Evolution of Mathematics Teacher Training in Zambia from 2000 to 2020: Curriculum Changes in Context

Mathematics is one of the subjects that continue to be underperformed by many learners at different educational levels in Zambia. To understand the prevailing phenomenon of poor performance, official government records, authors’ own experiences, and empirical and theoretical studies are cited, carefully exploring how mathematics teacher training has evolved from 2000 to 2020. Findings show that the lack of 21st century skills among teachers and teacher educators, insufficient learning resources and facilities, and poor methods of instruction are some of the factors contributing to this unsatisfactory performance. Concerns about how relevant the mathematics curriculum is to the Zambian context have also been raised in existing literature. Although there have been some recent changes to the way mathematics teachers are trained in Zambia, both pre-service and in-service teachers have continued to exhibit inadequate levels of pedagogical content knowledge. Therefore, teacher training institutions ought to ensure that prospective teachers are familiar with the mathematics curriculum they will be expected to teach in classrooms as well as efficient teaching practices. Additionally, any initiatives aimed at improving the curriculum for mathematics teacher training should prioritize technology integration in mathematics teaching and learning.