Namibian preservice high school mathematics teachers' (N=4) and teacher educators' (N=3) beliefs about mathematics learning difficulties (MLD) were investigated to document the beliefs developed at the end of the teacher education program, the views and practices that might be emphasized in the program, and possible changes in these beliefs during the first year teaching. Preservice teachers were interviewed before they graduated from the teacher education program and during their first-year teaching. Teacher educators were interviewed once. Participants believed that the most important factor causing MLD at the high school was students' knowledge and beliefs. Teacher educators stated former unqualified teachers and preservice teachers stated curriculum and teachers' workload as other causes of MLD. Participants suggested individual support and mixed ability grouping to reduce students' MLD. The partial alignment of beliefs among the participants showed that preservice teachers might have developed some beliefs through the views and practices emphasized in the program. Preservice teachers elaborated more on MLD when they became teachers and stated similar beliefs with some stress on their MLD-related practices. Preservice teachers did not comment on how teachers' knowledge and practices might influence students' MLD in both times. Findings pointed that teacher education programs should focus on increasing preservice teachers' awareness of how their knowledge, practices and beliefs about MLD might affect students to improve their future practices. It is possible that teachers' beliefs about MLD could be related to their beliefs about the nature of mathematical knowledge and indicators of high performance in mathematics.

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The study is based on the theory of teachers’ knowledge of students, specifically those who have difficulties in learning mathematics, and how their knowledge is expressed in relation to students’ self-identification. The participants in this study were Namibian high school mathematics teachers [N=6] and their twelfth-graders [N=23], all of whom participated in semi-structured interviews. Students were interviewed about their views on difficulties experienced in learning mathematics whereas teachers were interviewed on the criteria used when identifying these students. Participants asserted their views on school achievement, activeness in class, students’ pace, level of asking questions, and maths anxiety. Students evaluated themselves and teachers evaluated their students. Comparing the responses of teachers and students, substantial agreement was found between them regarding low achievement in school assessments, whereas low agreement was found in terms of student anxiety in learning mathematics. The knowledge and relationship revealed in this study might play a critical role in providing opportunities for teachers to reflect on their knowledge of students especially when addressing individual students’ needs to improve their learning. However, this study was limited by a lack of evidence from classroom practice and this could an essential factor to help strengthen the findings.

This study focusses on the views of students in learning grade 11 mathematics in terms of their needs and aspirations regarding access to high-level mathematics teaching and learning opportunities. Students who participated in this study (88 grade 11 Namibian students) were identified as having learning difficulties by their mathematics teachers, but these students did not (themselves)consider that they had difficulties. The author attempts to understand why students believed they do not have difficulties in learning mathematics. A qualitative method was employed, and the students were investigated via semi-structured interviews. The transcripts were analysed using an interpretational analysis. This study revealed that students display interest in learning mathematics and that they tend to feel comfortable with the subject despite certain influencing factors. The students’ perceptions are that their learning processes were negatively affected by aspects of systemic factors, teachers’ and students’ own factors, and access to learning resources. The students feel that they lack high-level access to teaching and learning, and this limits their potential for achieving the level at which they are expected to perform and be academically successful. In addition to the implications that emerged, this study makes recommendations on what should be done to address the negative factors perceived by the students.

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