Exploring Mathematics Classroom Practices in South African Multilingual Settings

Abstract

The study reported in this article explored mathematical classroom pratices in four South African multilingual classroom settings. This paper sought to unpack both the use of language as well as the implementation of discussion as a technique in the teaching and learning of mathematics during and after the intervention The study followed an ethnographic design using four mathematics multilingual classrooms as individual cases, and the four mathematics teachers who participated in the study from each school were part of a larger case. Thus, the goal of this ethnographic research was to understand and describe the phenomenon surrounding the use of languages in the teaching and learning of mathematics from the perspectives of the four cases. Data collection strategies included a classroom observation schedule that took place over a period of six months at a research site. The findings revealed that teachers used both the language of learning and teaching and learners’ home languages when explaining mathematical concepts being taught in the classrooms. It was further observed that the quality of discussions in small groups was high amongst group members, whereas the whole-classroom discussions were very low in quantity, particularly discussions between the teacher and the learners during the lesson. Although learners were afforded opportunities to use the language they preferred for discussion and problem-solving in their small groups, the use of English by their teachers suggested the teachers as a figure of a powerful authority, which had an effect on the language used by the learners in the classrooms. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2013.v4n6p627