7249EDN 2014

SECONDARY FOCUSED ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

EMBEDDING ICT (SPECIFICALLY, THE DYNAMIC

MATHEMATICS SOFTWARE GEOGEBRA) INTO
EVERYDAY MATHEMATICS CLASSROOM PRACTICE IN
ORDER TO IMPROVE TEACHING, LEARNING,
ENGAGEMENT AND MOTIVATION.

STUDENT NAME: CONSTANTINOS KOUDOUNAS

STUDENT ID:

2877597

TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT _________________________________________________________4
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION _______________________________________5
THE RESEARCH TOPIC: USING ICT IN MATHEMATICS TEACHING_______ 5
RELEVANCE TO CLASSROOM AND SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT ____________ 6
RESEARCH QUESTION _________________________________________________ 7

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW__________________________________8

THE GENDER GAP IN MATHEMATICS EDUCATION______________________ 8
PEDAGOGIES TO MITIGATE THE GENDER GAP _________________________ 9
TECHNOLOGICAL TOOLS USED IN MATHEMATICS CLASSROOMS______ 10
SYNOPSIS ____________________________________________________________ 12

CHAPTER 3 EXPLANATION OF ACTION RESEARCH APPROACH______13

INTRODUCTION TO ACTION RESEARCH_______________________________ 13
METHODOLOGY _____________________________________________________ 14
SOCIAL JUSTICE _____________________________________________________ 15
REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ______________________________________________ 16
DELIBERATIVE ACTION ______________________________________________ 16
ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS __________________________________________ 17

CHAPTER 4 REPORT OF ACTION RESEARCH CYCLES _______________19

REPORT OF RECONNAISSANCE _______________________________________ 19
REPORT OF CYCLE ONE ______________________________________________ 20
Plan _______________________________________________________________________20
Action _____________________________________________________________________21
Observation _________________________________________________________________22
Reflection __________________________________________________________________24

REPORT OF CYCLE TWO______________________________________________ 25

Plan _______________________________________________________________________25
Action _____________________________________________________________________26
Observation _________________________________________________________________27
Reflection __________________________________________________________________28

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION_________________________________________30
FINDINGS AND INFERENCES RELATED TO RESEARCH QUESTIONS _____ 30
DIFFICULTIES AND LIMITATIONS OF THIS ACTION RESEARCH ________ 31
THE BENEFICIAL VALUE OF ACTION RESEARCH ______________________ 33

CHAPTER 6 REFERENCES ________________________________________35

CHAPTER 7 APPENDICES _________________________________________43
APPENDIX R-1: SCHOOL CONTEXT ____________________________________ 43
APPENDIX R-2: SCHOOLS 2012 SUCCESSES ____________________________ 44

APPENDIX R-3: SCHOOL VISION & CORE VALUES ______________________ 45

APPENDIX R-4: EXCERPTS FROM ANECDOTAL NOTES _________________ 46
APPENDIX R-5: CLASSROOM SEATING PLAN___________________________ 48
APPENDIX R-6: INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEW ______________________________ 49
APPENDIX R-7: RECONNAISSANCE QUESTIONNAIRE___________________ 51
APPENDIX R-8: RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY DATA AND STATISTICS ____ 52
APPENDIX R-9: RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY ANALYSIS _________________ 54
APPENDIX 1-1: MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM DURING CYCLE ONE ____ 56
APPENDIX 1-2: GEOGEBRA E-MAILED INSTRUCTIONS _________________ 57
APPENDIX 1-3: GEOGEBRA HOMEWORK ______________________________ 61
APPENDIX 1-4: SAMPLES OF STUDENTS WORK ________________________ 62
APPENDIX 1-5: SAMPLES OF FEEDBACK GIVEN TO STUDENTS__________ 64
APPENDIX 1-6: CYCLE ONE QUESTIONNAIRE __________________________ 69
APPENDIX 1-7: CYCLE ONE SURVEY DATA_____________________________ 70
APPENDIX 1-8: CYCLE ONE SURVEY DATA STATISTICS ________________ 71
APPENDIX 1-9: CYCLE ONE SURVEY ANALYSIS ________________________ 77
APPENDIX 1-10: FOCUSED INTERVIEWS _______________________________ 78
APPENDIX 1-11: CYCLE ONE ASSESSMENT DATA AND ANALYSIS _______ 82
APPENDIX 2-1: CLASSROOM SEATING PLAN ___________________________ 84
APPENDIX 2-2: MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM DURING CYCLE TWO ____ 85
APPENDIX 2-3: VISUALISING PARAMETERS WITH SLIDERS_____________ 86
APPENDIX 2-4: THE ADVANTAGE OF VISUALISATION OVER CAS _______ 87
APPENDIX 2-5: ADVANCED TEACHER DEMONSTRATIONS ______________ 88
APPENDIX 2-6: EXCERPTS FROM ANECDOTAL NOTES__________________ 91
APPENDIX 2-7: CYCLE TWO ASSESSMENT DATA AND ANALYSIS________ 94
APPENDIX 2-8: PRACTICAL AND TECHNICAL CONCLUSIONS ___________ 95

