Page 13 - Professorial Lecture - Prof Kasanda

student teachers to put in practice the content that they have learned in
other Faculties while it is still fresh and further this makes it easier for
them to identify an appropriate method that will best serve them in the
real situation-the classroom.

The question that arises is why do our learners perform poorly in
Mathematics at secondary school level and at tertiary level? Wu (nd)
notes that in the USA the sorry state of mathematics education is a result
of “… mathematically unqualified teachers” and “unqualified curriculum”.
He further notes that mathematics teachers are “…operating at the outer
edge of their mathematical knowledge”, that is the finished product.
Graven (2013) points out that among other variables “language of
teaching mathematics might be contributing to poor student performance
in mathematics. Now when one finds oneself in that situation, one is
prone to being tense and inflexible, and is consequently not likely to
create a friendly atmosphere for learning.” Such teachers tend to stay on
“safe and often trodden path” which provides mathematics for
memorization and regurgitation, and, not for understanding for fear of
being exposed as knowing little mathematics for teaching. This is one
reason why we try to ensure that our secondary school teachers take as
many mathematics modules as the curriculum will allow avoiding parrot
like teaching once they graduate from UNAM. We do not want to teach
them only what they will have to teach. There will be no difference
between them and their bright students, as Wu (nd) points out such
teachers will lose face in class since they will not be able to respond to
students’ questions. It should be pointed out here that “Poor content
grasp even with the appropriate PCK may result in limited variation in
mathematical activities that learners will be exposed to or teaching a
particular procedure incorrectly or resulting in the teacher’s inability to
respond appropriately to learners’ questions” (Kapenda, & Kasanda, 2015,
p. 3). This view is emphasized by Ball, Thames, & Phelps (2008, p. 404)
who note that, “Teachers must know the subject well. …Teachers who do

11 |