Pre-service teachers’ views about the nature of science and scientific inquiry: The South African case

The convenience sample used in the study reported on here consisted of 91 students enrolled in the primary and middle school Postgraduate Certificate in Education course for 2 consecutive years at a South African university. We used the Student Understanding of Science and Science Inquiry instrument to answer questions about these students’ knowledge of the nature of science and scientific inquiry compared to that published for pre-service primary and middle school teachers from China, Turkey, and the United States of America (USA), whether the changes proposed for the instrument enhanced its reliability, and whether any correlation could be found to these students’ age and educational factors. The findings show that these South African student teachers shared similar levels of knowledge of the nature of science and scientific inquiry to their counterparts from Turkey and the USA, all of which were less sophisticated than that of the Chinese students. The test was found to have a high degree of reliability in the South African context, with the proposed changes to the instrument doing little to enhance this. The older students and those who did not study any tertiary science or mathematics courses scored statistically significantly higher. We suggest that the confirmatory nature of tertiary practical science work and exposure to the complexity of science in postgraduate work or employment in industry could explain these findings. Keywords: international comparison; nature of science knowledge; pre-service teachers; scientific inquir

Predictors of learner performance in mathematics and science according to a large-scale study in Mpumalanga

Eight hundred and ninety-nine (431 male, 467 female and one missing value) Grade 8 and 9 (n = 184 and 713, respectively, with two missing values) learners from secondary schools in Mpumalanga completed a science and mathematics questionnaire. Student's t tests showed that male and female, as well as language groups' scores, differed significantly. Stepwise non-linear regression shows that a combination of factors contributes significantly to learner, science and mathematics performance (R2 = 25%, 20%, and 11%, respectively). South African Journal of Education Vol. 26(2) 2006: 229–25

Exploring the use of Technology textbooks in medium- and well- resourced school context in South Africa

This study explored how Technology teachers in medium- and well-resourced schools use commercially prepared textbooks in their classrooms. A qualitative-interpretive design was used with a purposively selected sample of four schools from a city in the Gauteng province, South Africa. Data were analysed according to the conceptual framework of didactical transposition, focusing on textbook content, activities, context and teaching strategies. It was found that teachers in well-resourced schools adapt textbooks by adding content, thus expecting a higher standard from textbook content, and preferring learners to work individually, while teachers in medium-resourced schools follow textbooks without adapting them, therefore accepting the standard set by the textbooks. It is recommended that teachers in both contexts be assisted by specialists to interpret the curriculum so as to be sure how they are expected to use textbooks to improve their classroom practices.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/raer202015-12-24hb201

Edge states in a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice of massive magnetic skyrmions

We study the collective dynamics of a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice of magnetic skyrmions. By performing large-scale micromagnetic simulations, we find multiple chiral and non-chiral edge modes of skyrmion oscillations in the lattice. The non-chiral edge states are due to the Tamm-Shockley mechanism, while the chiral ones are topologically protected against structure defects and hold different handednesses depending on the mode frequency. To interpret the emerging multiband nature of the chiral edge states, we generalize the massless Thiele's equation by including a second-order inertial term of skyrmion mass as well as a third-order non-Newtonian gyroscopic term, which allows us to model the band structure of skrymion oscillations. Theoretical results compare well with numerical simulations. Our findings uncover the importance of high order effects in strongly coupled skyrmions and are helpful for designing novel topological devices.Comment: 6 pages,4 figures,accepted by Physical Review B as a Rapid Communicatio

Master mathematics teachers as mentors for underperforming and disadvantaged schools

The work of teachers has a significant role both with regard to learners’ achievement and their opportunities in life. In the context of a developing country, particularly with respect to township and rural schools, it is a common occurrence that many practising teachers are un- or under qualified for the teaching of mathematics. What kind of professional development would be effective for upgrading the content knowledge and professional competence of such teachers? It is the aim of this article to give an overview of a professional development approach, called mentorship by master mathematics teachers, which had a positive effect both on teacher learning and their learners’ performance. Where mentorship usually focuses on the induction of beginning or student teachers, the Teacher Mentorship Programme (TMP) in this case, had as its target experienced teachers who had been teaching mathematics for years in township schools, but without the appropriate qualifications. The mentee teachers had never previously, due to no fault of their own, been exposed to excellent teaching practices as learners, student or practising teachers. The TMP was an initiative of a university’s Faculty of Engineering, that collaborated with private engineering companies and the Department of Education with the aim of preparing more and better equipped Grade 12 leavers who enrol for studies in engineering and technology related fields. The intended outcomes of the TMP were: To improve teachers’ content knowledge, pedagogical competence and attitude towards mathematics and science. To broaden teachers’ knowledge of careers related to the mathematics, science and technology fields. To improve learners’ attitudes towards mathematics, science and related careers. To increase the number of learners who enrol for mathematics on the higher grade which is the equivalent of “core” mathematics in the new National Curriculum Statement. Why a mentorship programme? A common theme occurring continuously in professional development research is that ad hoc workshops do not seem to have the sustained impact required for significant teacher change and the improvement required to enhance learners’ performance. A pure workshop approach also lacks in-context follow up support and reflection on newly acquired innovations. The body of research recommends that in-service programmes need to be schoolbased, they need to address the learning needs as identified by teachers themselves, and, lastly, they need consistently to be subject focused. Through the latter approach, teachers are not merely cast into the role of a technical-rationalist to receive knowledge, but instead, they are perceived as knowledge producers through joint reflection with expert mentors. The article further describes the requirements and some characteristics of master mentors that were appointed in the crucial role of change facilitators. The impact of the four year programme (2003-2006) is briefly provided through statistical lenses, while the qualitative themes that emerged as the biggest learning and developmental needs as reported by teachers themselves are narrated. Teachers mostly needed support with subject conceptualisation, pedagogic content knowledge (how to teach challenging concepts) and portfolio assessment. A detailed account of results can be found in Fricke (2008). In conclusion, the article offers a possible theoretical framework for designing and negotiating an individualised professional development plan. The suggested theoretical frame departs from the Zone of Feasible Development (ZFD), analogous to Vygotsky’s ZFD which describes the “distance” between actual performance on the one hand and the idealised performance an individual can achieve under the guidance of an expert on the other.Hierdie artikel het ten doel om oorsigtelik ’n insae te bied in ’n mentorskapinisiatief wat geïmplementeer is om onderwysers in hul eie wiskundeklaskamers en komplekse sosiale skoolkontekste te ondersteun en professioneel te ontwikkel. In die geval van die Onderwysermentorskapsprogram (OMP) is wiskundeonderwysers gemonitor wat jare se ervaring het, maar wat self óf nie oor voldoende kwalifikasies beskik nie, óf, wat nie deur hulle eie toedoen nie, nooit blootgestel was aan uitnemende wiskunde onderrigpraktyke nie. Die impak van die vierjaarlange program word bondig statisties weergegee, terwyl die kwalitatiewe temas wat onderwysers self versoek het, soos vakkonseptuele- en assesseringsondersteuning verhelder word. Laastens word ’n teoretiese raamwerk vir realistiese professionele ontwikkeling aan die hand van die konsep “Sone vir Proksimale Ontwikkeling” verken

