Background: South African teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching and number sense are markedly low, evidenced in national and international research. There is a call for supporting teachers in developing their knowledge and confidence in teaching mathematics. Aim: The aim of this article is to share how pre-service teachers (PSTs) used the…

Learners in general struggle when working with word problems. South African learners in particular have an added barrier owing to the many official languages that have been legislated. The South African Department of Basic Education, through its curriculum statements, envisages that problem solving will play a fundamental part in mathematics…

Maps have been used for centuries to depict the diverse facets of our environment. Thematic maps depict a specific theme and help in revealing geospatial patterns and relations. The study and practice of map making has led to established cartographic design rules. Ever increasing availability of high-quality geospatial data coupled with…

Rich play enhances the child's engagement during play, and this improves the potential for learning. This study examines the place of sensory materials focused on visual and tactile stimuli (sensopathic material) during guided play to improve learning in the reception year. Interviews with teachers and observation of the children while playing…

Linking assessment and curriculum in science education, particularly within the topic of matter and its changes, is often taken for granted. Some of the fundamental elements of the assessment, such as the choice of wording and visual representations, as well as its relation to the curricular sequence, remain understudied. In addition, very few…

Early years mathematics textbooks are support material for teachers and learners as they contain visual representations which communicate and clarify mathematical concepts. In this paper, we report on the types and functions of visual representations of multiplication and division in South African early years mathematics textbooks. There seems to…

This article critically examines how selected schools in Qwaqwa (a remote town in the eastern Free State province of South Africa) imagine and "image" schooling through mission and vision statements, mottos, and emblems. We use the word "image" to refer to the way in which schools often use images to represent particular views…

In this research, a new test for understanding simple fractions has been developed for students at the beginning of lower secondary education. In many countries, mathematics education in Grade 5 builds on elementary students' developing concepts of fractions. Understanding fractions causes many difficulties for students, and research on mental…

Writing centres have had to adapt to many challenges, including the move to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In South Africa this move was complexified by differential access to digital environments and contextual issues such as lack of electricity and rolling blackouts. Writing centres also need to consider the increasing…

The purpose of this paper is to compare chemistry test performances between learners studying in resourced and under sourced schools. This has made many South Africans sensitive towards getting a better education for the upcoming generation. Common perception amongst the community is that private schools provide a better education due to their use…

A strong foundation in early number concepts is crucial for students' future success in statistics. Despite its importance in statistics, many first-year students struggle to comprehend the normal distribution due to a lack of basic number sense. Students get confused about the order and magnitude of negative z-scores on a standard normal curve or…

Newly qualified teachers (NQTs) not in all cases use the available technology in most constructive and effective ways to achieve better learning outcomes. This study explores how and why NQTs integrate technology during curriculum delivery. A qualitative method was used within an interpretive paradigm: six NQTs were observed and interviewed. The…

Background: Within the ambit of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the use of technology-based tools within teaching and learning is advancing rapidly at education institutions globally, including the teaching and learning of mathematics. Learners and teachers have challenges with teaching and learning fractions in mathematics. A learner's…

Knowledge of probability is perceived as valuable in the 21st century. This knowledge enables people to understand and make informed decisions relating to uncertain events that occur in real life. Hence, many educational authorities have considered the inclusion of the teaching of probability important in their school curricula. This study…

Mathematics is not seen as an absolute corpus of well-founded knowledge anymore, but as a human activity, a social phenomenon, part of human culture that evolves historically and intelligibly in a social context. By harnessing the indigenous cultures and their knowledge systems in-depth, this article aims to evaluate how the sustainable…