Unlocking historical understanding: The role of English language proficiency in Grade 12 History teaching and performance in South Africa
Ronnie Risimati Maceke 
, Nkarhi Excellent Mathebula & Wilfred Molotja
Issue: Vol. 7 No. 7 2026 Article 9 pp. 810- 821
DOI : https://doi.org/10.38159/jelt.2026779 Published online 25th September 2026.
© 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
ABSTRACT
This research explored the influence of English language proficiency on Grade 12 History teaching and learning in South African high schools. It examined the impact of English as the main language of teaching and assessment on learners’ understanding of historical concepts, participation in class, and academic results. Guided by Cummins Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency ( CALP) concept, the study used a qualitative case study design with semi-structured interviews and non-participant classroom observations in rural, township, and urban schools. The findings showed that learners generally achieve a contextual understanding of historical events, but their limited academic English skills hinder their source-based analysis, extended essay writing, and higher-order reasoning. Teachers tried to solve these problems by switching between languages and translanguaging, which improved understanding and learners’ confidence, but these strategies were seldom used and lacked structured pedagogical support. The study concluded that the predominance of English, without targeted linguistic support, disadvantages learners from multilingual and marginalized communities. It recommends professional development, curriculum-based language support, and pedagogical strategies that both value learners’ multilingualism and strengthen their academic English proficiency. This research imparts a new perspective to the existing knowledge by proving that historical literacy requires linguistic justice.
Keywords – English language proficiency, Grade 12 History, Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP), Multilingual Classrooms, Code-switching.
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Dr. Ronnie Risimati Maceke is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Education Studies at the University of Limpopo, South Africa. He holds a PhD in Adult Education from the University of South Africa (UNISA). He is a reviewer for several local and international academic journals. His research interests include Adult and Community Education and Training (ACET), Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), curriculum, and school management and leadership.
Dr. Nkarhi Mathebula is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Limpopo. He is currently offering Adult Education in the Department of Education Studies at the University of Limpopo (South Africa). He holds a PhD from the University of Limpopo. Dr Mathebula has published 37 papers. He has presented papers in both national and international conferences and chaired various conference sessions. Dr Mathebula’s key areas of research interest include Adult Education; Higher Education; Teaching Practice; and Public Administration.
Tsebe Wilfred Molotja is a Full Professor in English Language Teaching in the Department of Language Education in the School of Education at the University of Limpopo. He has positively contributed to the training of English First Additional Language teachers. His research revolves around issues in Academic Reading, Academic Literacy in primary schools, Assessment in Language Teaching, English language teaching methodologies, and developing Reading and Writing Skills in the Primary and Secondary schools and Institutions of Higher Learning. He has presented papers at National and International conferences on issues related to language teaching (Reading and Writing). He has published book chapters and articles in peer-reviewed books and accredited journals. He is actively involved in developing literacy skills in primary schools in Mankweng and Dikgale clusters as part of VLIR Project 3 (Multiple Literacies: Science Literacy, Health Literacy and Academic Literacy), where he serves as the Deputy Leader. He is currently serving as the Principal Investigator in Kagiso Trust in Sekhukhune East District, Limpopo Province and the Deputy Chair of Schools as Enabling Environments (NRF Research Chair) under Prof Themane. He is also involved in adjudicating in the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (Limpopo Province) in developing young writers in English and Sepedi in Limpopo Province. He serves as a mentor for young and upcoming lecturers in the department in English language teaching.
Maceke, Ronnie Risimati, Nkarhi Excellent Mathebula, and Wilfred Molotja. “Unlocking historical understanding: The role of english language proficiency in Grade 12 History teaching and performance in South Africa.” Journal of Education and Learning Technology 7, no.7 (2026): 810 – 821. https://doi.org/10.38159/jelt.2026779
© 2026 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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