Possibilities for science, technology,
engineering and mathematics (STEM)
education in Zimbabwean
under-resourced mathematics
classroom
Sylvia Madusise, Great Zimbabwe University;
and David Mtetwa, University of Zimbabwe
INTRODUCTION
• Science, Technology, Engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is a
current buzzword in school education in many countries.
• The integration of science and mathematics is intended to provide
contextual understanding in the teaching and learning of these two
subjects, thus making the two disciplines relevant and meaningful to
the learner.
• An approach to integrating curriculum in mathematics and science
is through the use of real-life activities in the classroom. By
conducting experiments, collecting data, analysing the data, and
reporting results, students experience the processes of science and
perform the needed mathematics.
• The vision that guides the integration of technology, science,
engineering and mathematics is engagement of students in
activities that elicit the development of mathematical and scientific
models in science and mathematics education (Kozulin & Presssein,
1995).
What is STEM education
• From Tsupros (2009)’s perspective, STEM education is an
interdisciplinary approach to learning where rigorous academic
concepts are coupled with real-world lessons as students apply
science, technology, engineering and mathematics in contexts that
make connections between school, community, work and the global
enterprise.
• STEM education intentionally situates the teaching and learning of
STEM concepts to the real world experiences.
• Students are engaged in core mathematics and science, bridging
these disciplines with technology and engineering, and developing
the critical skills and career linkages they need to succeed in an
economy which is deficient of skilled labourers and problem
solvers. Education is expected to boost the edge and innovative
capacity of the state, which sustains economic growth.
Some key characteristics of STEM education
• demands a high level of inter-disciplinarity in learning and practice
of the four subjects,
• raises the profile of practically and socially useful knowledge
outcomes resulting from development and application of theory in
an integrated fashion among the subjects,
• privileges collaborative (team) processes and outcomes and values
and encourages performance-related assessments, and
• re-orients the science and mathematics learning towards life
functioning and societal survival from learning for mere acquisition
of knowledge and skills —hence emphasis on inquiry, creative, and
problem-based learning with authentic life contexts.
STEM education products
• Problem solvers – able to define questions and problems, design
investigations to gather data, collect and organise data, draw conclusions,
and then apply understandings to new and novel situations.
• Innovators – creatively use science, mathematics, and technology concepts
and principles by applying them to the engineering design process.
• Inventors – recognise the needs of the world and creatively design, test,
redesign, and implement solutions (engineering process).
• Self-reliant – able to use initiative and self-motivation to set agendas,
develop and gain self-confidence.
• Logical and critical thinkers –able to apply rational and logical thought
processes of science, mathematics, and engineering design to innovation
and invention.
• Technologically literate – understand and explain the nature of technology,
develop the skills needed, and apply technology appropriately.
Transforming SMT education into STEM education
• From our observation, in Zimbabwe the belief that science and
mathematics are intertwined and should in reality be integrated as
much as possible has remained at slogan level that is not translated
into ground action.
• Bybee (2010) has claimed that STEM education has in many places in
the US been taken to be just a new name (i.e., label) for SMT
education—a kind of doing business as usual under a new name.
• STEM pedagogy is, therefore expected to use as much as possible
real life authentic situations at both local and global scales as
springboards for instructional processes and outcomes (Bybee, 2010).
• It also aims at developing in learners mental, practical, and
attitudinal competencies, apart from acquisition of factual and
procedural knowledge. Chief among the competencies are problem
solving, creativity, technological fluency, and spirit of inquiry.
Teaching mathematics in STEM education
•
Focus should be placed on those activities that allow students to
engage in real world problems and experiences through projectbased, experiential learning activities that lead to higher level
thinking.
• This calls for inquiry-based teaching strategies that offer a robust
learning ecology for enhancing mathematics instruction which is in
line with the intent of STEM education.
• Mathematical inquiry starts from a question or a problem, and
answers are sort through observation and exploration, mental,
material or virtual experiments are conducted, connections are made
to questions offering interesting similarities with the one in hand and
already answered, known mathematical techniques are brought into
play when necessary.
• One of the main ambitions of mathematics as a human activity is to
contribute to understanding of the natural, social and cultural world,
and to empower human beings to act on this world.
• For instance, patterns, whether suggested by the natural world,
resulting from human activities or fully imagined by the
mathematician’s mind, play a great role in nurturing investigative
practices in mathematics.
• Digital technologies offer new and powerful tools for supporting
investigation and experimentation in mathematical domains.
• However, it should be noted that technology is no substitute for
conceptual understanding, but it is useful for deepening that
understanding.
• The use of software and technology helps students visualise and
examine relationships, discover certain properties and write down
assumptions.
