Interlinear morphemic gloss (IMG) of fraction naming conventions in isiXhosa

Many learners of mathematics struggle with fractions, frequently considering fractions to be two different unrelated numbers. In this paper four mathematics texts, translated From English into isiXhosa, are analysed in order to describe isiXhosa fraction naming conventions. Interlinear morphemic glossing (IMG) provides addition information, which goes beyond the idiomatic translation, providing relevant information for both the English and isiXhosa texts. The analysis shows that there are two primary conventions. One convention is expressed with the denominator first as in ‘fifths.of-which-there-are-4’, the other is more similar to the English ‘4 over five’ but makes explicit a relationship between 4 and 5. The affordances and constraints of both isiXhosa fraction naming conventions are described in relation to the English naming conventions

From measuring impact to informing course design: The second design trial of the Maths Intensive course

This paper describes the changes made to the administration of assessments in the second design trial of a ‘Maths intensive’ course at a comprehensive university in South Africa as a result of Covid-19. The ‘Maths intensive’ course was designed in direct response to poor attainment in the Primary Teacher Education (PrimTEd) mathematics test project. Building on the positive findings of improved attainment evident in the first design cycle; the ‘Maths intensive; course was further refined and shifts in attainment once again analysed. The post-test data could not be used to measure impact and instead was used to establish what the student teachers know and were able to do at the end of the course. The Maths Intensive test framework mapped the test item to the learning outcomes for the course. Facility scores and average facility scores per topic area revealed areas where students were capable and areas where they still required support. These findings may be of interest to lecturers and teachers seeking to develop assessment reports which provide useable information to improve their instructional design and teaching practice. They may also be of interest to academics and training providers designing mathematics education programmes for initial teacher education or for ongoing professional development courses for teachers in primary schools

Improving Grade R mathematics teaching in South Africa: Evidence from an impact evaluation of a province-wide intervention

Impact on learner outcomes of a province-wide Grade R Mathematics intervention (termed R-Maths) are presented in relation to theoretical frameworks established from a meta-evaluation of education evaluation studies in South Africa. The changes in Mathematics performance from base- to endline, of learners taught by R-Maths-trained teacher/practitioners and those not, indicated that the greatest effects on performance were from language of learning and teaching, and district. But the intervention group did perform better than the comparison group: 2.9 percentage points better over the whole Marko-D test, with a small effect size. The R-Maths case indicates that a modified cascade model which includes some elements of the ‘educational triple cocktail’ (structured learning materials, teacher training, and support) may be successful by working with, and through, department of education structures, in this case subject advisors. Whether the effects are retained over time and if these effects can be replicated in other South African provinces with significantly different contexts is not yet known

Learning with mobile devices : a comparison of four mobile learning pilots in Africa

Abstract: This paper compares the mixed-methods evaluation findings of the ukuFUNda Virtual School (UVS) with evaluations of three different mobile learning (m-learning) programmes in Africa: the information and communication technologies for rural education (ICT4RED); the Kenya Primary Math and Reading (PRIMR) study and the Nokia Mobile Mathematics (MoMath) evaluation. The comparison applies a conceptual model based on m-learning affordances and configurations (Strigel & Pouezevara, 2012), as well as on uptake, use, and responses by program beneficiaries; and on stakeholder learning. The findings show varied successes across all four programs and highlight important lessons for stakeholders with particular reference to scaling up of m-learning interventions in an African context

Entrenching performativity or enhancing pedagogy: Addressing the challenge of assessment policy and practice

The focus of the South African Education Research Association’s Assessment and Testing Special Interest Group (SIG) is to contribute to current initiatives and debates pertaining to the development and implementation of assessment systems for improving learning and teaching. In particular, the SIG’s members aim to address dominant performativity discourses impacting schools and universities by (1) providing a common understanding of the purpose and use of assessment, (2) locating the different assessment applications across the broader system within which learning and teaching occurs, and (3) highlighting recent initiatives impacting on assessment policy and practices. We think it essential to highlight critical policy and practice questions, while simultaneously acknowledging ongoing challenges for implementing enabling assessment systems that support the specific pedagogical needs of learners, teachers, students, and lecturers. Notwithstanding the complexities ofeffecting change, increasing discourse on, as well as relevant critique of, policies and practices that fail to improve learning and teaching, enhances possibilities for implementing enabling assessment policy and practice that seek to address the elusive challenge of equity and quality within the education system.&nbsp

Children doing mathematics with confidence in the early grades by 2030: what will it take?

