Technological pedagogical content knowledge in South African mathematics classrooms: A secondary analysis of SITES 2006 data

Abstract

This article reports on a secondary data analysis conducted on the South African mathematics teachers’ dataset of the Second Information Technology in Education Study (SITES 2006). The sample consisted of a stratified sample of 640 mathematics teachers from 504 randomly selected computer-using and non–computer-using schools that completed the SITES 2006 teachers’ questionnaire, which investigated their pedagogical use of Information Communication Technology (ICT). The purpose of the current investigation was to investigate the level of Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) of mathematics teachers, and how TPACK attributes contribute towards more effective Grade 8 mathematics teaching in South African schools, using the TPACK conceptual framework. The findings are presented according to the three clusters identified through the association between the main variables of the TPACK model and other variables on the SITES 2006 teachers’ questionnaire: (1) impact of ICT use, (2) teacher practices and (3) barriers. A Cramér V of between 0.3 and 0.4 was considered to signal a medium effect that tended towards practically significant association, and a Cramér V of 0.4 or larger was considered to signal a large effect with practically significant association. The results indicate that the TPACK of mathematics teachers contributes towards more effective Grade 8 mathematics teaching in South African schools

Mathematics teachers’ levels of technological pedagogical content knowledge and information and communication technology integration barriers

“…Structured CPD to support mathematics teachers' TPACK has been linked with the successful integration of ICTs in schools (Lundall & Howell, 2000) and has a significant impact on learner achievement (Anthony & Walshaw, 2009). The effective use of ICTs in the mathematics classroom enhances learner productivity by saving time on calculations, reinforcing the relationship between curriculum and reality, scaffolding learners' exploration and experimentation, and providing immediate feedback (Leendertz et al, 2013). Leendertz et al (2013) found that if mathematics teachers master TPACK, their teaching of the subject is more effective.…”

“…The results showed that although South African teachers indicated they were enthusiastic to learn new ways to make teaching and learning interesting, they encountered four barriers that hindered their pedagogical use of ICTs, namely confidence, time, access to resources, and professional development. In addition, Leendertz, Blignaut, Nieuwoudt, Els, and Ellis (2013) found that mastery of TPACK by mathematics teachers contributed to more effective mathematics teaching in South African schools. However, these studies did not relate mathematics teachers' current levels of TPACK and their barriers to integrating ICT to CPD programmes.…”

Teachers’ experiences of technology-based teaching and learning in the Foundation Phase

“…(6) Technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK) refers to the affordances and constraints of technology as an enabler of different teaching approaches (Mishra & Koehler, 2006). Leendertz et al (2013) suggest that technology should be connected to pedagogy to add value to teaching and learning and therefore cannot be regarded as context-free. (7) TPACK refers to the knowledge and understanding of the interplay between CK, PK and TK when using technology for teaching and learning (Schmidt et al, 2009).…”

“…Education in South Africa is altering invariably according to the stipulations by the Department of Education, such as the development of learning outcomes for the twenty-first century which recognize learners to use information in particular contexts (Department of Education [DOE], 2001;Law & Chow, 2008bin Leendertz, Blignaut, Nieuwoudt, Els, & Ellis, 2013. According to Maaga (2009, p. 1), the early childhood phase of birth to nine years of age is the most crucial phase for every person.…”

Pre-service teachers’ competence to teach science through information and communication technologies in South Africa

“…The current study thus differs from these studies in that the focus is on pre-service teachers' practical application during teaching practice. Moreover, the use of TPACK instruments in South Africa is still in its infancy as it has only been successfully used in a secondary data analysis study investigating the level of TPACK for grade 8 mathematics in-service teachers (Leendertz et al, 2013). Most of the international studies that trace the development of TPACK for specific subjects indicate high levels of development of the TPACK knowledge dimensions.…”