Factors Affecting Teaching and Learning of Square Roots without Calculators in Secondary Schools: A Case Study of 6 Secondary Schools in Mpika District, Zambia

Abstract

This study was undertaken to determine the factors affecting the teaching and learning of square roots of real numbers without the calculators in secondary schools in Mpika District. Three research questions were raised and answered by administering questionnaires. Data was collected by means of four different questionnaires administered to twenty one teachers of mathematics, six Heads of Mathematics Department and one hundred and seventy four pupils drawn from six secondary schools in Mpika District. The five points Likert rating scale was used in determining the factors. Data was analyzed using simple frequency counts, percentages and analysis of variance. The results of the study showed that lack of content knowledge among the teachers, lack of educational materials and library facilities were the factors responsible for not teaching the topic without the calculators. For the pupils, it was due to lack of appropriate mathematics text books, not being taught by the teachers and failure to be given at the beginning of the term the  course outline of the mathematics topics to be taught in the term. Some strategies have been adopted to enhance the teaching and learning of square roots without the calculators and a number of recommendations have been made to the government and other stakeholders involved in the provision of education.

Keywords: Teaching, learning, square roots, secondary schools, algorithm, calculator