Teachers in Math Lessons in the Digital Age: The Real Face of Distance Education

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has made distance education compulsory for all students in primary, secondary, and higher education in Türkiye. This situation has brought about many changes in teaching methods, material use, assessment and evaluation processes, and course durations. This study investigates the effects of these changes on secondary school mathematics teachers and their experiences and difficulties adaptation processes. This study conducted using a qualitative approach as a case study, included 75 secondary school mathematics teachers working in Türkiye in the 2020–2021 academic year. The data collection process was conducted online with a semi-structured interview form via Google Form. The obtained data were evaluated by content analysis. According to the findings of the research, teachers tend to provide skill-based questions as homework during the distance education process, rather than the lesson. Teachers who have negative judgments about assessment-evaluation processes find the course durations in distance education insufficient. Teachers who use different motivation tools in the distance education process, on the one hand, think that the process improves them; on the other hand, they expressed their concerns in terms of professional development. Teachers need more support and training to cope with the difficulties they face in the distance education process. In addition, they should be supported to improve themselves in online assessment and evaluation strategies and increase student participation.