Mathematics Heads of department experiences of the implementation of technical mathematics: a case study of three technical schools in Pinetown district

Abstract

Curriculum reform in the South African education system has faced a number of changes in the post-apartheid era. The changes in the curriculum aimed to redress the imbalances of the past while addressing the challenges of the future. The major curricular reform that has taken place in the past two decades includes the introduction of the subjects of Mathematical Literacy in 2006 and Technical Mathematics in 2016. Technical Mathematics has been piloted and is being implemented across technical schools in South Africa – which means that Departmental Heads (DHs) face a challenge in being ready to implement it. Therefore, knowledge of the experiences of those who have piloted and implemented Technical Mathematics in their schools is essential. The DHs, as curriculum leaders, must demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the subjects they manage. In this qualitative study, three Technical Mathematics DHs in Pinetown District in KwaZulu-Natal shared the duality of their teaching roles while managing the new subject. Using Samuel’s (2008) Force Field Model, professional forces were used to analyse this study. These forces enabled or constrained the DHs’ implementation, management, and teaching of Technical Mathematics in their respective schools. The conceptual framework used in this study is a modification of Shulman’s (1986) pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and Ball et al.’s (2008) Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching (MKT), which provided clearer lenses for understanding the study phenomenon. Findings revealed that DHs understand what is needed, but this knowledge is not demonstrated all times; their understanding of their roles is more inclined toward teaching rather than managing the subject. The results of this study showed that suitable teachers, continuous evaluation and support, including practical assessment tasks (PAT), and providing professional development for Technical Mathematics teachers were perceived as enablers. Inhibiting factors were the six-year delay in including PAT, a lack of professional development targeting DH management roles, crumbling content, and learners’ apathy towards the subject. I argue that DH needs targeted support for their role and capacitation in knowledge of implementing and managing Technical Mathematics in order to execute their roles efficiently.