Differentiated quality assurance for the African Virtual University's teacher education qualification in mathematics and science

For the African Virtual University and its consortium of African universities the implementation of quality promoting initiatives are not without challenges and scepticisms. To be discussed in this article is the case of a teacher education qualification in ten different African countries. Seven countries were sampled and visited in 2006 with the aim of understanding quality assurance cultures and practices used for promoting quality. Findings showed that quality assurance processes manifest at various levels of readiness and maturity. The uneven quality assurance landscape led me to propose a ten-tiered differentiated Quality Assurance Framework. In analogy to Vygotsky’s theory of the ‘zone of feasible development’ I suggest the presence of do-able next steps where an institution can set their own priorities and timelines for reform towards quality. Self-paced planning I contend, will not be branded as technobureaucratic control, but will serve a developmental purpose towards inculcation and ownership of quality milestones

Examining learning achievement and experiences of science learners in a problem-based learning environment

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a facilitation strategy that has the potential to put learners at the centre of activity and to make them accountable for their own learning. However, the assumption is often made, during attempts to utilise PBL, that learners will acquire less information than learners who have been taught through direct, lecture-based strategies. The present work challenged this assumption by exposing experimental and control groups of Grade 10 science learners to different learning environments. Results showed that the PBL-taught experimental group did not sacrifice subject content. PBL learners scored significantly higher than their lecture-taught counterparts on selected questions in the post-test that were classified on Bloom's taxonomy as higher order questions. Through qualitative measures the study also probed the levels of enjoyment experienced by below- and above-average achievers who were exposed to PBL

'Where is the post-modern truth we have lost in reductionist knowledge?' A curriculum’s epitaph

This essay suggests a way for creating a curriculum for the future amidst the challenges of post-modern uncertainty. Curriculum discourse in the past has been dominated by widely accepted key questions, which produce and maintain curricula that are essentially fragmented and reductionistic, and directly opposed to the essential demands of the holistic nature of life. The essay proposes a contemporary curriculum philosophy that is fundamentally heuristic, with a radically eclectic, contingent character

The African-Norwegian case of supporting women towards knowledge production through doctoral studies

This article pays attention to knowledge produced about a ‘networked’ support pathway towards a PhD. The network constituted an international collaboration through a project called Productive Learning Cultures (PLC) (2002-2011) between Norway and seven countries, developing or in transition, in sub-Saharan Africa which had both male and female students. However, this exploratory qualitative study describes how donor initiatives can be used to develop intellectual, emotional and funding support structures that take cognisance of the challenges women face during their PhD journeys. The article foregrounds the voices of women and accounts of their journey’s obstacles, reversals, breakdowns and yet, progression. In the findings the women describe the project design elements where they could benefit from international mindsets and supervision frameworks, while not having to leave their home countries for four years to pursue studies abroad. They also felt relieved gratitude that the project created a nurturing guilt-free space where motherhood and PhD work could co-exist which contributed towards emotional equilibrium which resulted in more effective PhD work. Keywords: doctoral learning, female student support, academic mothers, international cooperation, network, guilt-free study space

The promise of problem-based learning for training pre-service technology teachers

This article describes a learner-centred pedagogy for training student teachers. The inquiry was guided by two questions: (1) Is problem-based learning (PBL) an effective strategy when training prospective Technology teachers? (2) To what extent do student teachers transfer their own experiences of PBL to the authentic class- room situation? After exploring the cognitive dimensions and characteristics of PBL, a rationale is provided for using PBL particularly for teacher training in Technology Education. Data collected through quantitative and qualitative methods suggest that the training was perceived as a relevant, creative and satisfying professional development learning experience. However, when having to transfer PBL competencies to real schools, the student teachers experienced uncertainty about their new roles as learning facilitators in a less structured and less predictable PBL environment