TEACHING ACCOUNTING CONCEPTS IN ENGLISH SECOND LANGUAGE CONTEXT: A CASE STUDY OF THREE ACCOUNTING TEACHERS IN PINETOWN EDUCATION DISTRICT
Author(s): Sithembele Goodman Ndovela ,Jabulisile Cynthia Ngwenya, Suriamurthee Moonsamy Maistry
J. Ponte - Oct 2023 - Volume 79 - Issue 10
doi: 10.21506/j.ponte.2023.10.1
Abstract:
The teaching and learning of Accounting in South African schools happens in English which is a second language for the majority of teachers and learners. Given that the Accounting discipline itself has its own conceptual jargon, teaching and learning in a second language is likely to present added complexity for both teachers and learners. This paper explored the teaching of Accounting threshold concepts in English Second Language (ESL) context. The study was underpinned by Shulman (1986)’s theory on teacher knowledge. In this qualitative interpretive study, semi-structured interviews, lesson observation, video recording and video stimulated recall were employed to generate data from three Accounting teachers. The research participants were purposively selected. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. This assisted researchers to make sense of data. Key findings showed that Accounting teachers predominantly used IsiZulu when teaching Accounting threshold concepts. When teachers teach, they emphasised technical recording instead of conceptual clarity. They infused codeswitching when using prior knowledge to illuminate the understanding of concepts and also infusing learners’ native language for practical application of taught concepts. The paper also provided the discussion of findings. The latter part of the paper discusses the conclusion drawn from the findings on the teaching of Accounting concepts in schools.
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