Infusing Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) into Teaching Integrated STEM Disciplines: An Empirical Project

More recently, archaeological evidence collected from different cultures has unearthed numerous indigenous technologies that inherently embody specific scientific and mathematical structures, such as number systems, folk games and puzzles, kinship relations, divination systems, and symmetric strip architecture (Chahine, 2011). Building on the ingenuity of numerous indigenous cultures, such as Southeast Asian and African cultures, research has provided some opportunities to various uses of materials, which represent invaluable clues to cultural connections and continuities through space and time. While ample evidence in the literature supports the assertion that culturally relevant pedagogy can provide meaningful context for learning, there is shortage in studies that demonstrated its effectiveness in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) classrooms. The overarching goal of this empirical project is to train teachers to use culturally relevant modules in STEM subjects in high need schools. The research component involved a mixed- methods case study that examines 20-30 high school teachers’ experiences from a local high-need school district in Greater Lowell city in Massachusetts as they engage in the summer institute and their efficacy to implement culturally relevant multimedia resources in teaching STEM subjects in their classrooms

From Vortex Mathematics to Smith Numbers: Demystifying Number Structures and Establishing Sieves Using Digital Root

Proficiency in number structures depends on a continuous development and blending of intricate combinations of different types of numbers and its related characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to unpack the mechanisms and underlying notions that elucidate the potential process of number construction and its inherent structures. By employing the concept of digital root, we show how juxtaposed assumptions can play in delineating generalized models of number structures bridging the abstract, the numerical, and the physical worlds. While there are numerous proposed ways of constructing Smith numbers, developing a generalized algorithm could help provide a unified approach to generating number structures with inherent commonalities. In this paper, we devise a sieve for all Smith numbers as well as other related numbers. The sieve works on the principle of digital roots of both S (N), the sum of the digits of a number N and that of  S (N), the sum of the digits of the extended prime divisors of N. Starting with S (N) =  S (p.q.r…), where p, q, r,…, are the prime divisors whose product yields N and whose digital root (n) equals to that of S (N) thus S (N) = n + 9x; x є N. The sieve works on finding the proper value of x that renders a Smith number N. In addition to the sieve, new related numbers could emerge

Cultural Immersion and Mathematics Teacher Education: Explorations in Morocco and South Africa

This article examines the first author\u27s personal experiences as a mathematics educator studying ethnomathematics and indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) through immersion in indigenous cultures. In describing these encounters, we highlight the importance and impact of cultural immersion experiences on educators\u27 perspectives regarding the nature of mathematical knowledge. We argue that cultural immersion not only builds a well-rounded individual, but also provides educators with the necessary tools to maintain relevance in the diverse and constantly evolving landscape that is the classroom. Insights gained from this study have direct implications in our teaching practices as they remind us to be mindful of the fact that children from diverse backgrounds have different modes of thinking, possess diverse perceptual abilities, and spend differential efforts on tasks depending on personal criteria which they deem useful

Collaborative Evaluative Inquiry: A Model for Improving Mathematics Instruction in Urban Elementary Schools

In this article, the authors describe the cyclical process of a collaborative evaluative inquiry project and the data collected throughout the project—data that not only informed next steps during the project but also show promise in documenting the benefits of such projects. Over a period of 18 months, seven elementary teachers from a K–6 urban elementary school collaborated with university personnel using Parsons’s (2002) Evaluative Inquiry Model, a 5-stage, cyclical model that includes defining, planning, and investigating challenges; collecting, analyzing, and synthesizing data; and communicating findings that transpire through collaborative inquiry. Overall, the project focused on improving the elementary teachers’ skills of inquiry and, in turn, their mathematics instruction and students’ learning outcomes. The long-term goal was to enhance teachers’ roles in their schools by affording them the opportunities to make informed decisions throughout their teaching based on an effective and skillful use of data

