INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES OF SCIENCE TEACHERS IN RURAL LEARNING ECOLOGIES

Abstract

The outcomes of IEA's Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) conducted from 1995 to 2002 confirmed that there was no improvement in the learning outcomes of grade eight learners in Mathematics and Science. Additionally, the failure rate in Mathematics at the National Senior Certificate (NSC) Matriculation examination has increased from 2008 to 2018 in South African schools. It was consequent on this decline in performance that the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) Chair in Science and Mathematics Education developed a short learning intervention programme for Mathematics teachers in South Africa in 2013 and 2014. This research reports post-intervention instructional practices of five teachers at Reitz who took part in the intervention programme. The teachers took part in the training workshops that were orgnised for participants at the University of the Free State, implemented the knowledge acquired from the programme in their respective schools, and compiled an evidence portfolios of their post-intervention instructional practices. The portfolios of evidence submitted by the teachers were thus analysed to give voice and meaning to their post-intervention instructional practices and reflections. The analyses provide evidences of which aspects of their instructional delivery worked well while other aspects did not work well. Keywords: evidence portfolios, instructional practices, science education, short learning intervention programme, secondary school teachers