Abstract
M.Ed. (Curriculum studies)
The purpose of this research is to determine the nature of the deficiency experienced by high school beginners in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg relating to the ability to use Afrikaans as a second language. From practical experience, through the study of literature and by means of empirical tests it will be determined whether these English-speaking high school beginners have in fact experienced a deficiency in the
ability to use Afrikaans as a second language. It will also be determined what causes this deficiency. By means of a standardised HSRC test, the validity of the existence of a deficiency in the ability to use Afrikaans was proved. The findings derived from the
results of the test will give a distinctive concept of the extent to which pupils conform to the requirements of the standard six syllabus. It will, therefore, be determined to what extent the pupils' ability to use Afrikaans as a second language conforms to the requirements of the standard six, syllabus. It will also be determined to what extent the teachers contribute towards this deficiency and whether an efficient method can be introduced for the tuition of Afrikaans as a second language. The deficiency can also be attributed to the milieu in which the pupils live and the phase of life which they
experience, namely the puberty phase. By means of this research an attempt is made to prove that it is possible that there may in fact exist a deficiency in the ability to use Afrikaans as a second language by the high school beginner in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg. Guided by the results of the standardised HSRC tests and in pursuance of a study of the appropriate literature which relates to this problem,
guidelines are being formulated in an effort to reduce the existing deficiencies.