Learning through assessment

This book aims to contribute to the discourse of learning through assessment within a self-directed learning environment. It adds to the scholarship of assessment and self-directed learning within a face-to-face and online learning environment. As part of the NWU Self-Directed Learning Book Series, this book is devoted to scholarship in the field of self-directed learning, focusing on ongoing and envisaged assessment practices for self-directed learning through which learning within the 21st century can take place. This book acknowledges and emphasises the role of assessment as a pedagogical tool to foster self-directed learning during face-to-face and online learning situations. The way in which higher education conceptualises teaching, learning and assessment has been inevitably changed due to the COVID- 19 pandemic, and now more than ever we need learners to be self-directed in their learning. Assessment plays a key role in learning and, therefore, we have to identify innovative ways in which learning can be assessed, and which are likely to become the new norm even after the pandemic has been brought under control. The goal of this book, consisting of original research, is to assist with the paradigm shift regarding the purpose of assessment, as well as providing new ideas on assessment strategies, methods and tools appropriate to foster self-directed learning in all modes of delivery

Self-Directed Learning

This book on self-directed learning (SDL) is devoted to original academic scholarship within the field of education, and is the 6th volume in the North-West University (NWU) SDL book series. In this book the authors explore how self-directed learning can be considered an imperative for education in a complex modern society. Although each chapter represents independent research in the field of self-directed learning, the chapters form a coherent contribution concerning the scholarship of self-directed learning, and specifically the effect of environmental and praxis contexts on the enhancement of self-directed learning in a complex society. The publication as a whole provides diverse perspectives on the importance of self-directed learning in varied contexts. Scholars working in a wide range of fields are drawn together in this scholarly work to present a comprehensive dialogue regarding self-directed learning and how this concept functions in a complex and dynamic higher education context. This book presents a combination of theory and practice, which reflects selected conceptual dimensions of self-directed learning in society, as well as research-based findings pertaining to current topical issues relating to implementing self-directed learning in the modern world. The varied methodologies provide the reader with different and balanced perspectives, as well as varied and innovative ideas on how to conduct research in the field of self-directed learning

Learning through assessment

This book aims to contribute to the discourse of learning through assessment within a self-directed learning environment. It adds to the scholarship of assessment and self-directed learning within a face-to-face and online learning environment. As part of the NWU Self-Directed Learning Book Series, this book is devoted to scholarship in the field of self-directed learning, focusing on ongoing and envisaged assessment practices for self-directed learning through which learning within the 21st century can take place. This book acknowledges and emphasises the role of assessment as a pedagogical tool to foster self-directed learning during face-to-face and online learning situations. The way in which higher education conceptualises teaching, learning and assessment has been inevitably changed due to the COVID- 19 pandemic, and now more than ever we need learners to be self-directed in their learning. Assessment plays a key role in learning and, therefore, we have to identify innovative ways in which learning can be assessed, and which are likely to become the new norm even after the pandemic has been brought under control. The goal of this book, consisting of original research, is to assist with the paradigm shift regarding the purpose of assessment, as well as providing new ideas on assessment strategies, methods and tools appropriate to foster self-directed learning in all modes of delivery

Self-Directed Learning

This book on self-directed learning (SDL) is devoted to original academic scholarship within the field of education, and is the 6th volume in the North-West University (NWU) SDL book series. In this book the authors explore how self-directed learning can be considered an imperative for education in a complex modern society. Although each chapter represents independent research in the field of self-directed learning, the chapters form a coherent contribution concerning the scholarship of self-directed learning, and specifically the effect of environmental and praxis contexts on the enhancement of self-directed learning in a complex society. The publication as a whole provides diverse perspectives on the importance of self-directed learning in varied contexts. Scholars working in a wide range of fields are drawn together in this scholarly work to present a comprehensive dialogue regarding self-directed learning and how this concept functions in a complex and dynamic higher education context. This book presents a combination of theory and practice, which reflects selected conceptual dimensions of self-directed learning in society, as well as research-based findings pertaining to current topical issues relating to implementing self-directed learning in the modern world. The varied methodologies provide the reader with different and balanced perspectives, as well as varied and innovative ideas on how to conduct research in the field of self-directed learning