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Introduction. The Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST Short Version) was used to better understand the students' approaches to learning in a mathematics classes. Method. Quantitave method was used in this study. Participants were 345 first and second year mathematics students from a university in the Gauteng province of South Africa. The reliability of the ASSIST Short Version was computed by Cronbach's alpha. The coefficient values from scores of each group are presented with respect to the preliminary data phase and the post-intervention data phase. The validity of the ASSIST questionnaire was computed using content validity which involved the computation of factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis which involved checking whether the theory developed constructs of Deep, Strategic and Surface approaches. Results. The results show that the reliability of ASSIST Short Version, the alpha values ranged between .75 and .83 (preliminary data phase) as well as .65 and .82 (post-intervention data phase). For the content validity the results show that the value of KMO = .769 was acceptable while the Bartlett's test of sphericity was also statistically significant (p < 0.001). In determining the factor structure from the data, Maximum likelihood factor analysis with Direct oblimin rotation was specified. Construct validity was ascertained by computing through AMOS a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using data from the post-intervention data phase. The results show that the Chi square (χ2) was statistically significant [χ2 = 210.94, df = 132, p < .0001]. The goodness of fit statistics were: TLI = .948, the CFI = .947, and the RMSEA = .054. The results also shows the standardized parameter estimates of the model from the ASSIST questionnaire. Discussion and Conclusion. In terms of reliability of scores from the instrument, the alpha values were accepted for this study because they were comparable to those reported in literature. Validity was computed through factor analysis (content validity) and confirmatory factor analysis (construct validity). Before computing the factor structure of the ASSIST, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) and Bartlett's test of sphericity were determined. The two values reported in this study indicated that computing the factor analysis was appropriate for the data. Using the Direct oblimin rotation consistently as in reported literature, a three factor solution was accepted in this study. Because these factors were consistent with those reported in literature content validity was acceptable in this study.

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The major contributors of challenges with teaching and learning of Euclidean Geometry relate to teaching pedagogy, teaching methodologies, students' lack of interest in Geometry, lack of understanding of many geometric concepts and lack of use of technology. The performance of students in high school Geometry, Grade 10-12, is poor. Students with high self-efficacy that is linked to interest, are more likely to make efforts to complete a task and persist longer in those efforts. The purpose of this paper was to investigate students' interest in understanding Geometry in high school Further Education and Training phase. Participants were 390 Grade 10-12 Mathematics students from Mpumalanga and North West in South Africa. A mixed-methods approach was utilized following the convergent parallel sequential design. Qualitative data were collected through the survey questionnaire, with open-ended and closed-ended questions to determine students' interest in Geometry. Atlas ti was used to analyse qualitative data. The quantitative aspects were analysed with SPSS. It was found that students indicated that the teachers continue to teach even if they do not understand. The results also showed that more than half (57.1%) of the students felt calm and relaxed when they were attempting Geometry problems. About 60% of the students were confident enough to take Mathematics at high school level, which included Geometry. It is recommended that teachers take into consideration the students' interests when planning and preparing Geometry lessons.

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Aim/Purpose: The purpose of the current study was to investigate whether the effectiveness of the Technology-engagement Teaching Strategy using personal response systems with student’s approaches to learning will increase the pass rate in the Mathematics course Background: The challenge in this study was to develop the learning activities that accommodate individual differences and diversity in learning. Furthermore, Studies investigating students’ approaches to learning have mostly done this in a face-to-face learning environment as opposed to incorporate exploration thereof when integrating educational technology. Methodology: A mixed method approach was used. The basis of using this method was a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches which gives a clearer understanding of research problems than either approach alone. Participants were 240 students registered for Mathematics II at a study University of Technology in South Africa. Purposeful, convenience and simple random sampling were used to select the participants. Contribution: No study that has investigated the utility of personal response systems with students’ approaches to learning is currently available as observed by the researcher. In this case, the combination of the two variables in this study makes it unique and therefore important in contributing to the body of knowledge focusing on the role of technology in pedagogy. Findings: The results showed that while the majority of students followed the Strategic Approach the same Technology-engagement Teaching Strategy was used for students following Surface Approaches. The Technology-engagement Teaching Strategy was developed in such a manner to accommodate students following different approaches. The personal response system continuous assessments, as well as the semester test, revealed the improvement in academic performance as well as the increase in mathematics pass rates. It was also found that using personal response system enhances students’ mathematical communication skills, and helps to develop the skills needed to write and read mathematical proofs. Recommendations for Practitioners: It is recommended that academics take into consideration the students approaches to learning in their teaching practices. It is crucial that lecturers take advantage of technology to enhance their teaching practices and decrease the fear of the unknown and open up to new innovations in teaching. Recommendation for Researchers: It is recommended that the use of personal response systems should be explored in different mathematics settings (different lectures and universities). Such an exploration according to the researcher will be useful in endorsing what has been reported in this paper. Impact on Society: The results revealed that the Strategic Approach was the most dominant among the participants in this study. The results also showed the improvement in students’ academic performance as well as the number of students who passed increased. Future Research: A further research study could be conducted with students in a different discipline where poor academic performance is experienced.

Twenty-first century chemistry education researchers reported challenges in chemistry education pertaining to high school chemistry teaching-learning outcomes. Even though all studies intended to improve chemistry teaching-learning outcomes, unfortunately the impact of chemistry education research found not to be much encouraging. A few of these studies were compared to identify a possible missing link which is to be addressed under present context of chemistry education research (CER). The issue of students' attitude, perception and a link of performance in chemistry with attitude and perception drew the attention and found to be missing in the present CER studies. The need to address the issue within the context of existing school environment was felt. This communication is prepared based on an analysis of students' performance of eleventh grade students from a rural school of South Africa in a chemistry endof-year test.

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