03) Wichmann, Laura; Von Maltzan, Carlotta; Riedner, Ursula Renate; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Department of Modern Foreign Languages.
Analyse des strategies d'emancipation ou d'adaptation des personnages de romans beurs a la realite des marches sociaux de l'echange
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-12) Staebler, Marie-Anne; Du Toit, Catherine; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The publication in 1983 of Medhi Charef’s novel Le thé au harem d’Archi Ahmed marked the beginning of Beur literature, a collection of narratives concerning the lives of individuals of North African origin in the French suburbs. The term “beur”, derived from the double inversion of the word “arabe”, would become synonymous with “Maghrebians” and be used to define a cultural movement claiming its uniqueness. Beur writers or those who make use of Beur heroes in their novels reveal, often in autobiographical form, the daily experiences of a marginalized minority living in identical socio-economic conditions, which are sources of conflicts, whether latent or manifest, with the dominant culture. The sensitivity of Beur writers as manifested in their writings enables us to obtain images of the lives of people living in shantytowns or the large conglomerations on the outskirts of French cities. However, this literature provides more than just a simple description of context or situation, since it also contains the verdict of young Beurs on the legitimacy of the established social order and their strategies to transform or to adapt to this order. Work, home, school, politics or affective relations are concrete examples of areas where the individual is faced with an established system of values and norms, inequality of resources and convergent or divergent interests that need to be taken into account during the process of exchange in order to satisfy his/her needs. In this interdisciplinary research we apply the sociological concepts of exchange and conflict theory in order to disclose the strategies used by characters in Beur novels to adapt or free themselves from given conditions of exchange and power configurations on different social markets of exchange.
Analyse musicale de films documentaires politico-sociaux (1950-1980) d’Alain Resnais, d’Agnes Varda et de Chris Marker
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch Uiversity, 2020-12) Wium, Hermien; Du Toit, Catherine; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
RÉSUMÉ: La préoccupation sociale et politique des cinéastes français Alain Resnais, Agnès Varda et Chris Marker se manifeste dans les films documentaires qu’ils réalisent dès 1948. Cette étude analyse neuf de ces documentaires (sortis entre 1950 et 1980) avec l’objectif d’examiner le rôle de la musique par rapport aux thèmes politico-sociaux traités dans ces films. Ces thèmes comprennent la guerre, la colonisation, le racisme, la révolution, les droits civiques, les questions de femmes, les communautés marginalisées, la protection de l’environnement. Bien que leurs films aient des caractéristiques en commun avec ceux de leurs contemporains de la Nouvelle Vague, Resnais, Varda et Marker qui sont des membres importants du groupe de la Rive Gauche, se distinguent par leur approche plus collective. Les documentaires et les films de fiction de ces trois réalisateurs s’inspirent d’un large éventail de formes artistiques, telles que la photographie, la littérature, les beaux-arts, le théâtre, la musique. Ces cinéastes ont chacun une passion pour la musique et y accordent une grande attention dans leurs films, ainsi qu’au choix des compositeurs de leur musique filmique. Dans cette étude, nous identifions différentes fonctions de la musique dans les neuf documentaires analysés, entre autres, son rôle structurel, culturel, temporel, ponctuel, ironique, renforçant, associatif et imitatif. Même si ces rôles ressemblent pour la plupart à ceux des films de fiction, discutés dans plusieurs sources sur la musique filmique, leur but est plutôt de transmettre la prise de position du réalisateur par rapport aux thèmes politico-sociaux respectifs des documentaires, ce qui n’est pas, en général, le but principal de la musique dans les films de fiction. La musique, soigneusement choisie, est liée, comme les autres éléments filmiques (images, paroles, bruitage, mentions écrites) aux contextes historiques, culturels, temporels, politiques et sociaux des différents documentaires analysés. Pourtant, plus que d’autres éléments filmiques, la musique a la capacité de transcender les limites de ces contextes par sa portée potentielle plus large. Cette pertinence rapproche les différentes idées véhiculées par les documentaires d’un public plus grand et élargit les possibilités d’interprétation. La musique rapproche aussi ces idées du spectateur d’aujourd’hui, d’autant plus que les thèmes de ces documentaires sont restés actuels. L’hybridité déjà présente dans certains styles de musique utilisés dans les documentaires analysés, résulte dans certains cas en un double renforcement d’une idée transmise, multipliant ainsi les possibilités d’interprétation. Dans ces documentaires, il y a une grande prévalence de musique atonale, de musique électronique, de petits ensembles instrumentaux, et une forte présence de compositeurs contemporains. Cette prévalence et cette présence font preuve de la vision contemporaine de Resnais, Varda, Marker, et sont une réflexion de l’influence de la Nouvelle Vague, ainsi que de l’essor et de l’innovation de la musique moderne dans la période d’après-guerre. Cette modernité confirme, en grande partie, la position intellectuelle de ces réalisateurs qui s’aligne avec une certaine position typique des intellectuels français de l’après-guerre.
