Investigating Perceived Difficult Concepts in Geometry by Pre-Service Teachers of E. P. College of Education, Bimbilla, Ghana

Abstract

The kind of teaching methods adopted by teachers, teacher zeal and commitment and the pace and level at which lessons are presented go a long way to influence perception of difficult topics. Mathematics is a body of knowledge, skills, and procedures that can be used in a rich variety of ways: to describe, illustrate, interpret, predict and to explain patterns and relationships in number, algebra, shape and space, measurements and data. Concepts in mathematics are interrelated and have interconnected elements. The interrelationship of these concepts can be seen in elementary operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division and also translation of word problems and use of symbols across mathematics discourse. According to Robertson and Wright (2014), the interconnected elements are discovery and analysis of pattern, logical reasoning applied to systems and recognition and explanation of the underlying links between these systems.The importance of mathematics in the Ghanaian school curriculum cannot be overemphasized because of its relevance to national development and the fact that it is a compulsory subject that cuts across every other field and also a backbone of all knowledge showing its relevance to all disciplines (Ayinla, 2011). Mathematics is also the language of science that allows scientists to communicate ideas using universally accepted terminologies. It is also a requirement for all Senior High School (SHS) graduates to gain admission into higher institutions such as the universities and colleges (Kekere, 2008). Based on this fact, Adegun and Adegun (2013) stressed the need to make mathematics a compulsory subject at the pre-tertiary level of education if scientists, technologists and engineers are to be produced in our universities.According to Paulina (2007), geometry is a branch of mathematics which deals with the study of different shapes or figures and their properties. The plane shape is a geometrical object with length and width. Plane shapes are also called 2-dimensional shapes such as square, rectangle, circle, and polygon and so on. A solid shape is a geometrical object with

Kemampuan Berpikir Geometri Mahasiswa Calon Guru Berdasarkan Teori Van Hiele

“…Penguasaan guru terkait materi ajar merupakan salah satu faktor penentu kualitas pembelajaran dan hasil belajar siswa (Robichaux-Davis & Guarino, 2016 pembelajaran. Idris menyatakan bahwa kegagalan guru menggunakan strategi pembelajaran yang sesuai menjadi salah satu penyebab peserta didik gagal memahami konsep geometri dan gagal mengembangkan keterampilan pemecahan masalah geometri (Novita et al, 2018;Salifu et al, 2018).…”

“…Salah satu teori pembelajaran dalam geometri yang banyak digunakan untuk mengembangkan pembelajaran geometri yang efektif ialah Teori Van Hiele (Salifu et al, 2018). Van Hiele menyatakan bahwa kemampuan berpikir geometri peserta didik berkembang dalam lima tingkatan selama proses belajar.…”

“…(analisis), level 3 (deduksi informal), level 4 (deduksi), dan level 5 (mahir) (Bonyah & Larbi, 2021;Celik & Yilmaz, 2022;Salifu et al, 2018;Siew et al, 2013). Kelima tingkatan berpikir geometri dicpai oleh peserta didik secara hierarkis dari tingkatan terendah level 1 menuju tingkatan tertinggi level 5.…”

Parallelism and transversals in geometry: Experiences of fresh senior high school graduates into teacher education

“…The above narratives offer reasonable grounds for mathematics educators to begin paying attention to PST students' geometry preparation in Ghanaian context where only 27% of basic school teachers are said to inspire mathematical reasoning (Keaveney et al, 2018) and where research studies and national examinations results have indicated the struggle in geometry studies by both senior high school (SHS) students (West Africa Examination Council [WAEC], 2015, 2017a and PST students (Armah et al, 2017;Armah & Kissi, 2019;Salifu et al, 2018; University of Cape Coast-Institute of Education [UCC-IOE], 2011,2012,2013,2014). The narrative is not very different with the basic education certificate examinations (BECE) candidates.…”

Prospective Mathematics Teachers’van Hiele’s Geometry Thinking and Habits of Mind: A Description of Hard Skill and Soft Skill by Gender

“…Several studies report that van Hiele's geometric thinking is important to improve, especially for prospective teacher students (Armah et al, 2017(Armah et al, , 2018Armah & Kissi, 2019;ERDOGAN, 2020;Salifu et al, 2018;Yılmaz & Koparan, 2015). Research reported how to improve van hiele's geometric thinking without paying attention to aspects of soft skills.…”