Crowding and lack of space in an English multilingual setting: an interactional analysis

Abstract

Crowding in South African schools and classrooms is a problem which has prevented effective teaching and learning for some time, and is a problem which will continue to exist as long as the supply of educational facilities lags behind the demand for a good education. This article reports on a study conducted in a multilingual, English Second Language high school classroom during the first six weeks of the school year. The study investigated the effects of crowding and lack of space on the interactional behaviour of the teacher and the students in the classroom. Specifically it explored the amount of instability that was generated in the life of the teacher and the ways in which she was organized to reduce or prevent that instability.