"Andere machen hier Urlaub, ich lebe hier!" - Deutschland- und Sudafrikabilder und die Reprasentation von 'Lifestyle' im Diskurs deutschsprachiger Lifestyle-MigrantInnen im sudlichen Afrika
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-04) Zimmermann, Dana Mercedes; Annas, Rolf; Zabel, Rebecca; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: „Others come here for vacation, I live here!“ The discursive constructions of Germany and South Africa and the representation of ‘life-style’ in the discourse of German-speaking lifestyle-migrants in Southern Africa This work deals with the discursive constructions of Germany and South Africa in the discourse of German-speaking lifestyle-migrants in Southern Africa. The main purpose of this study is to reconstruct discursive content based on material from the German-speaking online-forum Südafrika-Forum. The findings of this study will then be implemented to explain lifestyle mi-gration as a social phenomenon. While the findings can possibly shed a light upon lifestyle-migration, this study also acknowledges the recent findings about lifestyle migration in sociology to this day. Lifestyle migration, which is typically described as the mobilization of relatively affluent individuals (mostly Westerners), who migrate in search for a better way of life, leads to the concept of lifestyle itself, which shall also be outlined in detail during this work. The discourse analysis in this study will then be contextualized by reflecting the mentioned aspects. The reconstruction of representations of Germany and South Africa in the discourse of German-speaking lifestyle migrants in Southern Africa therefore also contribute to the German-South African contact dis-course and to the migration discourse as well, by elaborating the dreams, aspirations and desires of the relatively affluent German-speaking lifestyle migrants in Southern Africa.
Anforderungen für eine Benutzeroberfläche eines elektronischen Wörterbuches deutscher Kollokationen für afrikaans-sprechende Lerner des Faches Deutsch als Fremdsprache
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2011-03) Reinhardt, Hilma Anka; Du Toit, Renate; Heid, Ulrich; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Available dictionaries involving Afrikaans and German do not satisfactorily deal with collocations. Therefore, this study recommends a theoretically grounded design of a user interface for an electronic dictionary of German collocations for foreign language learners of German whose first language or mother tongue is Afrikaans. In order to be able to do so, a set of requirements is drawn up, upon which the electronic collocations dictionary will be based. On the one hand these requirements give consideration to lexicographic factors relevant to the envisaged dictionary; on the other hand a theoretical basis for the presentation of the electronic dictionary according to usability principles and standards is established. The underlying definition of collocations will be discussed as one of the lexicographic factors constituting the learner dictionary of collocations. Being primarily aimed at Afrikaans speaking foreign language learners of German, their usage situation plays an important role. At an intermediate language learning level topics to be conversed about become increasingly complex. As collocations offer adequate means of expressing these increasingly complex ideas, the learners’ need of collocational knowledge increases, even more with regard to the language production than to the language reception. As collocations are not dealt with adequately in available dictionaries involving Afrikaans and German, there is a definite demand for an adequate dictionary for this user group. The envisaged learner dictionary’s function and type will be determined accordingly. In addition to the lexicographic factors underpinning the design of the user interface, international usability standards DIN EN ISO 9241 (amongst others) and practical recommendations for user interface design by Jakob Nielsen (amongst others) are discussed. This discussion makes provision for the theoretically grounded presentation of the envisaged electronic dictionary of German collocations in line with usability standards. Finally, giving consideration to the set of lexicographic and usability requirements drawn up, a user interface design is recommended for the electronic dictionary for foreign language learners of German whose first language or mother tongue is Afrikaans.
