| Summary: | Recent reports ([KNEC], 2014) have shown that students' performance in the national mathematics examinations in Kenya is weak and have expressed concerns about the pedagogical methods adopted by teachers. The Kenyan Government has made some interventions in the past, including the initiation of in-service training for mathematics and science teachers in secondary schools. However, performance has not improved significantly ([KNEC], 2014). The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of Learning Study (LS) approach in the teaching and learning of quadratic expressions and equations - one of the topics of concern ([KNEC], 2014). The LS approach promotes collaborative work between teachers. Firstly, they prepare a lesson together, then one of them teaches the lesson while the others observe, and they later meet to reflect on and revise the lesson. In this study and in tandem with the recommendations from the Kenyan Ministry of Education ([MoEST], 2012) for more student-centred learning, the lessons were organised with the students participating in small group discussions followed by a whole-class discussion. The participants of the study included three teachers teaching two Form 3 (16-18 years) classes, and 79 students. I applied a LS design (Lo, 2012) and collected qualitative data from students' pre-and post-lesson tests, classroom observations, individual interviews with the teachers, and a group interview of eight students. Lesson observation data was analysed using a Variation Theory framework (Lo, 2012) and interview data was analysed using thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke, 2006). The findings show that: students adequately learned the topic, experienced positive changes in their attitudes towards mathematics, improved participation and communication in mathematics lessons, and increased their confidence when solving mathematical problems. The teachers appreciated the LS approach, saying that teamwork improved their teaching of the topic and helped them learn from each other. KEY WORDS: Quadratic Expression and Equation, Learning Study, Variation Theory, Collaboration, Group work.
|
|---|
