Academic performance of English first and second-language students: a retrospective appraisal

Abstract

In this retrospective analysis of 140 third-year Psychology students, their academic performance was analysed in relation to their performance in the previous two years and, in particular, on a tutorial-based foundation programme in the first semester of their first-year. The results indicate that performance in third-year is not simply a function of initial competence levels. Very different profiles are obtained for students who pass and fail in the third-year, especially for the students in the initial low academic competence group. Students who perform well in third-year had tended to improve their performance on the first-year tutorial foundation programme whereas the performance of those who fail in third-year had declined over the course of the foundation programme.


South African Journal of Higher Education Vol.15(1) 2001: 147-153