Aschenputtel und ihre Schwestern : Frauenfiguren im Marchen : eine Kontrastierung des Grimmschen Aschenputtel von 1857 mit Aschenputtelerzählungen des 20. und 21. Jahrhunderts
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008-12) Wittmann, Gerda-Elisabeth; Dos Santos, Isabel; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
It has been widely assumed that the portrayal of women in fairytales subscribes to somewhat outdated and stereotypical modes of representation. Upon closer inspection however, it can be seen that this is a fallacious assumption and that the female roles in these stories are much more multidimensional in nature. One of the most popular fairytales from the Grimm Brothers is Cinderella. The portrayal of women in this story is typical of the weak, subjected woman who needs to be rescued by the prince from her unfavourable and subjugated position. The research presented here aims to show that the Grimm’s specific depiction of Cinderella in the 19th century provides an alternative to the modern myth. Here, she reacts strongly and independently to find the most advantageous resolution to her problematic subject position. To this end the Grimms’ version will be compared to text and filmic versions from the 20th and 21st centuries. By comparing aspects of female representation in the Cinderella-themed portrayals, one can evaluate the extent to which societal expectations have altered over time as well as investigating the modern-day implications of this.
Bedeutung von digitalen Zusatzmaterialien im lehrwerkgestutzten schulischen DaF-Fernunterricht in pandemiebedingten Umbruchzeiten
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2021-12) Gjestvang, Kari Soedal; Jordaan, Doret; Wurffel, Nicola; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Norwegian schools closed down on 12 March 2020 as part of a nationwide lockdown. Overnight, German-language teachers in Norway had to adapt to a fully virtual remote teaching format as a result of this Covid-19 Lockdown. This thesis explores the use of additional digital teaching and learning materials for support amongst German teachers in Norwegian schools during the pandemic. The theoretical foundation of this research analyses different digital teaching formats and concepts—in combination with theories on the development of digital teaching and learning materials for German language instruction. The purpose of the study is twofold. Firstly, to get an impression of the German teachers’ experiences with such materials during the period of remote teaching. Secondly, to investigate how additional teaching and learning materials could be developed to be a greater support for German teachers, both during a new lockdown and in a normal classroom environment. The third part of the study brings together the teachers’ experiences, the theoretical analysis, and analysis on the viability of developing German teaching and learning materials for Norwegian schools. This discussion leads to the central question of this thesis: how can German teachers of the future find better support in additional digital teaching and learning materials for remote teaching as well as classroom teaching? The most significant findings in the study reveal that improvements in the structure of the sources’ websites—in combination with a more active professional training of digital skills amongst teachers—will equip teachers to make better use of the potential support already available in existing materials, even though some digital teaching and learning materials are not yet accessible.
Die bevordering van vroegtydige geletterdheid deur middel van multimedia as voorbereiding vir aanvangslees om leesvermoe, -begrip en -vlotheid te verseker
(Stellenbsoch : Stellenbosch University, 2012-12) Marais, Susanna Gertruida Elizabeth; Du Toit, R.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: According to the results of the Annual National Assessment, ANA, the reading skills (reading ability, reading comprehension and fluency in reading) of children in South African schools are not up to standard (Department of Basic Education, 2011:20). Only 28% of Grade 6 learners and 35% of Grade 3 learners achieved the standardized levels for literacy and language in their respective grades. Further research (De Witt, 2009:619) also proved that only 35% of Grade R learners reached the minimum requirements for the development of literacy according to their age (5-6 years). The focus of this research is the advancement of Emergent Literacy through multimedia as preparation for elementary reading to ensure reading ability, comprehension and fluency. To promote Emergent Literacy the researcher should: - determine through research at what stage the natural developmental pattern of the learn to read process starts with toddlers - determine the process to follow for the development of literacy - determine the necessary skills required for reading fluently and with comprehension up to an age related standard - develop a multimedia program based on and guided by the process of literacy development - observe, record and analyze the effect of such a multimedia program for toddlers/learners. The research approach adopted in this thesis includes a case study with pre-school children between the ages of 2 and 5 years old. A learner aged 13, who had not yet achieved the required literacy levels for her age, was also included in the study. Data collection was done through interviews with and observations of toddlers/learners using a multimedia program that consisted of Foundation Skills for Emergent Literacy and General Reading Standards for Early Literacy. The multimedia program was designed based on an in-depth literature review of existing research. This research was focused on determining at which stage natural literacy development begins and what process should be followed to facilitate such development. The multimedia program covers the aspects of Phonological Processing, Print Awareness, Oral Language Skills, Emergent Reading, Print Knowledge and Early Word Recognition, Language Development and Listening and Reading Comprehension. The findings from this research provide evidence that highlights the value of reading, singing and repeating rhymes, songs and stories to children. The different methods of reading to children, the print–reference style to teach letters and sounds as well as inferencing that leads to comprehension, are proven by this research to be very important.
