Mathematics Connection

Gender Differences and Mathematics Achievement of Rural Senior Secondary Students in Cross River State, Nigeria

SW Bassey

To contribute to the realization of the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) by the United Nations on the promotion of gender equity, the researchers sought to empirically verify the existence or otherwise of gender inequality in the mathematics achievement of rural male and female students in Cross River State, Nigeria; and whether or not parental socioeconomic
status and school proprietorship, taken independently, are significant factors in the achievement of the students. By stratified and simple random sampling, 2000 students (50% males, 50% female) were selected and a 30-item four-option multiple choice mathematics achievement test (MAT) was constructed (KR20 of 0.87 and item difficulty, 0.40 < p < 0.82) and administered. The independent t-test revealed significant gender
inequalities in the entire sample indicating that the males outperformed their female counterparts. Gender inequalities were also observed among the low socio economic students and within public schools. Educational implications were also highlighted.

Games in the mathematics curriculum: Some conceptions and experiences of teachers in the Upper West Region of Ghana

MJ Nabie

The study investigated primary school teachers’ experiences with games as curriculum resources for teaching mathematics in Ghana. In the study, 156 certificated primary school teachers in the Upper West Region of Ghana in both rural and urban settings were surveyed. Using a questionnaire consisting of 29 closed and open-type questions and in-depth informal conversation interviews (IDICIs), participants’ quantitative and qualitative responses on their experiences with games in school were explored. Descriptive statistical analysis was applied to the quantitative data
while narrative analysis was applied to qualitative responses. The study showed that teachersappear to have rich personal experiences with games but minimal educational experiences (beyond primary) and practical experiences with cultural games. As a result, teachers have not made the
link between indigenous mathematics as expressed in the philosophy of the curriculum and the use of games as an expected teaching tool. The study concluded that developing craft knowledge and a vision for using cultural games in mathematics teaching requires extensive educational
opportunities for teachers to share and reflect on their experiences, their current practices, and their visions of teaching.

The language barrier education in Africa: The challenge of learning and teaching mathematics in a second language

J Ibe

The issues relating to language of instruction, mathematical language and interaction with mathematics education have remained unresolved. The interaction between these variables have attracted research understandings in recent years. This paper reports a study of the level of understanding of mathematical terms and vocabularies and the relationship with students’ achievement in mathematics results show that students did not understand the mathematical terms and expressions of the contents of mathematics tested. Although students’ achievement was poor and positively related to exposure, the relationship between mathematical language ability and achievement was higher while a call was made to teachers to be aware of the linguistic difficulties of their students, it was recommended that mathematical language be built into language lesson and conversely, language be taught in mathematics lessons.

Pre-service teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching basic school mathematics

J Nsiah-Asante

This study measured pre-service teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) basic school mathematics. MKT multiple-choice test was administered to 100 pre-service teachers from two colleges of education (located at Mampong in the Ashanti Region of Ghana) to assess their mathematical knowledge for teaching basic school mathematics in
three content domains – fractions, number operations and number patterns. The results of the test revealed that the general performance of the pre-service teachers on the MKT test was low (x = 45.5%, SD=9.6). Their performance in number patterns and rules (x = 50.2%,
SD=28.6) was better than that of fractions (x = 44.0%, SD= 20.9) and number operations (x = 40.4%, SD=17.7), which constitute nearly half of basic school mathematics content. The variations however show that there are many more pre-service teachers who have difficulty in teaching topics in the content domain tested. It was observed that the poor performance
was due to the inadequate opportunities pre-service teachers have to practise what they learn in their pedagogy courses in college. It is recommended that the mathematics pedagogy courses should be made more practical, that is, pre-service teachers should be given ample
opportunity in college to practice what they are going to teach in basic schools.

Prior Knowledge of relevant mathematical concepts and gender as factors in achievement in Stoichiometry

NN Achufusi-Aka

Stoichiometry is an essential part of various arms of chemistry but students usually perform poorly in it due to a number of formulae and calculations involved. This study investigated the effect of prior knowledge of relevant mathematical concepts (RMC) and gender on achievement in Stoichimetry. The design was a pretest – posttest quasi experimental study. The population comprised all SS2 chemistry students in Onitsha education zone. Two hundred (200) students were used for the study (100 males and 100 females). The instrument used for data collection was mathematics achievement test (MAT) and chemistry achievement test (CAT). Data collected were analyzed using the t-test statistics. It was found out that teaching RMC before Stoichiometry had significant effect on male and female student’s achievement in Stiochiometry. The implication for study is that education policy makers and the chemistry curriculum planners should consider this when planning chemistry curriculum.

Shifting the paradigm: Multiple mode assessment strategies in distance teacher training programme for inclusivity

KP Quan-Baffour

Assessment is central to the acquisition of competencies among distance teacher trainees. Traditional assessment measures knowledge and skills of distance teacher trainees in a narrow and inadequate manner using time-limited tests or examinations which fail to capture in entirety what the students know and are really capable of doing. To assess distance teacher trainees in a fair and authentic manner calls for a shift of the paradigm from ‘once off’ to a multiple mode assessment. The shift would involve teacher trainees in assessment strategies that provide them with the opportunities to demonstrate their competencies in various ways. This paper proposes multiple assessment modes to make assessment more inclusive. The broad and integrated approach could capture the
competencies of teacher trainees at a distance in various ways. It may give a more holistic picture of a student’s performance and ability than a single ‘shot’ measure. The movement from a single mode to multi-dimensional assessment strategies may demonstrate an institution’s shift towards the ethos of openness in its discourse and assessment practices
that measure student competencies from various angles.

Social justice and mathematics education in Ghana

JA Fletcher

This paper assesses the extent to which social justice theories can be used to explain the causes of inequalities in mathematics education in Ghana and explores ways in which issues arising from such inequalities can be addressed. The paper traces the habitus that operates in the Ghanaian mathematics classroom and argues that the habitus is created by both learners and teachers who may be oblivious to its dangers. The author underscores the importance of teaching for social justice by using learners’ funds of knowledge in the delivery of the mathematics curriculum. The paper concludes that it is vital for teachers of mathematics to move away from authoritative approaches to the teaching and learning of mathematics
towards more collaborative approaches, which will provide learners with the opportunity to make choices that will engage their creative potential in mathematics and harness their emotional energies.

Ghana’s achievement in mathematics in TIMSS 2007

DK Mereku

In the international assessment programme in mathematics and science, called the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), the achievement of Ghanaian students in mathematics had been among the lowest in the world. This article contains the summary of results from TIMSS held in 2007 in which Ghana participated at the eighth
grade level (i.e. JHS2). TIMSS 2007 involved approximately 425,000 students and 59 countries from all around the world. In 2003 Ghana participated in the TIMSS for the first time alongside 45 other countries. The 2007 survey updates the picture of performance from 2003, and in all 163 schools with JHS2 enrolment of 5,294 students sampled from all
regions of Ghana participated in the study. The results indicate that Ghana’s JHS2 students’ performance in mathematics, though improved significantly (i.e. from a scale score of 276 in 2003 to 309 in 2007), remains among the lowest in Africa and the world. Ghana’s
performance on the international benchmarks also improved significantly. The mathematics score, 309, placed Ghana at the 47th position on the overall mathematics achievement results table when the 48 participating countries, which met the TIMSS sampling requirements, were ranked by their mean performances. The paper also presents a number of
factors which students, teachers and head teachers identified as contributing to the abysmal performance in the subject. A number of recommendations are made for the improvement of mathematics education in Ghana.