Teachers’ perceptions in creating an invitational learning environment in culturally diverse Foundation Phase classrooms

Abstract

Research surrounding classroom practice is changing the way principals, School Management Teams and teachers organise their learning spaces as well as their methods of teaching and learning. In this paper, we aim to explore teachers’ experiences of an invitational learning environment in culturally diverse Foundation Phase classrooms. The paper will review the research conducted with Foundation Phase teachers as well as members from the School Management Team who were identified as participants to elicit in-depth information on their experiences. An interpretivist research paradigm was used to portray the lived experiences and personal responses of the participants. It was decided that a combined theoretical framework consisting of the Open Systems Theory and the Invitational Learning Theory would best guide this research. Semi-structured interviews, observation and visual data formed the data collection instruments. Data were coded, examined and emerging themes identified. The aim of this paper was to share the participants’ insight on how to create invitational learning environments as well as the challenges they experienced in such creation. This paper argues that teachers who create an invitational learning environment contribute to the successful functioning of teaching and learning in the Foundation Phase classroom.