Beyond buzzwords : towards an evaluation framework for computer assisted language Learning in the South African FET sector
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-03) Coetzee, Renee Wilma; Bergman, E. K.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
The evaluation and selection of software is a complex undertaking best performed by those with applicable specialised skills and knowledge. When it comes to a field like CALL, which draws on the theory and best practice of a variety related disciplines, language teachers in the South African FET sector are unlikely to possess those specialised skills and knowledge beyond language learning content. In an effort to make the evaluation and selection of CALL software a more productive process, the literature pertaining to the components that constitute CALL and the South African FET context was reviewed. Based on this an evaluation framework was developed incorporating all the crucial contextual elements. The choice of a framework as opposed to a checklist was motivated by a need to reflect context at a variety of levels, combined with the flexibility allowing customisation for use in a variety of language learning settings.
Beyond the mask : Guy de Maupassant in Algeria
(Peter Lang, 2003-07) Du Toit, Catherine
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The enlightened foreigner who travels to a distant land wears two masks : the mask woven of pre-conceptions when he considers the ‘other’ he encounters and a second, a mirror-mask in which he sees in the ‘other’ only his own image, his personal convictions persuading him that we are all alike. Guy de Maupassant wears this double mask when he travels to the recently colonized Algeria in 1870. He documents his perceptions in a travel journal and in the form of reports sent to Parisian newspapers. These collected essays were republished as «Au Soleil» (In the Sun). In his reports, Maupassant sharply criticizes the harsh actions and methods of the French colonizers. At the same time, however, he cannot distance himself from the very conceptions of European superiority, used by the colonial powers to justify colonization. On the other hand, Maupassant as a modern, intelligent and liberal young author, seems to believe in the sameness of human culture and nature. All ‘otherness’ is absorbed into likeness and his approach to the other is one of assimilation. This approach inevitably leads to comparison and since his frame of reference does not extend beyond his own culture, the ‘other’ is judged inferior as soon as he falls short of this limited measuring stick. In our relations with the ‘other’ – whether this ‘other’ be from a different continent, race or gender group – nothing much has changed over the past century. The key concern remains : how to lay down the various masks that prevent us from seeing the other as a whole and wholly different being that we can relate to precisely because this otherness is and remains beyond our comprehension and control.
A blended-learning approach to strategy training for improving second-language reading comprehension in South Africa
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008-03) Klapwijk, Nanda Maria; Du Toit, R. O.; Bergman, E. K.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
It is widely recognized that learning to read is one of the most crucial learning processes in which children are involved at primary school. However, becoming a proficient reader is not equally easy for all learners. When it comes to the development of reading comprehension many children appear to have persistent problems. In order to meet the reading needs of students in the 21st century, educators are pressed to develop effective instructional means for teaching strategies to improve reading comprehension. The ability to read academic texts is considered one of the most crucial skills that students of English as a Second Language need to acquire. Reading comprehension has become the “essence of reading” (Dreyer & Nel, 2003:349). Literacy, and more specifically reading, is one of many areas where research has provided evidence of the potential impact of technology such as multimedia and hypermedia. If one looks broadly at the issue of technology and literacy, one of the more rewarding issues for educators is the role of technology in literacy acquisition and instruction, especially for primary grade learners (Pearson et al, 2005:3). This study aims to support the growing trend of an increasingly “paired” literacy, namely that of general literacy and computer (or technological) literacy. The study proposes that through implementing an overall blended-learning methodology for teaching learners how to use reading strategies, it will be possible to improve learners’ general reading comprehension levels.
