Education stakeholders have convened Kenya’s first numeracy co-creation workshop, a crucial step in addressing the urgent issue of low performance in lower grades as revealed by a 2024 study.
The workshop, a joint effort by The Centre for Mathematics, Science and Technology Education in Africa (CEMASTEA) and Zizi Afrique Foundation, marks a unique collaboration in the fight against numeracy low performance.
A report carried out recently by Zizi Afrique Foundation and CEMASTEA indicate that majority of learners in grade three are struggling with solving simple tasks in mathematics.
It further revealed that majority of students experience difficulty in mastering mathematical skills.
The report carried out in Bungoma West Sub County also indicated a unique trend where girls performed better than boys in the assessment that had been provided during the study. This trend challenges the common belief that boys are better at mathematics than girls.
Dr John Mugo, the Executive Director at Zizi Afrique Foundation noted that the indication that girls performed better than boys demystifies the myth that girls perform better in humanities than mathematics.
However, as the students’ progress to upper grades, the boys start performing better than girls. This shift is often attributed to negative stereotypes that become stronger over time. These stereotypes discourage girls from pursuing careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields, leading to a gender disparity in these areas.
Dr Mugo emphasized the critical role of the acquisition of foundational numeracy skills in shaping the long-term academic success for learners.
“By pooling our resources and expertise, we can identify the most common errors that learners make and devise practical, effective solutions to support them,” Dr Mugo emphasized.
Dr Mugo pointed out that students must grasp basic mathematics concepts early, if they do not n, it places them at a greater risk of academic struggles later in life. Which he says affects their performance.
Principal Secretary, State Department for Basic Education in the Ministry of Education Dr Belio Kipsang said children must have a good foundation when they are young.
“You are supporting us by giving us the necessary position to ensure what we have set for ourselves; we will continue to build capacities of teachers to deliver on innovative and effective numeracy pedagogies” he said.
Dr Kipsang said the government is committed to addressing the challenges raised in connection with STEM. This commitment includes initiatives to improve the quality of STEM education, provide resources for STEM learning, and promote gender equality in STEM fields.
Dr. Emmanuel Manyasa, Director, Usawa Agenda said students memorizing formulas without understanding their application makes their problem-solving difficult. Recommending using real examples in understanding maths.
CEMASTEA CEO Jacinta L Akatsa said they remain committed to creating platforms for dialogic partnerships that advance quality education for all children.
The co-creation workshop whose theme was “Foundational Numeracy in Kenya: Status, Challenges and Opportunities” highly recommended more emphasis on retooling teachers on pedagogical skills that enhance numeracy acquisition such as error analysis.
The approach emphasized the importance of diagnostic approach on what the learner can do and supporting them to improve on the areas they struggle with and interrogating the method to explore differentiated teaching approaches.
Through this approach, the teachers can understand the actual reasoning of the child and plan for individual support.
So far, 12 teachers in Grades 2 and 3, five heads of institutions, and five Curriculum Support Officers have benefitted from the Error Analysis training to improve classroom delivery of numeracy instruction in lower mathematics in Bungoma West Sub-County.
By Obegi Malack
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