Science and Technology Education

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Instructional appproaches in the teaching of Euclidean Geometry in grade 11.
(2007) Mthembu, Sibusiso Goodenough.; Brijlall, Deonarain.
The main focus of the research was to find out the causes of a poor performance in euclidean geometry especially in a grade eleven class. An easier way to find that information was to investigate the techniques that educators who are teaching grade eleven are following when they teach euclidean geometry. The necessary data was therefore collected from the educators as well as learners who were in grade eleven. This study is guided by the constructivist's VIew. The theoretical framework of this research is based on the ideas of theorists like Piaget, Vygotsky and other authors who conform to constructivism. Changes that affected the education system of South Africa due to the adoption of the new constitution were also visited. A shift from the traditional way of teaching and an Outcomes Based Education system, as a recommendation by the National Curriculum Statement was highlighted. The data was collected through both interviews and questionnaires. The semi-structured interviews of three educators from three participating schools were audio taped. In each school one educator was interviewed and six learners were given questionnaires to answer. The above gave a total of eighteen learners and three educators. Written responses from learners and audio taped responses from educators were kept and analyzed. The interview was focused on the techniques that educators employ in their teaching of euclidean geometry in grade eleven. The questionnaires administered to learners were aimed at confirming the responses from the educators. It is envisaged that the educators participated in the study can provide enough information which can assist in correcting the teaching approach in euc1idean geometry. The findings show that the conditions under which educators teach contribute to their methods of teaching euclidean geometry. The testing system and the focus on better results by the education department proved to be the main determining factors of the methods that educators resort to when they teach learners. It also came up from this study that some learners do not take mathematics out of their will. Their parents or the school forces them to take mathematics. Those who like to take mathematics are constantly discouraged by comments of educators who deem mathematics as a subject responsible for bringing down the pass rate of the school. The above diminishes the love of mathematics to learners and euclidean geometry becomes the section that suffers the most. Suggestions and recommendations aimed at improving the teaching and learning of the euclidean geometry have been made.
An investigation of grade 9 learners educational conceptions in two secondary schools : a case study.
(2004) Makhathini, Thamsanqa Emmanuel.; Brijlall, Deonarain.
This research considers specific strategies that would enhance teaching and learning of fractional concepts in mathematics at a secondary school. The notion of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) ~ Vygotskian view, is invoked as one of the fundamental frameworks for explaining fractional knowledge. This view is contested on the bases of that "human thinking is inherently social in its origin" (Goos, 2004: 259). Another theory that bears testimony to mathematics education especially abstract concepts like fractions is that of constructivism, drawn from the works of, Lave (1996), Steffe (1990) and others. Learners' informal knowledge is investigated for the purposes of highlighting what learners know and can do. Therefore, the study examined the development of learners' understanding of fractions during instruction with respect to the ways their prior knowledge of whole numbers influenced the meanings and representations they construct for fractions as they build on their informal knowledge. There were 30 participants (15 School A and 15 from School B) that were engaged in worksheets. Thereafter, 6 cases of the participants were carefully selected for clinical interview purposes. The overall methodology of this study is participatory action research (Kemmis & Mctaggart, 2000).
Links between content knowledge and practice in a mathematics teacher education course.
(2009) Isaac, Vilvanayagie.; Brijlall, Deonarain.
The link between content knowledge and how this influences classroom practice has been prominent in educational research in recent years. Shulman was the forerunner of research on this topic and his research dates back to 1986. Shulman’s views on content knowledge were contrary to the views of his time. In South Africa, however, the Presidential Education Initiative Report which was published in 1999 initiated research on content knowledge and brought this topic into the forefront of educational research. This study examined the link between content knowledge and practice from the perceptions of two university lecturers. The study was contextualized at a tertiary institution in South Africa where the two university lecturers were lecturing to a second year undergraduate teacher trainee class. The topic under discussion was calculus-rates of change. The research was located in the interpretivist paradigm since it focuses on the individual and tries to understand the phenomenon that is being investigated from the individual’s perspective. The research was also conceptualised in terms of Vygotsky’s educational theory and the process of scaffolding. A qualitative case study research methodology was employed. The data was gathered through semi-structured interviews with the two university lecturers and through the observation of video-recorded lessons that the lecturers conducted. The study revealed that the two university lecturers saw a link between a teachers’ content knowledge and his classroom practice. This study is by no means exhaustive, and is a case study of two university lecturers and their perception of the link between content knowledge and practice. This topic can be explored further, and suggestions for further research have been made.
The role of practical work in learning the division of fractions by grade 7 learners in two primary schools in Mpumalanga ward of Hammarsdale circuit in Kwazulu-Natal.
(2005) Molebale, J. J. L.; Maharaj, A.; Brijlall, Deonarain.
The researcher's personal conviction that major problems in the teaching of mathematics are inherited from elementary levels inspired the investigation of the contribution of practical work in the teaching of fraction division in grade seven. The all encompassing approach of the study dictated the involvement of teachers and learners as participants. Teachers' perceptions of practical work and their classroom practices were investigated to confirm or refute existing assumptions and literature claims. Questionnaires in which teachers expressed their views on practical work and fraction teaching were administered to teachers. Lessons on the division of fractions were observed to determine teachers' practices in relation to the researcher's assumptions and claims by literature. Data yielded by these research instruments confirmed or refuted assumptions and literature claims. Learners underwent an experiment and their views were sought to establish the value of practical work in the teaching of fractions and fraction division. Instruments used for the experiment were the pre-test, post-test and worksheets. Data from these instruments gave an indication of the value of practical work in enhancing learners' understanding of fraction division. Learners' responses to interview questions further elucidated and confirmed the valuable role played by practical work in learners ' understanding of fraction division. Learners' responses also provided deeper insight into facets of learners ' cognitive development as they engaged with different aspects of practical work in the division of fractions . Besides confirmation and refutation of some established assumptions and literature claims, previously unknown realities about aspects of practical work and fraction division also emerged from findings. This wealth of the data carried crucial implications for teacher training, the teaching of fractions and fraction division, and further research. A look at these implications hopes to contribute to the enhancement and improvement of the teaching of fractions and fraction division. Teacher training institutions, designers of INSET programmes, policy makers and teachers should all benefit from findings of this study.

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