scholarly journals Gender and Instructional Materials as a Correlate of Grade 6 Learners' Mathematics Performance in Buffalo City, South Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 413-422
Author(s):  
K. O. Adu ◽  
N. Duku
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Mathematics Performance ◽  
Instructional Materials

scholarly journals Learning Styles and Instructional Materials as Correlates of Grade 6 Learners`' Mathematics Performance in Buffalo City, South Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 242-255
Author(s):  
Kemi Olajumoke Adu ◽  
Ntombozuko Duku
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Significant Relationship ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Mathematics Performance ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
School Level ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
And Mathematics

Mathematics is a core subject in South Africa. Studies have shown that the performance of learners on this subject is not encouraging. Many factors have been alluded to by scholars as contributing factors to this poor performance. The gap between theory and practice of mathematics teaching can be bridged by the use of appropriate learning styles, availability, and utilization of instructional. This paper finds out the relationship that exists among learning styles, instructional materials, and mathematics performance of Grade 6. The choice of Grade 6 is important because it is the last grade level of primary school before a learner can enter secondary school level in South Africa. The study adopted a correlational research design of a quantitative approach. Stratified sampling techniques were used to select 1225 learners from Grade 6 schools within Buffalo City Metropolitan Education District. The data revealed among others that in Buffalo City, availability and utilization of instructional materials have no significant relationship with the mathematics performance of selected grade 6 learners (B=.023, t=.804, P≥0.05) while students learning styles (visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic) have a significant relationship with grade 6 learners Mathematics performance (B=-.113, t=-3.886, p<0.05). The study concluded that one of the most fundamental issues to consider in improving Mathematics performance is the understanding of the learners’ learning styles and effective use of appropriate instructional materials for teaching Mathematics.

scholarly journals Home and school resources as predictors of mathematics performance in South Africa

2015 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariette Visser ◽  
◽  
Andrea Juan ◽  
Nosisi Feza ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Mathematics Performance ◽  
School Resources ◽  
Home And School

MOVING FROM A DISCOURSE OF ACCESS TO READING INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS TO THE MANAGEMENT AND UTILISATION THEREOF: PROGRESS IN INTERNATIONAL READING LITERACY STUDY AT GRADE 4 IN SOUTH AFRICA

Mousaion ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 31-53
Author(s):  
Lisa Zimmerman ◽  
Sarah Jane Howie
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Resource Management ◽  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
School Level ◽  
Reading Literacy ◽  
Performance Levels ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Low Performing Schools

Two cycles of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) were completed in South Africa in 2006 and 2011. In this article, we investigate the qualities of high-performing reading literacy schools for optimal resource management and utilisation strategies for possible application to low-performing schools. We do this against the background of reports on reading resource shortages and inadequacies in the context of reading literacy learning from both of the PIRLS main studies. This is done by comparing six case study schools with varying contexts and performance levels. The findings from a secondary analysis using the PIRLS 2006 data together with six case studies using international reading benchmarks from PIRLS 2006 to depict performance levels, confirmed that learners in low-performing schools from the study had inadequate access to reading instruction resources. This appeared partly attributable to inadequate funding and government provisioning; ineffective resource management at school level and non-resourcefulness of teachers at classroom level exacerbating reading resource inadequacies; as well as ineffective utilisation of materials at these low-performing schools. The resource management and utilisation strategies of high-performing case study schools were found to be potential models for schools with inadequate strategies. 

Towards Alleviating the Post-Apartheid Education Crisis in South Africa

2011 ◽  
pp. 112-131
Author(s):  
Pragashni Padayachee ◽  
Ansie Harding
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Blended Learning ◽  
Mathematics Learning ◽  
Mathematics Performance ◽  
Learning Approach ◽  
Eastern Cape ◽  
Learner Performance ◽  
Nelson Mandela ◽  
Education Crisis ◽  
Before And After

Post-apartheid South Africa is witnessing an education crisis of significant proportions. The new outcomes-based education system has failed to deliver, and universities are suffering the consequences of under-preparation of learners for tertiary studies. The educator corps is lacking, and it has become common practice for universities to deploy augmented programmes in mathematics for secondary school learners in the surrounding area. This chapter describes a particular model of blended learning, devised for the Incubator School Project (ISP), an initiative of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. The defining feature of this blended model is that it incorporates DVD technology, which offers an affordable and accessible option for the particular group of learners. DVD technology was used as an ingredient in this blended learning approach since it is easily available to the majority of learners and to the schools they attend. This chapter describes the particular blended model and reports both qualitatively and quantitatively on its success: qualitatively, based firstly on a questionnaire completed by learners and secondly on interviews of educators; quantitatively, based thirdly on learner performance before and after the intervention and fourthly on a single school case study where the mathematics performance of the learners who participated in the ISP is compared to those who did not participate in the ISP. Finally, the scope of blending of this model is evaluated by means of a radar chart, adapted from an existing radar measure. The findings of the study suggest that the use of DVD technology in the blended learning approach impacted favourably on the mathematics learning and enhanced the mathematics performance of these learners.

scholarly journals An investigation into the mathematics performance of Grade 6 learners in South Africa

