760 research outputs found
Rural Learners' View and Perceptions about their experiences in word Problem Solving
No full textResearch conducted in South African schools on word problems has provided little or no information on the reasons associated with poor academic achievement in word problem solving, except those linked to issues of reality and common sense in problem-solving processes. It is therefore against this background that the study reported in this paper sought to provide an overview of factors that are associated with poor academic achievement of primary school learners within South African classroom contexts. To do this, the study followed a qualitative approach by using a focus group discussion with a group of six Grade 6 learners. In brief, the findings of the study outlined in this paper seem to suggest that the mathematics academic achievements of Grade 6 learners in mathematics word problems solving are affected by a number of variables such as mathematical language use, text comprehension and terminology, understanding operations embedded in the text, concepts and vocabulary clarity, as well as the structure of the word problem
Strategies used by Grade 6 learners when solving mathematics story problems
No full textThe study reported in this article sought to investigate factors that affect learners' academic achievement in Grade 6 mathematics word problems. Furthermore, the article discusses errors made by the learners when they solve word problems. The study used document analysis in a form of learners' written work (or test) in order to collect quantitative data. The results obtained from a test consisting of six word problem tasks showed that learners struggled with realistic considerations of problem statement as well as with making meaning of situations embedded in the task. In brief, reading instructions aloud repeatedly and explaining key mathematical concepts have emerged as key strategies in understanding and solving word problems in mathematics. The study therefore argues that it does not matter how complex or easy a word problem appears to be; what is important is the ability of the brain to connect the mathematics embedded in a problem statement with real-life situations in order to make meaning of the world
More conversations with Walker Percy
No full textThis collection of interviews supplements Conversations with Walker Percy and occasions an additional two dozen pleasurable encounters with Percy. Primarily from the last ten years of Percy's life, they show how his presence was stimulating thought in much of humanistic America, in literature, linguistics, psychology, and philosophy, and in cultural life in general. Although this acclaimed author of The Moviegoer, Lancelot, and Love in the Ruins never overcame his shyness with interviewers, he continued to grant interviews as long as his health permitted. This act of openness illustrates his humility before his ideas and his desire to help others understand them. Although the questions he was asked almost invariably became predictable, he always managed to add an anecdote, an illustration, a topical reference, that would breathe new life into the responses he was making. The interviews in this collection show him at the height when he knew that his illness would not allow him to write any more books, and that the only way to restate his ideas and offer a valediction to the large audience to whom he had always been kind, patient, and appreciative was to speak out. Percy despised the posture of many modern self-proclaimed intellectuals who delight in cloaking ideas in jargon and abstraction. He always tried to express himself clearly and as free of reservations as possible. These interviews reflect that clarity. With this book readers will welcome yet more close encounters with him
Teaching and learning quadratic equations through a problem-dentred approach : a case of grade 11 classroom in Capricorn District of Limpopo Province
No full textMEd (Mathematics), North-West University, Mafikeng CampusWorldwide the teaching and learning of mathematics pose a great challenge to mathematics teachers as learners ' performance in the subject leave much to be desired. This is particularly the case in South Africa, where there has been a great disparity in the development of teachers in the past. Extensive research has shown that many teachers in South Africa are under-qualified, especially in the teaching of mathematics at secondary schools. The performance of mathematics and science learners is particularly low in South Africa. The study investigated the benefits of using problem-centred approach in the teaching and learning of quadratic equations in grade-11 classroom using a mixed method approach. Learners were given learning activities on quadratic problems to carry out as part of their normal classroom mathematics' lessons. Data were
collected in three stages: pre-intervention, which involved a quantitative approach, pretest and qualitative, questionnaire; during intervention, which included a qualitative approach, video recording and questioning, and learners' journals; post-intervention; quantitative; post-test and qualitative; questionnaire. The responses of the learners were analysed during each of the above stages. The scripts were reviewed based on four problem-solving stages adopted from George Polya (1945) viz.: understanding the problem, devising the plan, carrying out the plan, and looking back. It became evident from the findings of the study that before the intervention,
