Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to investigate what happens when a basic
school mathematics teacher attempts to interpret and implement his own
understanding of constructivist teaching and learning in a Junior High School
(JHS) classroom. A total of 25 JHS one mathematics teachers were initially
selected using purposive sampling. This number was finally reduced to one
research participant using the Mathematics Belief Scale (MBS) and a series of
actual class observations. In studying this single "constructivist" teacher, the
researcher used ethnographic research methods to collect and analyse data. The
results of this study showed that the teacher had a constructivist view of
mathematics teaching and learning. The plans the teacher made prior to his
teaching sometimes varied from how he actually taught depending on his
classroom situations. A connection was also found to exist between the teachers'
ideas about constructivist teaching, instructional decisions and his classroom
practice. The study also showed that a teacher's experience positively influences
his ideas about constructivist teaching and learning, and when constructivist
teaching and learning were employed in a JHS classroom, students benefited
from sharing knowledge with their friends and became happy and excited about
mathematics teaching and learning. It was recommended among others that
training institutions paid particular attention to the views pre-service teacher's
hold about mathematics before they leave to practice since the view they hold
about the subject affects the way they teach.
