The Name of the Game is Mathematics: How Do Mathematics Teachers of Primary Schools Motivate Learners?

Abstract

Understanding concepts and rules in mathematics is fun and once learners are in command of them, mathematics turns into a simple and easy game to play. The performance of the learners seems to increase with every game they play. Once learners have grasped the concepts and rules, teachers seem not to experience major problems in presenting the new subject matter to them. The paper tries to explore the way primary school mathematics teachers in Mangaung township (Republic of South Africa) motivate their learners in solving and understanding mathematical concepts and instructions as experienced in the classroom. Observation of lesson presentation used in the gathering of data and textually oriented discourse analysis is the method used for data analysis. The results indicate that approaching mathematics as a game to be played enhances the interests of the learners. Their work rate and ownership of the subject increases. Mother-tongue plays a significant role in the understanding of mathematical concepts.

DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n15p434