How does the ways of life of a race, religion and culture affect pupils’ achievement of Mathematics subject in school.
In terms of race
1. Each child has his/her own mother-tongue that has been used and heard ever since he/she was born. Naturally, we would think that learning in mother-tongue might produce better achievement. If it is in other language, the child faces two major tasks, learning the language aspect as well as learning the Mathematics aspect.
However, researches have shown been that language is not the main barrier in learning This research (Timms study, 2003) is based on the result from international education tests in several countries such as Singapore, Japan, Korea, England and Netherlands. (See summary of TIMSS)
In terms of religion
1. Religion sets the moral values. Values such as good behaviour, respect and responsibility might encourage the child to do his school work better. For example listening to the mathematics teacher during the lesson.
If we think logically, most (if not all) good moral values in a religion are logical. Therefore, every culture or the race must have been practicing the same values as well, regardless of their different religions.
In terms of culture
1. If mathematics content is set to be culturally-relevant, the students will understand it more easily because the content is within their experience. A good example to support to this judgment is shown below:
A milk van started with 30 bottles of milk. It delivered 26 bottles. How many bottles are still to be delivered?
This question may look easy to adults, but children in Brunei might not understand it as easily because in their culture, there is not milk van doing deliveries. Therefore, it is so important to set questions either in tests or examinations which are related to their schema.
2. In some cultures, mathematics is seen as a very important subject to be studied. Maybe, in other cultures, mathematics is not as important. This might affect the children’s achievement as well. Research (Timms study, 2003) reported that among OECD countries such as Singapore, about half of the students reported being interested in the things they learn in mathematics, but only 38 per cent report that they do mathematics because they enjoy it. On the other hand, the great majority of students believe that studying mathematics will help them in their future. It is not a matter of race; it is more about the way the child is brought up and also the environment of a country. (see summary of TIMSS)
3. Furthermore, some Asian parents emphasize more on hard work to produce high achievement. Americans believe that innate ability largely affect performance. (see summary of TIMSS)
Conclusion
Race, religion and culture affect mathematics achievement to some extent only. There are many other factors that affect achievement of mathematics in school such as teaching strategies, peer influence, SES, parents’ involvement, gender differences, student motivation, availability of reading materials and etc.
Summary of findings from the
Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2003.
1. In 2003, students in 3 countries – Chinese Taipei, Japan and Singapore –outperformed US fourth-graders. US students outperformed their peers in five OECD-member countries (Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and Scotland) of which three are English-speaking countries. (Australia, New Zealand and Scotland). So, language does not matter. Some countries that are non-speakers of English perform better (Japan and Singapore) and at the same time, speakers of English perform worse (Australia, New Zealand and Scotland).
2. Although speaking more than one language has advantages, the study showed that countries with large proportions of students from homes where the language of the test (and consequently the language of instruction) is not spoken had lower average mathematics achievement than those who spoke it more often. For instance, in Brunei, if the test is given in English, and the students speak a lot of English at home, then the achievement would be higher. However, this does not imply that if the test is given in the mother-tongue (Bahasa Melayu), the achievement would be higher.
3. US Black students improved in both mathematics and science. White students showed no change in mathematics. As a result, the gap of achievement between Black and White students is narrowed. Race’s factor is becoming less and less important in determining achievement.
4. Students in the five Asian countries outperformed US students in mathematics in 2003- Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Korea and Singapore. …even though these countries are not English-speaking countries. It shows that Asian countries are more particular on education especially in mathematics maybe because they believe mathematics is a very important subject to be studied in order to earn a better living.
Most Asian Pacific people believe that hard work leads to better achievement while Europeans think that hard work does not really matter. (In their cultures, doing a hard work does not guarantee better income)
5. Four countries with lowest percentages of students in the high self-confidence category – Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong SAR, Japan and Korea) - all had high average mathematics achievement. Since all of these are Asian Pacific countries, they may share cultural traditions that encourage modest self-confidence. For example, in Singapore, they have “Kiasu” culture where they want to be always better than others. This leads to low self-confidence where they think that they are never good enough. This again leads to hard work resulting in high achievement.
No comments:
Post a Comment