Teaching strategies used to teach data handling in grade 10: a case of two schools in the Bojanala district in Rustenburg

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of teaching strategies for Grade 10 Data Handling with a particular focus on improving performance in South Africa, where learners continue to struggle despite various educational interventions. Poor results in Mathematics, particularly in Data Handling, have become a significant concern, especially in the Bojanala district of North West Province. Although teachers in this region are committed and support learners, the issue of low performance persists. This study employed a mixed-methods research design to evaluate the effectiveness of various teaching methods. The study population comprised two teachers and Grade 10 learners from two selected schools in the Bojanala District. A total of 60 learners participated, with 30 learners assigned to the experimental group and 30 to the control group. To ensure the sample captured a wide range of perspectives on teaching strategies for teaching Grade 10 Data Handling, a simple random sampling method was employed. Pre-tests and post-tests were administered to measure learners' understanding of the concepts. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and lesson observations. These methods were employed in alignment with the hypothesis to gather comprehensive insights into the effectiveness of the teaching strategies. The results revealed a significant improvement in the experimental group's performance, where the intervention had a greater impact than the control group. This suggests that the experimental group developed a more comprehensive understanding of Data Handling concepts as a result of the intervention. The post-test scores supported this finding, with the experimental group's mean score increasing to 18.83, while the control group scored 16.30, showing a significant difference (t = -1.1032; p = 0.04) at a 95% confidence level. The experimental group's substantial progress, reflected in an 11.53-point increase from the pre-test to the post-test, contrasted with the control group's 8.8-point improvement, indicating that although the control group showed improvement, the intervention had a more pronounced effect on the experimental group. This highlights the effectiveness of the intervention, particularly in areas where the learners initially struggled. These findings suggest that targeted interventions led to significant improvements in learners' understanding of challenging concepts, highlighting the potential value of incorporating such strategies in similar educational settings. Qualitative analysis of the outcomes revealed that the use of Collaborative Group Work significantly enhanced learner engagement and performance in Data Handling tasks within the experimental group. Learners in this group demonstrated more active participation and improved problem-solving skills. The study also highlighted the effectiveness of blending George Polya's Problem-solving strategies with Vygotsky's theories in a CGW environment for teaching Data Handling at the Grade 10 level. These strategies enhanced academic performance and fostered a deeper understanding of data related concepts, which are crucial in today’s data-driven world. The findings suggested that the combined use of CGW, Polya’s PS approach, and Vygotsky's collaborative learning principles could significantly improve the teaching and learning of DH in Grade 10.