ABSTRACT
Despite that state curriculum documents mandate the incorporation of
technology into the secondary mathematics classrooms, teachers are often
unsupported and even at prestigious and selective schools, ICT tools are used
scarcely. Such is the case of the year 10 mathematics class of the school where this
research took place. The project sought an optimal teaching practice that embeds ICT
and at the same time enhances students mathematics understanding, motivation,
engagement and achievement. Since the literature reports a gender related
performance gap in secondary schools and the majority of the students in the class
were girls, the project, concerned about equity issues, also investigated if the specific
ICT implementation would yield differentiated results between boys and girls. The
chosen intervention, involved the introduction and incorporation into the classroom of
the freeware dynamic mathematics software suite called GeoGebra. The
methodology adopted the principles of participatory action research, namely social
justice, deliberative action, reflective practice. It was conducted in two cycles,
constituted of four distinct phases each (plan, action, observation, reflection). The
approach that was found to work better, is to fully integrate the use of software within
the lessons, by providing frequent workshop sessions. While no gender related
implications were detected, positive outcomes were reported regarding students
mathematics conceptual understanding and affection towards GeoGebra as an
educational tool. Significant factors that limited the effectiveness of the intervention
and the validity of conclusions, include the short duration of the cycles, the fast pace
required to go through the syllabus topics and the students reluctance due to their
awareness of the transitory nature of the intervention.

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

THE RESEARCH TOPIC: USING ICT IN MATHEMATICS TEACHING

The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians

advises that successful learners are creative and productive users of technology,
especially ICT, as a foundation for success in all learning areas (Ministerial Council
for Education, 2008, p. 8). The same document also confirms that the areas of ICT
and technology are of fundamental importance for Australias skilled economy and
that they guarantee post-school success to graduates. It is noted though that while
schools do employ some level of technology in learning, an urge has been identified
to ameliorate ICT efficiency over the following years. In order to implement the use
of ICT into the curriculum, Queensland Government (2012) has released a set of ICT
expectations for years P-12. These expectations require students to inquire, create,
communicate, operate and use ICT within an ethical framework. Therefore, it is the
teachers duty to effectively familiarize students with the challenging world of
modern technologies and to embed these into the normal lesson flow (Tom, 2013).
Regarding the teaching area of Mathematics, the National Council of Teachers
of Mathematics acknowledges the importance of technology, by stating that it is
essential in teaching and learning mathematics; it influences the mathematics that is
taught and enhances students learning (NCTM, 2000, p. 11). Additionally, Ozel,
Yetkiner, and Capraro (2008) stress the point that positive effects associated with the
integration of technology into mathematics teaching, include better conceptual
understanding, improved attitude and achievement, as well as increased levels of
engagement and higher-order thinking.
Admittedly, the software package called Geogebra appears to be a suitable
digital technology tool that might be effective in the enhancement of secondary
mathematics instruction and understanding (see chapter 2 for a detailed justification).
Assuredly though, before choosing to implement any particular ICT tool into
mathematics teaching, the specific classroom and school contexts have first to be
considered.

