Integrating electronic technologies in mathematics teaching and learning: A Case study of the university of the witwatersrand, South Africa

Abstract

This book chapter problematizes how to integrate digital technologies in education, particularly in the teaching and learning of mathematics. It discusses how a teacher educator (the author) in a self-study over three years; 2012, 2013 and 2014 incorporated digital technologies in teaching mathematics to student teachers at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. In doing this Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are shown as mediating artifacts in terms of setting up the regulative discourse (Searle, 1969), which is about the management of students and learning materials; to communicate, set up and monitor the stage for learning. Critically, ICTs are discussed as mediating constitutive discourse (Searle, 1969) which concern, the learning of mathematics concepts and skills - where ICTs are used to acquire new mathematical knowledge and consolidate learnt material. The author reports on the mathematics learning gains of his students as a result of ICTs use. He recommends the integration of ICTs not only in mathematics education, but for all curricula areas. In order to do that it is critical to staff develop teachers of mathematics on the use of ICTs not only for regulative discourses, but also for constitutive discourses to help all students obtain academic epistemic access as a way to maintain sustainability in education.