Boer-uitbeeldings in Franse jeugliteratuur tydens die Anglo-Boereoorlog
(AOSIS Publishing, 2010-07-13) Steyn, J. E. T.
Voorstellings van die “ander” of die “vreemde” word grootliks beïnvloed deur die voorsteller se eie historiese konteks. Wanneer hierdie konteks verander, gebeur dit dikwels dat die voorstelling van die “ander” ook aangepas word by hierdie veranderings. Hierdie artikel kyk kortliks hoedat die Franse voorstellings van die Boere verskil in jeugromans wat vóór die Anglo-Boereoorlog geskryf is van jeugromans wat oor die Anglo-Boereoorlog handel. Vóór die oorlog word die Boer as ’n Nederlandse afstammeling beskryf wat byna agterlik en in uiterste eenvoud leef. Wanneer die Anglo-Boereoorlog uitbreek, word die Boer egter ’n soort alter ego vir die Franse wat indirek Frankryk se stryd teen die Britte voortsit. Hierdie artikel bespreek die manier waarop die Franse hulle voorstelling van die Boere aanpas sodat jong Franse lesers met die Boere kan identifiseer.
Cape Town - Africa' Gateway. A traveller' and cultural guide to Cape Town and surrounds, with educational Xhosa language phrases" : development and evaluation of a hypermedia application for language learning
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004-12) Janse van Rensburg, Charise; Du Toit, R. O.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
Please refer to full text for abstract
A case study investigating the essay writing skills of Eastern Cape Technikon education students using the Writing Process Workshop language software
(Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2005-03) Masha, Khanyisa Rose; Du Toit, Renate; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
This research is based on a study which was made in order to investigate why the students who study Education at the Eastern Cape Technikon fail to acquire competence in essay writing, in spite of going through the Computer program that is being used by the Department of Communication. The name of this program is the Writing Process Workshop, and will be referred to as the WPW throughout the study. This program has been in use at the Technikon as a form of supplementary program for those students who were perceived to have shortfalls1 in their essay writing communication skills. This perception came about from the Department of Communication which decided that those students who scored less than 40% overall in (in language, not in content) their assignments, class works, and tests should go through the program and work independently, in the hope that their performance will improve. The study spans over two years, with the first year being the period where the researcher collected data in the form of written errors that the students made in their essays. The second year of the research is the period when the main research took place. During the second year of the research, the researcher observed the students as they went through the WPW for three months. Upon completing the program, the students were asked to respond to a questionnaire. In addition to the questionnaire, the researcher examined the student errors that occurred in the students’ essays throughout 2003 (while they were on the program, together with the ones from last year (2003). The reason for this was to determine if the errors that were present in 2002 are still present even after the students had gone through the WPW. The researcher then found that there was still considerable occurrence of the same errors in the students’ essays, a fact which led the researcher to deduce that very little improvement in the writing skills of the students has occurred between 2002 and 2003. To explain the above point further, the research findings indicated that the essay-writing competence of the subjects did not improve in spite of the WPW intervention.The researcher then went on to evaluate the program, using a set of guidelines2, and found it consistent with the requirements of the evaluation; and therefore ruled it out as the cause of the failure of students to improve their competence in writing. Based on the findings of the study, the researcher found that the students do not put conscious effort to apply what they have learnt in the program, and that some have not even completed the required tasks from the program. She also found that there is lack of integration of the software into the curriculum. Specific recommendations in Chapter 9 are given on how to facilitate this integration and to motivate the students to apply what they have learnt from the WPW to the mainstream essay writing exercises.
Charaktere und Hauptideen in 'Der arme Heinrich' Hartmanns von Aue und Gerhart Hauptmanns
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1961-12) Pluddemann, Ulrich Richard Reinold; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
No Abstract Available
Charaktere und Hauptideen in den Gregoriusgestaltungen Hartmanns von Aue und Thomas Manns
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1964-12) Kucharzik, Arno; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
No Abstract Available

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