Abstract:
With the increased access to education and massification of education in South Africa and internationally, this may adversely affect the participation and engagement of students in classes that seat between 50 to over 100 students. The trend towards increased enrolment at higher education institutions is also reflected in the South African Department of Higher Education and Training’s (DHET) Green Paper on Post-School Education and Training. This research project was undertaken to examine problems students face in large classes and to identify from the students perspectives teaching strategies that are used in the classroom. The setting of the research is a private higher educational institution and the research focuses on higher certificate students’. A questionnaire administered via google documents was used to collect data from students. The findings reveal that there is evidence of student engagement in the classroom. Students find that a large class will assist them with peer learning however, a lecture-based approach, using principles of constructivism, in order to balance the learning needs of students is a favored option by students in large classes.
