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PrimTEd Geometry and Measurement teaching units

Draft teaching units for Intermediate phase teacher education have been prepared by PrimTEd's Mathematics working group looking at developing a new teacher graduate’s ability to teach geometry and measurement. The units go beyond what is required by prescribed school curricula for the Intermediate Phase learners, but should allow pre-service teachers to be well equipped, and approach the teaching of Geometry and Measurement with confidence
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Zenex Fundamentals in Early Childhood Development – Mathematical Literacy

Zenex Foundation materials designed by SAIDE, Woz’obona and COUNT on Fundamentals for Mathematical Literacy at NQF Level One, in English. It uses a problem centred approach. The materials were originally designed for ECD practitioners studying at NQF Level 1 (meeting the requirements of eight NQF level 1 unit standards to gain a qualification in Mathematical Literacy - Unit Standards 7451, 7449, 7463, 7453, 7461, 7450, 7448, 7464, 7447). The materials may also be useful for those studying at NQF Level Four, who need a bridge to the study of mathematical literacy at that level. Zenex and SAIDE are of the strong view that these materials should only be trained by trainers who have an appropriate level of Mathematical Literacy themselves, and that these trainers should receive training in the use of the materials. The course comprises learner and trainer materials.
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Dialects matter: The influence of dialects and code-switching on the literacy and numeracy achievements of isiXhosa Grade 1 learners in the Western Cap

A study of the influence of different dialects and code-switching on the literacy and numeracy achievements of isiXhosa Grade 1 learners in the Western Cape which found that many teachers did not use the standardised isiXhosa though they believed that dialects should not be used in the classroom. Many teachers had little or no knowledge about how to teach early reading in isiXhosa and use dialects as an aid. Learners who speak a dialect different from the standardised one start at a significant disadvantage. The authors argue for the standardisation of African languages, teacher training and development and better resource allocation and development of appropriate texts.
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The DBE’s workbooks as a curriculum tool

A brief evaluation of the Department of Basic Education’s workbooks which found them a welcome intervention that was well aligned to the key CAPS content areas and are a useful practice tool which could also be used for monitoring student progress. It did however find that they were not an effective tool for assessment.
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The need for relevant initial teacher education for primary mathematics: evidence from the primary teacher education project in South Africa

Report of the work conducted by the Assessment Working Group of PrimTEd to design a common assessment in mathematics for higher education institutions use with their with Bachelor of Education student intakes. The assessment instrument is an online test of 90 minutes, consisting of 50 items on different mathematics concepts pertaining to foundation and intermediate phase school mathematics for teaching. The authors, analysed the performance of the 2017 pilot testing with first year students from two universities, and the 2018 national assessment from seven higher education institutions. The results revelaed similar patterns of performance. As the test was set at the level of mathematics at which the students are expected to teach, it is concerning that the majority of students (71%) were not able to obtain more than 60%. This brings into question the assumptions made about the mathematics skills and competencies that entrants into the B.Ed programme bring with them into tertiary education.
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The need for relevant initial teacher education for primary mathematics: evidence from the primary teacher education project in South Africa

Report of the work conducted by the Assessment Working Group of PrimTEd to design a common assessment in mathematics for higher education institutions use with their with Bachelor of Education student intakes. The assessment instrument is an online test of 90 minutes, consisting of 50 items on different mathematics concepts pertaining to foundation and intermediate phase school mathematics for teaching. The authors, analysed the performance of the 2017 pilot testing with first year students from two universities, and the 2018 national assessment from seven higher education institutions. The results revelaed similar patterns of performance. As the test was set at the level of mathematics at which the students are expected to teach, it is concerning that the majority of students (71%) were not able to obtain more than 60%. This brings into question the assumptions made about the mathematics skills and competencies that entrants into the B.Ed programme bring with them into tertiary education.
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Multiplicative reasoning: An intervention’s impact on Foundation Phase learners’ understanding

Report on research undertaken to improve learners’ understanding of and attainment in multiplicative reasoning when solving context-based problems. The research site was a suburban school serving a predominantly historically disadvantaged learner population, and involved teachers and learners from three classes in each of Grades 1–3. 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. The findings of this study demonstrate that young learners can be helped to better understand and improve their attainment in multiplicative reasoning,
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Learning from disruptive classroom behaviour in a Grade 2 mathematics lesson

In this article a descriptive ‘account-of’ an unsuccessful mathematics lesson is followed by detailed analysis , which drew on theory and literature and provides an example of a South African teacher-researcher’s self-study on disruptive learner behaviour in her Foundation Phase mathematics class. It shows is useful at the practitioner level, in which it details how increasingly critical layers of pedagogic reflection can be used to transform mathematics teaching, and via this route, to improve access to mathematical learning in a challenging context. At the research and policy levels, the findings question the separation of attention to mathematics and learner behaviour, rather than addressing the two in combination.
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