RELEVANCE TO CLASSROOM AND SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

This project took place in Queensland Academy for Health Sciences, a selective
senior secondary state high school with an ICSEA1 of 1147; this number is well
above the average Australian ICSEA value of 1000 (ACARA, 2014). The pupils
involved in this research were the students enrolled in the supervising teachers (Mr
Erp2) year 10 mathematics class, which initially consisted of 27 students, out of
which 20 are girls. Ten of the students were of Asian origin and another five of non
Anglo-Saxon origin. No disability issues were identified. The reconnaissance findings
did not show any signs of correlation between mathematics performance and race or
class.
According to the literature, it is statistically more likely that girls rather than
boys are students of average level of mathematics and of average confidence in using
computers that exhibit a negative attitude towards learning mathematics with
computers (Barkatsas, Kasimatis, & Gialamas, 2009, p. 568). Given the previously
discussed importance of incorporating a technology tool into the mathematics
classroom, a gender focused action research plan seemed more relevant to test
(despite that a potential shortcoming regarding this choice, could be the difficulty to
compare the outcomes between sexes, as the number of boys is probably statistically
small in order to acquire comparable and reliable data). It would be a worthwhile
pedagogical challenge to try to ascertain if there would a way to improve girls
acceptance of computers as a tool for better learning in mathematics. Therefore,
gender was selected to be the primary social justice focus area of this project, rather
than race, class or disability.
Regarding the spectrum of technological tools available for use, the school
highly encourages the use of ICT devices in teaching and learning and it has recently
adopted a BYOD3 policy; for this reason, all students are expected to carry electronic
devices (laptops) that surpass the minimum requirements required by the GeoGebra
application. Since the year 10 mathematics topics required to be taught in term one by
the schools work program were IB4 preparatory mathematics (algebra, geometry and
statistics), it seemed like an ideal environment for teaching a mostly context-free
1

Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage

This is a pseudonym, not the real name of the teacher
3
Bring Your Own Device
4
International Baccalaureate
2

mathematics curriculum (such as the IB) using a software such as GeoGebra, as there
would be no social justice concerns regarding access to resources. Also, the
classroom was equipped with an interactive whiteboard, something that would (and
did) undoubtedly further facilitate the use of Geogebra as a teaching and learning
tool.
Since the school did not impose any restraining guidelines favouring the use of
specific technological tools over others, the research question/puzzle for this action
research project formulated as follows:

RESEARCH QUESTION

How can I effectively implement the use of the dynamic mathematics software
GeoGebra in my year 10 mathematics class, in order to improve my teaching and
to enhance students mathematics understanding, motivation, engagement and
achievement? What are the main obstacles that have to be addressed?
Given the research concern regarding gender and achievement in mathematics,
this research project will investigate the following sub-question: Does the
pedagogical implementation of GeoGebra yield different motivation, engagement and
achievement levels between girls and boys?

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

To address the concerns at the heart of this project, this review firstly explores
the literature relevant to the gender performance and participation gap in mathematics
education; subsequently, pedagogies to alleviate the gap are considered. As
technology is one of these methods suggested to assist towards optimized
mathematics teaching and learning, various technology pedagogies used in
mathematics instruction are reviewed in order for one of them to be selected as the
most appropriate for the causes of this action research project.

THE GENDER GAP IN MATHEMATICS EDUCATION

Nowadays, more than ever before, our society relies on numbers and the skills
to manipulate them (Van de Walle, Bay-Williams, & Karp, 2013). The applications of
mathematics in everyday life are endless: computers, logistics, satellites, pay slips,
prices of goods, banking, currency exchange and stock markets are just a few to
name. Moreover, the occupation landscape of this world is changing with an
unprecedented pace towards a service based economy, where mathematical
competence constitutes a decisive skill regarding career opportunities. Teese and
Lamb (2009) and numerous other studies have shown that childrens low
achievement in mathematics first appears in middle school, and among other factors,
it is tightly correlated with their gender.
Regarding the origin of the gender performance and participation gap in
mathematics, Kane and Mertz (2012) argue that is not caused by biological
differences or by religion, neither because of co-educational schooling or inequity5
between the sexes. Linn and Hyde (1989) confirm that gender differences in cognitive
abilities are negligible. This means that gender equality barriers in mathematics are
due to sociocultural aetiology and not of because of genetically inherited
disadvantages (Hanna, 2003). Indeed, according to Kane and Mertz (2012) some of
the primary determinants of success in mathematics are students and parents