• Through the use of computers students are asked to do some
experiments by themselves, turning mathematics into experimental
science.
• In such computer-based lessons students present and discuss their
results. Therefore the active discussion leads to a deeper
understanding of the involved mathematical topics.
• Students should be given chances to practice formulating their own
questions and finding answers to them. Transforming their
questions into questions accessible to mathematical work is an
important process of inquiry, engaging a modelling process.
• Teachers should value their students’ questions, take joint action
with their students on the basis of students’ questions and
production , create the conditions for students to make connections
within mathematics and with the external world, and promote the
cultivation of inquiry habits in mind.
• What then is important is that mathematical operations are
performed for a purpose: to answer questions that are
important to the students about the problem under
investigation, and generally about the real world.
• Students should be encouraged to be researchers where the
quality of their investigations is linked to the quality of their
inquiry. Students start learning by exploring texts, materials,
situations and events.
• However, teachers should play the role an experienced coresearcher rather than someone with all answers. They should
“not preach facts but stimulate acts”.
• Students should be enable to tie their own think-nets. The more
connections students establish between elements of
knowledge, the denser and tighter the nets are woven.
• Use of informal learning should be encouraged to expand math and
science beyond the classroom. Use of informal learning should be
encouraged to expand math and science beyond the classroom.
• Opportunities outside the classroom to demonstrate linkages
between mathematics and science, real-world applications, and
future careers. Such teaching strategies should enable students to
see the synergy.
• There should be less focus on isolated problems but more focus on
problems within contexts. Such contexts should also include
contexts which depict indigenous knowledge systems (IKS).
• What is needed are new and improved assessments that are
aligned with STEM education intent.
• Assessment questions may also on test sophisticated skills and
application of concepts. For example, mathematics may be learnt
in laboratories/mathematics rooms where students engage on
hands-on activities like using geo-boards to demonstrate
transformation concepts.
• Educational games maybe played in the mathematics classrooms,
experimenting with not only using games but also game mechanics
in the classroom. Game-based learning is fast becoming a trend in
education.
• When playing games, students are given the freedom to fail and
are given specific feedback through formative assessment on how
to improve.
Bringing (STEM) education into under-resourced
mathematics classrooms
• Even if teachers do not have access to expensive resources, every
classroom can become a maker space where students and teachers
learn together through direct experience with an assortment of
local materials to be collected from the students’ environment.
• Where modern technology is not available teachers may make use
of the funds of knowledge in their environments, thus, bringing in
the indigenous knowledge systems in the school system.
• Local people from the community who have special skills related to
mathematics application maybe invited to come and demonstrate
their skills in the mathematics classrooms.
• Demonstrating the process of coming up with a basket
• The figure demonstrates the idea of perpendicular lines.
• The diagram below illustrates the starting point when making mats.
A pole is graduated into equally spaced grooves. The grooves are
smoothened. The hanging stones illustrate the motion of connected
particles. The grooves act as pulleys. The smooth pulley allows the
tension in the weaving string to be constant throughout the hanging
length.
• The observation and analysis of the weavers’ demonstrations will
help to develop in students a more accurate vision of mathematics
as a human enterprise, consider mathematics as a fundamental
component of our cultural heritage, and appreciate the crucial
sustainable role mathematics plays in our societies, thus, giving
currency to the adage:
• “Give a man a fish and he eats for the day.
Teach a man to fish and he eats forever”
• This gives students a double advantage; one of learning the
involved mathematical concepts and the other of learning how to
weave. This is relevant when we consider ZimAsset’s aspirations of
equipping students with psychomotor skills which can be useful in
life after school…learning today …making a better tomorrow.
• In under resourced schools without libraries, students can still be
involved in research-based approaches such as problem-based
learning (for a well-illustrated fuller discussion of this approach see
Laboy-Rush, (n.d), www.learning.com/imaginemars
• This could be by way of investigating IKS (through project-based
learning) in the local environment, harnessing the embedded
mathematical concepts. For example, students may be asked to
compile a list of geometric figures used to decorate mats, baskets,
fabrics, etc., in their cultures and also describe the involved
transformations used in coming up with such geometric figures.
• M-Learning, using multipurpose mobile phones can be used as an
alternative to E-learning. This is a user friendly teaching strategy to
students who can afford the cell phones. The phones can even
access the learning when off-line. This means teachers can
meaningfully communicate with their students over the phone for
teaching purposes.
Our suggestions
• The success of STEM education in under resourced schools is
sustained by the teacher’s innovativeness in indigenising the
curriculum.
• STEM education would benefit from exploring new pedagogical
approaches which attempt to integrate Science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics.
• We also argue that inquiry-based learning is a candidate for STEM
education best practice to enhance mathematics instruction.