An intervention on supporting teachers’ understanding of and mediation of learning of stoichiometry in selected schools in the Zambezi Region
- Authors: Denuga, Desalu Dedayo
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Stoichiometry -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Namibia , Chemistry -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Namibia , Participant observation -- Namibia , Constructivism (Education) -- Namibia , Pedagogical content knowledge -- Namibia , Continuing education -- Namibia , Teachers -- In-service training -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/103855 , vital:32315
- Description: This study has been triggered by the results on stoichiometry questions in the Directorate of Namibian Examination Assessment’s (DNEA) scripts. As highlighted in the examiners’ reports, stoichiometry is an ongoing annual problem for most students in Namibia. It is against this background that I decided to explore the possibility of an intervention in the form of continuing professional development (CPD) and collaboration workshops to improve the understanding and the mediation of learning of stoichiometry by Physical Science teachers in the Zambezi Region of Namibia. The study was underpinned by an interpretive paradigm and within this paradigm a qualitative case study approach was adopted. Since this study was in a form of an intervention, a participatory action research (PAR) approach was employed within the community of practice (CoP). I used document analysis, workshop discussions, observations and videotaped lessons, interviews (semi-structured and stimulated recall interviews) and reflections to gather data. The study was carried out at three senior secondary schools and six Physical Science teachers were involved. The study drew on the theory of constructivism as a theoretical framework, namely, Piaget’s cognitive constructivism and Vygotsky‘s social constructivism as well as Shulman’s pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Within PCK, Mavhunga and Rollnick’s Topic Specific Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TSPCK) was used as an analytical lens (Appendix L) in this study. The findings reveal that the use of a diagnostic test on learners made the Physical Science teachers aware of the learners’ challenges and what was difficult for them to understand in stoichiometry. It also helped in their understanding of the use of prior knowledge, one of the tenets of TSPCK, to access what learners knew about stoichiometry. Further findings of the study illuminate that the Physical Science teachers’ subject matter knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge and skills had shifted as a result of their participation in the intervention workshops. The findings of this study indicate that the CoP members acquired the professional transformations which were important breakthroughs in their careers. The study thus recommends that teachers should develop effective teacher professional development activities such as study teams, exemplary lessons, cluster teaching, and peer coaching where teachers are expected to examine their assumptions and practices continuously. The implication of my study is that the developed exemplary lesson during the intervention workshops by CoP members could be useful to other Physical Science teachers in the teaching of stoichiometry in all the schools in the Zambezi Region.
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- Date Issued: 2020
Teaching for conceptual understanding : an analysis of selected teachers' practice
- Authors: Kashima, Andreas Akwenye
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Teacher effectiveness -- Namibia , Student-centered learning -- Namibia , Constructivism (Education) -- Namibia , Problem solving , Teachers -- In-service training -- Namibia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:2037 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017348
- Description: The purpose of this study was to explore how teachers’ practice either supports or constrains learners’ conceptual understanding. The study is structured within an interpretive paradigm. The research takes the form of a case study and focused on the teaching practice of two purposefully selected teachers who had been identified as being effective/successful practitioners. The data was collected in two stages. In the first stage, qualitative data was collected by video recording six classroom lessons, three for each of the two participating teachers. In stage 2, participating teachers were individually interviewed. In these interviews the two participating teachers were asked to reflect on their classroom practice, through a process of stimulated recall, where their actions seemed to either support or constrain the development of learners’ conceptual understanding. The study identified a number of elements of the two teachers’ practice that related to the development of learners’ conceptual understanding in the classroom. These include building on learners’ prior knowledge, the use of concrete manipulatives, questioning that promotes critical thinking, and the use of multiple representations and connections. The study also identified elements of the two teachers’ practice that had the potential to constrain the development of learners’ conceptual understanding. These include the lack of opportunities for co-operative or peer-oriented learning, the absence of questioning that leads to discussion, and a scarcity of activities that build mathematical concepts through hands-on engagement. The study highlights the need for supporting teachers and helping them strengthen their practice with regard to those activities that support the development of conceptual understanding in their learners.
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- Date Issued: 2015