Discourse-creating Features of Pre-tertiary Learners

Creation of meaning, by learners, is predominately, through their written work. An analysis of learners' written work indicates, not only of their communicative levels but also their manageability of the language of instruction (English), literacy skills, their overall performance and ultimately, the quality of their success. The aim of the present investigation was, first, to outline the attributes of selected Grade 12 learners, potential University of Venda (UNIVEN) students, through an analysis of their essays and secondly to interpret these findings in relation to discourse creation and teaching and learning. Through a qualitative approach, features of learners' works were isolated both at micro (technical) and macro (discourse) levels. The results informed that at both levels of analyses, learners exhibited language capabilities at the literal levels of discourse creation.