Exploring Possible Teacher and Learner Support Structures to Improve Learner Mathematics Performance

The purpose of this chapter was to explore teacher and learner support structures to improve learner Mathematics performance. Interviews and questionnaires were used as part of a mixed method approach. Seven high schools in the Phambela Circuit, KwaZulu Natal, were enlisted for this study. A total of 63 participants were included in the sample. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire after they were interviewed using a structured interview schedule. This study was grounded in Vygotsky’s sociocultural and conceptual development theories in Mathematics education. The models of Howie, who attributed improved student performance to “inputs, processes, and outputs,” and Kilpatrick et al., who viewed mathematical proficiency as a five-stranded process involving conceptual understanding, productive disposition, procedural fluency, strategic competence, and adaptive reasoning, were used as a lens through which this study was conducted. We discovered several systemic, societal, and pedagogical challenges that teachers and students faced, all of which had an impact on their Mathematics teaching and learning. Our findings collaborated with what was found in the literature review. The researchers concluded that there exist support structures for teachers and learners, which could assist in reducing or eliminating the challenges that Mathematics teachers and students face.