learners had no understanding of problem-solving abilities and they were able to develop these abilities during the intervention and after the intervention, the learners have developed the necessary skills needed in problem-solving in learning quadratic equations. A total of 20 learners participated in the study from a secondary school in the Capricorn District of Limpopo Province. The study adhered to ethical principles and applied several techniques to enhance the validity/trustworthiness of the findings. The study found that learners benefitted tremendously from the problem-centred approach of teaching and learning. To this end, various recommendations were made. Recommendations for further study were also highlighted and the
limitations of this research pointed out.Master
A Hundred Fables: Aesop (Cover: Aesop's Fables Coloring Book)
No full textHere is curious 8½" x 11" print-upon-demand paperback book that gives two pages -- one for text and one for illustration -- to 100 fables from Aesop. Outside of the covers, the book is entirely black-and-white. It hurries to begin, with only a page to acknowledge the publisher and a page to declare a title -- one of three -- and a word of explanation about Aesop and Percy Billinghurst. Similarly, at the end there are only two pages of advertisements. I miss rudiments like a T of C or AI. The three titles are "Aesops Fables Coloring Book" (front cover); "A Hundred Fables Aesop" (inside); and Aesops Fables with Illustrations by Percy J. Billinghurst: 100 Fables and Illustrations" (back cover). The texts are taken without acknowledgement from George Fyler Townsend (1867).No Autho
The effect of using geometer sketchpad on grade 10 learners' understanding of geometry : a case of a school in a Village in Bojanala District
No full textMEd (Mathematics/Science), North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2017The National Department of Education in South Africa for matric Examination Analysis and moderators reports (2014 and 2015) revealed that learners performance in Mathematics in general and geometry in particular was generally unbecoming. Only a few number of candidates who sat for the final National Senior Certificate Examination passed. This study employed the van Hiele's levels of mental development in geometry learning to
investigate the effects of using GSP on grade IO learners· understanding of geometry learning in a rural secondary school. Both pre-and post-tests "vere written by both control and ex perimental groups and interviews for experimental group after the intervention was administered. were used to solicit information regarding learners· feelings about the teaching styles used in their classroom before the post-test was written. This information was collected from 80 learners from the Secondary School in Bojanala district in Rustenburg.
Findings from the study revealed that learners had difficulties in identifying properties and naming geometric figures and/or concepts. Giving the reason why is the square a rectangle and the relationships among squares, rhombi, rectangles and parallelograms. Also, they had greater difficulties when using geometric terminologies to do proofs of theorems, for example, congruency, opposite sites, diagonals, parallel lines etc. The analysis showed that students mostly had difficulties at the level of Abstraction and Deduction. This gave an indication that the vast majority of the learners in grade 10 are reasoning at the lowest two levels of the van Hiele's model which are Visualization and Description. For these learners' difficulties to be curbed, the analysis demonstrated amongst others that teachers needed to use Information Communication Technology (ICT) during the process of teaching and learning. Manipulative materials, like GSP loaded computers provide expenence in which learners can transfer their understanding smoothly from one concept to another. The significant mean difference in post-test for both control and experimental groups showed that GSP used as an instructional tool yielded good results in the performance of geometry.Master
Janes, Percy. Interview with author Percy Janes about his book, House of Hate.
No full textJanes, Percy. William Atkinson interviews author, Percy Janes, about his book, House of Hate. House of Hate was Janes' first novel; strong public reaction to the autobiographical novel; William Atkinson describes the plot and messaging of the book; Janes speaks to the need to address the experiences of his life; the structure of the book as an arch; the reaction of his siblings in Cornerbrook; the wider reference to Newfoundland family life at the time it was written; the right to draw upon life experiences and questions of fair representation; feedback from Robert Colbourne, Fiddlehead Magazine; feedback from Margaret Lawrence and Farley Mowat; inspiration from other writers including Thomas Wolfe, DH Lawrence and Tolstoy; the traditional family system; the ideal life of a writer; Canadian literature and its position in the world; ongoing project, No Cage for Conquerors
Janes, Percy. Interview with author Percy Janes about his book, House of Hate.
