Enhancing mathematics education through collaborative digital material design: Lessons from a national project

Abstract

This article offers insights into a national-scale project aimed at developing and disseminating digital learning materials for mathematics education in Austrian lower secondary schools. The design-phase and context of the project outline the noteworthy aspect of this project, namely the close collaboration of a diverse group of experts, including technology-experienced educators, GeoGebra developers, proficient GeoGebra users, and researchers specializing in technology’s role in mathematics education. This approach reveals the various needs and perspectives of all stakeholders for the designing process. To meet these needs the project design is utilizing three different research-related ideas, the didactic tetrahedron, the instrumental approach, and the didactical functionalities provided by digital technologies. We will present the resulting and constantly readjusted workflow and how such collaborative efforts ensure the quality of materials from different perspectives, aligning with best practices in technology integration in mathematics education. The comparison of five carefully selected materials for different learning scenarios brings out various possible technology-added values that can be achieved through collaboration. Selected qualitative methods such as thematic analysis of learning diaries, evaluation of a qualitative questionnaire and analyzing notes from the project team leader during the ongoing project let us extract diverse lessons learned in form of opportunities and drawbacks (e.g., discussions with experts, missing knowledge about GeoGebra). This project exemplifies potential for collaborative material design to enhance mathematics education at a wide scale, offering valuable lessons for similar endeavors in field.