An Insight into a School's Readiness to Implement a CAPS Related Indigenous Knowledge Curriculum for Meteorological Sciences

Abstract

This paper looks at those aspects of Indigenous Knowledge (IK) that are socially and culturally relevant in South Africa for teaching meteorological science concepts in a grade 9 geography class room using dialogical argumentation as an instructional model (DAIM). Focusing on the Western Cape Province, and using a quasi-experimental research design model, the study employed both quantitative and qualitative (mixed methods) to collect data in a public secondary school in Cape Town, in the Western Cape Province. The study employed a dialogical instructional model (DAIM) with an experimental group of learners exposed to the DAIM intervention, and recorded differences like: responses to the DAIM method of teaching/learning; learner performance (scores in the post MLT test); depth of learners' understanding about weather/meteorological concepts; their perceptions/ attitudes towards Geography-between this group and a control group which had no intervention. Learners from the two groups were exposed to a meteorological literacy test (MLT) evaluation before and after the DAIM intervention. The results from the two groups were then compared and analysed according to the two theoretical frameworks that underpin the study namely: Toulmin's Argumentation Pattern-TAP [46] and Contiguity Argumentation Theory-CAT [23].

Supporting Indigenous Students in Science and STEM Education: A Systematic Review

“…Figure 4 Others not included in the above categories All but one of the programs have multiple features in terms of approaches they adopted. One quasi-experimental study [36] reported the impact of dialogical argumentation instructional strategy on Indigenous students' science learning by comparing students' performances in the experimental and controlled groups. This study was assigned only one code (i.e., dialogical/communicative focus).…”

Meteorological Indigenous Knowledge Systems for Prediction of Rainfall in the Chimanimani District of Zimbabwe and Potential for Community Disaster Preparedness

“…The application of realism theory for contextual understanding of socio-economic development and meteorology in particular in today's reality of climate change is gaining prominence in Africa and elsewhere. The realistic view and application of meteorological IKS have been incorporated in the ecological disaster early warnings strategies of some of the local authorities in Kenya (Liang, 2017), desertification and range ecology framework in Morocco (Davis, 2004), agricultural systems in northern Malawi (Moyo, 2010), policy advocacy for inclusion of IKS in meteorological sciences curricula in South Africa (Riffel, 2015) and linkages of conventional and IKS in weather forecasting in Zaka District of Zimbabwe (Makwara, 2013). The realization that IKS is central in meteorology and climatology has been aptly expressed by Mahony and Caglioti (2017) who retorts that "… new scholarship is showing more directly how the conduct of meteorology and climatology is deeply entangled with society [local community knowledge systems]" (Mahony & Caglioti, 2017).…”

Argumentar Cientificamente:

“…Os estudos internacionais que tivemos acesso não são diferentes. Ressaltamos agora a apresentação de outros estudos para referenciarmos as possibilidades metodológicas de avanço de pesquisas e de formação de professores e estudantes, são estes: Morawski & Budke (2019), Morgan (2006), Riffel (2015), Roberts (2013), Sutter et al (2019) e Uhlenwinkel (2017).…”

“…Uma outra pesquisa, agora originária da África do Sul (Riffel, 2015) teve como objetivo compreender quais os conhecimentos aborígenes são culturalmente relevantes para o ensino de ciências meteorológicas em um contexto usando um modelo instrucional baseado em argumentação, nomeado de DAIM (Dialogical Argumentation Instructional Model). O público alvo da pesquisa foram estudantes do 9º ano de uma escola na Cidade do Cabo e o material analisado foram os resultados obtidos da aplicação de pré-teste e pós-teste sobre conceitos de meteorologia.…”

“…A sequência didática elaborada através do modelo instrucional incluía o debate sobre a cultura tradicional, crenças e superstições como um elemento de desafio de interpretação dos estudantes entre esses conhecimentos e as explicações científicas. Riffel (2015) defende no artigo que essa sequência didática foi a principal contribuidora nas significativas mudanças conceituais que foram observadas nos estudantes.…”