In this chapter, we draw together the early grade mathematics (EGM) work reported on in this volume and in Volume 3, offering a bird’s-eye view of what we know. Pulling together the emerging themes that cut across the mathematics chapters and the factors identified as impeding progress, we reflect on what it will take to have South African children doing mathematics with confidence in the early grades by 2030. We note through this analysis that in the decade from 2010 to 2020, rates of curriculum coverage have improved, but teachers’ knowledge and their access to learning mathematics remain serious concerns. We have identified the following priorities for improving outcomes in mathematics learning: 1) mathematics-focused teacher-development programmes, 2) university-level capacity for mathematics-focused initial teacher education programmes, 3) school–university government partnerships for research design hubs, 4) more flexible working with the National Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) and language policy, and 5) building capacity for school-based instructional leadership

A sociocultural framework to analyse M-Learning options for Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioner training

Abstract: This article, a contribution to m-learning (mobile learning) research, centres on the motivation for, and development of, a suitable framework to analyse m-learning options for early childhood development (ECD) practitioners. Grounded in a sociocultural learning perspective, the framework was developed as part of a larger study into the feasibility of m-learning for ECD practitioners in the Penreach professional development programme in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. Analysis of existing frameworks enabled the development of a new, modified framework to suit the Penreach context. Here we unpack the framework and explain its development. The new, modified framework aims to assist researchers, developers, and implementers by prompting consideration of five sociocultural learning features associated with m-learning in ECD, namely: device access, data affordability, authenticity, collaboration, and personalisation

A modified analytical framework for describing m-learning (as applied to early grade Mathematics)

Abstract: Please refer to full text to view abstract

Working Group Report: Task Design for Early Algebra

The focus of this newly established working group is on the complexities of designing tasks for engaging children in algebraic thinking. The working group aims to engage PME participants in interrogating the multiple ways in which robust task design supports teachers in facilitating children’s learning, within the topic of early algebra. The facilitators of the working group will present relevant theory from the distinct research fields of task design and early algebra, and participants will be invited to explore how insights from task design may be made manifest to address the specific needs of children engaging with algebraic thinking in elementary school

Multiplicative reasoning: An intervention’s impact on Foundation Phase learners’ understanding

Background: Given the context of low attainment in primary mathematics in South Africa, improving learners’ understanding of multiplicative reasoning is important as it underpins much of later mathematics. Aim: Within a broader research programme aiming to improve Foundation Phase (Grades 1–3, 7–9-year-olds) learners’ mathematical performance, the aim of the particular research reported on here was to improve learners’ understanding of and attainment in multiplicative reasoning when solving context-based problems. Setting: The research was conducted in a suburban school serving a predominantly historically disadvantaged learner population, and involved teachers and learners from three classes in each of Grades 1–3. Methods: A 4-week intervention piloted the use of context-based problems and array images to encourage learners to model (through pictures and diagrams) the problem situations, with the models produced used both to support problem solving and to support understanding of the multiplicative structures of the contexts. Results: Cleaning the data to include those learners participating at all three data points – pre-, post- and delayed post-test – provided findings based on 233 matched learners. These findings show that, on average, Grade 1 learners had a mean score average increase of 22 percentage points between the pre-test and the delayed post-test, with Grades 2 and 3 having mean increases of 10 and 9 percentage points, respectively. Conclusion: The findings of this study demonstrate that young learners can be helped to better understand and improve their attainment in multiplicative reasoning, and suggest the usefulness of trialling the intervention model more broadly across schools