Pythagoras ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 0 (65) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary S. Kotzé ◽  
Japie. P. Strauss
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Mathematics Achievement ◽  
School System ◽  
Mathematics Teaching ◽  
Intermediate Phase ◽  
Mathematics Performance ◽  
International Survey ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
Overall Performance

The aim of this article is to investigate mathematics performance of intermediate phase learners. The quality of learners’ scholastic achievement in mathematics are analysed based on the empirical evidence obtained from an international survey. The method of inquiry is based on an analysis of existing statistic-al data concerning present-oriented problems. The effects of particular variables on mathematics learn-ing are explored, such as male and female learners and those from less advantaged social backgrounds. Overall performance and competence levels are analysed. Although there are no outstanding contributing factors that influence mathematics achievement of  grade 6 learners in South Africa conclusions are drawn that may influence school system organisation and also the quality of mathematics teaching.

The Value of Recounting Narratives

1998 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnetha F. Ball
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Inner City ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The World ◽  
Inner City Youth ◽  
And Control ◽  
The U.S

This article examines the narratives of more than fifty students and teachers who live and work in inner-city areas of the U.S. and South Africa. The purpose of this investigation was to consider some striking similarities in the themes that emerged from the narratives of "most memorable learning experiences" shared by these inner-city learners and their implications for policy. In this article, attention is given not only to the value of these narratives to the individuals who have shared them, but also to the value of sharing these narratives with "Others" (i.e., policy makers, administrators, and curriculum developers) who are engaged in dialogues about the reform of education for inner-city populations here in the U.S. and in South Africa. The U.S. and South Africa are two countries with similarities that make them well-suited for this investigation. Structurally, the U.S. and South Africa are both seeking ways to more effectively educate large numbers of inner-city students who are culturally and linguistically different from the "mainstream" and from the students for whom the majority of instructional materials and school expectations are tailored. With an end to legal segregation in the U.S. and apartheid in South Africa, policy makers in both countries are making critical decisions concerning the reconstruction of education systems for students whom they know very little about. A disjunction exists between the lives of the students and the policy environment that seeks to design and control the educational experiences of inner-city youth. Through narratives, this article helps the reader to appreciate this disjunction and exposes a sharp contrast between the world in which the inner-city youth lives and the world implied by the policies and practices that are proposed. I propose that narratives of memorable learning experiences collected from students and teachers who live and work in inner-city areas can provide insight concerning "what counts" as learning and what aspects of life and school experiences have most shaped their lives as learners. This article demonstrates two important functions of narrative: it demonstrates how students and teachers who live and work in inner-city areas make sense of their experiences through narrative, and how (by listening to the voices of inner-city students and teachers) others can gain a data base from which to craft expanded visions of the possibilities for the change and restructuring of schools. (Content analyses of oral and written narrative data)

scholarly journals FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO POOR LEARNER PERFORMANCE IN MATHEMATICS: A CASE OF SELECTED SCHOOLS IN MPUMALANGA PROVINCE, SOUTH AFRICA

2021 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 451-466
Author(s):  
Nomsa Mabena ◽  
Patricia Namayammu Mokgosi ◽  
Selina Serole Ramapela
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Study Design ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
School Management ◽  
Mathematics Performance ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Mpumalanga Province ◽  
Learner Performance ◽  
Case Study Design

Learners’ mathematics performance globally and locally has been a major concern. Learners are generally not performing well in mathematics. This is also true of learners in Kwagga West Circuit, Nkangala district in Mpumalanga province of South Africa. Performing badly in the subject negatively affects them, preventing them from progressing to the next grades. This research employed a qualitative case study design with observation and semi-structured interviews with a sample of three school management team (SMT) members, six teachers, nine learners, and three parent component members of the school governing body (SGB) to determine factors affecting learner performance in mathematics in the senior phase. The results showed that numerous factors influenced learners’ confidence and performance. The factors found to have an impact on mathematics performance were learner related, such as ill-discipline, language barriers and learner attitudes. Teachers’ factors included lack of pedagogical content knowledge and skill, and lack of appropriate professional training. Finally, the study offers suggestions for further research and recommendations regarding learners, teachers, schools, school management teams, the parents, as well as for the national education ministry. Keywords: poor performance, senior phase, qualitative research, case study design

Time and Latitude in South Africa

1972 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 27-38
Author(s):  
J. Hers
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
Royal Observatory ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Astronomical Determination ◽  
Limited Accuracy ◽  
Better Than

In South Africa the modern outlook towards time may be said to have started in 1948. Both the two major observatories, The Royal Observatory in Cape Town and the Union Observatory (now known as the Republic Observatory) in Johannesburg had, of course, been involved in the astronomical determination of time almost from their inception, and the Johannesburg Observatory has been responsible for the official time of South Africa since 1908. However the pendulum clocks then in use could not be relied on to provide an accuracy better than about 1/10 second, which was of the same order as that of the astronomical observations. It is doubtful if much use was made of even this limited accuracy outside the two observatories, and although there may – occasionally have been a demand for more accurate time, it was certainly not voiced.

Indirect Rule in South Africa

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. C. Myers
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Indirect Rule
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document