Curriculum reform in Irish secondary schools

Autor/inn/en	Prendergast, Mark; Treacy, Paraic
Titel	Curriculum reform in Irish secondary schools - a focus on algebra.
Quelle	In: Journal of curriculum studies, 50 (2018) 1, S. 126-143Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Link als defekt meldenVerfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	online; gedruckt; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0022-0272; 1366-5839
DOI	10.1080/00220272.2017.1313315
Schlagwörter	Schule; Sekundarbereich; Curriculumreform; Algebra; Mathematikunterricht; Irland
Abstract	Algebra has long been identified as an area of difficulty in the teaching and learning of mathematics. Evidence of this difficulty can be found in Irish secondary-level classrooms. Chief Examiner Reports have consistently identified algebra as an area of student weakness in State examinations. In light of poor student performance, and as part of a nationwide reform of secondary mathematics curricula, a functions-based approach to teaching algebra has been adopted in Irish schools. It was introduced in September 2011 in place of the transformational (rule and procedure)-based approach which was previously used. Through comparing the diagnostic test scores of incoming students in an Irish university in the years before and after the reform, this study finds that the reformed approach has coincided with a decline in students' technical algebraic skills. However, interviews with practising mathematics teachers reveal that this decline is not a direct result of the functions-based approach, but rather of a mixture of approaches being implemented in classrooms. Such divergence of approaches can be linked to the common mismatch between the intended curriculum prescribed by policy-makers and the implemented curriculum that is actually carried out by teachers in their classrooms.
Erfasst von	IPN - Leibniz-Institut für die Pädagogik der Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik an der Universität Kiel
Update	2018/2