AbstractsMathematics

This study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a computer-based outreach programme that addresses one aspect of a national strategic recommendation in South Africa. This outreach programme, which started in 1982, was in its twentieth year of existence in 2001 and provided support in mathematics and physical science to Grade 12 students and teachers from historically disadvantaged schools. This study examined the role that the outreach programmes played at two schools during 2001 and endeavoured to provide an analysis of the intended, implemented, perceived and achieved programmes for this year. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of this outreach programme in providing support to both teachers and students in the teaching and learning of mathematics and physical science. The goals and objectives of the outreach programme (the intended programme) were identified from documentation of the Outreach Project and interviews with Outreach Project managers. In addressing the implementation of the outreach programme (the implemented programme), lessons at each of the two, Mini-Computer Supported Education Centres (MICSECs) were observed over a period of four months. At one centre (Centre A), the lessons consisted of a formal (talk-and-chalk) presentation followed by an informal part when students worked on the computer in the same period. At the second centre (Centre B), the MICSEC was used as an adjunct to the normal classroom lesson, that is, students were taught in their normal classrooms and then, at least once a week, taken by their teacher to the MICSEC to do problem-solving on the computers. The perceptions of students (the perceived programme) were examined by an actual and preferred version of the Computer-Assisted Learning Environment Questionnaire and by interviews conducted with both individual students and groups. At Centre A, the students preferred more involvement, more open-endedness, more organisation and more learning assessment opportunities in their computer-assisted classes but also less integration of computers in their every day classes whilst desiring investigation procedures in their classes to remain the same. At Centre B, students preferred to be more involved, to have more open-ended activities in their classes, have more learning assessment opportunities and a greater level of integration of computers but a reduction in investigative activities. Findings from student interviews were summarised as reflecting three viewpoints with regard to the inclusion of computer-assistance in classes. Students holding one viewpoint considered the inclusion of computer-assisted learning as important to their learning and were convinced that their interaction with the computer, fellow-students and teacher, led to an improvement in their learning. Students holding the second viewpoint conveyed a message of insecurity in the use of computers for they were not sure whether their working with computers made any difference to their learning. Many students' views were…