No full textJanes, Percy. William Atkinson interviews author, Percy Janes, about his book, House of Hate. House of Hate was Janes' first novel; strong public reaction to the autobiographical novel; William Atkinson describes the plot and messaging of the book; Janes speaks to the need to address the experiences of his life; the structure of the book as an arch; the reaction of his siblings in Cornerbrook; the wider reference to Newfoundland family life at the time it was written; the right to draw upon life experiences and questions of fair representation; feedback from Robert Colbourne, Fiddlehead Magazine; feedback from Margaret Lawrence and Farley Mowat; inspiration from other writers including Thomas Wolfe, DH Lawrence and Tolstoy; the traditional family system; the ideal life of a writer; Canadian literature and its position in the world; ongoing project, No Cage for Conquerors
Percy Lisk letter, MSS.1935
No full textAbstract: This collection contains a poem by an unknown author sent to Percy Lisk of Conner. The poem is about a doctor and includes a hand drawn image of a doctor.Scope and Content Note: This collection contains a poem by an unknown author sent to Percy Lisk of Conner. The poem is about a doctor and includes a hand drawn image of a doctor.Biographical/Historical Note
Twinning two mathematics teachers teaching Grade 11 Algebra: a strategy for change in practice
No full textPhD (Mathematics, Science and Technology Education), North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2016Twinning is a strategy that is used to bring two or more schools together to share teaching expertise, experiences and resources. This strategy was implemented in two secondary schools in the Polokwane District of Limpopo Province, South Africa. The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of twinning two mathematics teachers teaching Grade 11 algebra. Furthermore, the study intended to concentrate on the development of the poorly-performing school in terms of their academic performance in Grade 11 algebra, and also, to change the poorly-performing teacher’s practices by exposure to the new practices gained during the twinning process. The study followed a pre-test-intervention-post-test mixed methods design, utilising both quantitative and qualitative data. The data collection techniques used to respond to the research questions of this study included interviews (N=2) before the intervention, as well as an interview (N=1) with the teacher in the experimental group during and after the intervention. In addition, tests were administered in the two experimental (N=42) and control (N=42) groups, before and after the intervention. Classroom observations were conducted in the experimental group before and after the intervention, and also during the intervention. The study was underpinned by observational learning theory, which proposes that when a teacher in the experimental group observes a teacher from the control group, his/her teaching practices might improve. Again, observational learning would motivate the teacher in the experimental group, with the result that the learners’ performance in Grade 11 Algebra would improve.
The analysis of the data generated from the pre- and post-tests and the classroom observations suggest that the intervention strategy improved the learners’ academic performance. The statistical results of the experimental group indicated that they performed significantly better, with a rank-sum score of 2639.5 in the post-test, as compared to the pre-test’s rank-sum score of 1101.5 (p=0.0018). The data gained from the experimental group suggests that the interventional strategy had a positive influence on the conceptual and procedural understanding of the learners when solving algebra problems. Furthermore, the intervention strategy had a positive impact, in improving the learners’ participation during the teaching and learning of Grade 11 Algebra.
An analysis of the classroom observations and interviews with the teachers indicated that the intervention strategy had changed the teacher’s own practices in the experimental group by being exposed to the new practices of the teacher from the control group. The benefits of the twinning process in the experimental group were obvious, where the teacher in the experimental group used the expertise, experience and resources after the intervention. Moreover, the learners in the experimental group were encouraged to participate actively during the teaching and learning of Grade 11 Algebra, even after the intervention. Overall, the findings of this study show that the intervention in the experimental group was directly related to the teacher’s change in practice, and by the improvement of the learners’ academic performance in Grade 11 Algebra.Doctora
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