Here inequity is meant as an imbalanced access or chance between sexes to study mathematics

perceptions and attitudes towards the usefulness of mathematics, the ability to study
mathematics, and whether the study of mathematics predisposes quality employment
opportunities for women or not. Unfortunately, it is a fact that because of the way
gender socialization works, women usually tend to work on jobs related to services
and child care, while men usually undertake more powerful, respected and better
paying occupations associated with STEM areas of study (Holmes, Hughes, & Julian,
2003). Shakeshaft (1995) also attributes the exclusion of girls from mathematics to
stereotypes, to subconscious discriminating practices by the teachers and to teachers
lack of knowledge of teaching strategies that meet girls needs.
Current research (You, 2010) shows that lately there has been a notable decline
of the gender gap in mathematics performance. This contraction of the equity gap in
mathematics, is the outcome of the intervention programs and the equity policies that
were effectuated in the last thirty years of the 20th century and on (Hanna, 2003).
While the gap has almost disappeared at age 13, it is still existent for the age of 17;
therefore gender equity is still an issue to be addressed by policy makers, schools,
families, communities and educators worldwide.

PEDAGOGIES TO MITIGATE THE GENDER GAP

The literature reports an extensive array of strategies that may be implemented

in teaching in order for gender equity in mathematics to be achieved. The first step,
suggested by Deshler and Burroughs (2013), is that instructors shall explain and
enumerate the abundant applications of mathematics beyond the classroom, for there
to illustrate the correlation between mathematics knowledge and careers in STEM
fields, as STEM fields are known to be traditionally associated with influential or
high paying careers. A second step is to disprove the myth that math is hard and that
it is a mens only domain, by systematically presenting successful female role models
(Gilbert, 2001) and by instilling the mentality that intelligence is not a mens
privilege, but instead it is a skill that can be developed by hard work and study
(Heilbronner, 2008). Regarding pedagogy, You (2010) stresses the point that boys
and girls have different learning styles that teachers have to accommodate, as
discovery-type inquiry suits girls better, while boys favour more structured or
traditional ways of learning, like watching and thinking. More and more,
Heilbronner (2008) suggests the establishment of a supportive and cooperative
9

learning environment that fosters motivation, encourages risk taking and speaking up,
acknowledges girls interests and communicates rapport with them, while at the same
time making sure to cater for girls spatial skills training. Additional strategies
include the provision of scaffolding and prescriptive feedback, the encouragement of
students voice expression, the prioritization of developing problem-solving skills, the
reward of cooperative spirit, and the association of mathematics with real life
experiences and students prior knowledge (Gilbert, 2001; Linn & Hyde, 1989).
Underachievement in mathematics deprives students the chance for better paid
and more diversified employment options, thus perpetuating social inequality and
injustice. Consequently, it is evident that the primary priority for a contemporary
mathematics secondary school teacher is to ensure equity (Brown, 2013): all students
shall be given ample and unreserved opportunity and support to learn mathematics,
irrespective of their gender (and any other diversifying factors and challenges, of
course). All evidence illustrates that the traditional chalk and talk authoritarian and
dated methods of teaching Mathematics, have failed to lift the engagement,
motivation and performance of all students and to promote their problem-solving and
decision-making abilities (Killen, 2013). A modern teaching approach has to be
adopted, in order to make Mathematics more attractive, understandable, meaningful
and relevant to all childrens everyday life.
The approach used in this action research plan is based on technology, aiming
to increase all students motivation, engagement and performance, and to narrow the
gender gap. Certainly, not only technology, but all the pedagogical concerns and
suggestions analysed in this literature review section will be taken into consideration
during the project, in order to bear the best possible outcomes. The following section
reviews the various technology tools used in mathematics classrooms, so as to elect
the most suitable one to embed.

TECHNOLOGICAL TOOLS USED IN MATHEMATICS CLASSROOMS

There is substantial evidence supporting that underperformance in traditional

mathematics classrooms is imputed to outdated teaching methods that fail to engage
students and to make them understand, visualise and discover in depth the concepts
taught (Adams & Muilenburg, 2012; Van de Walle et al., 2013). As a result, a
multitude of technological tools is being used to enrich mathematics instruction in
10

contemporary schools. These tools include scientific calculators, interactive

whiteboards, immediate response devices, computers and web-based applications
(Ozel et al., 2008), as well as Wolfram Alfa, spreadsheets, virtual manipulatives,
automated marking programs and specialized mathematics software (Crompton,
2011).
The technologies chosen by the mathematics teacher have to effectively address
the prominent curriculum strands of algebra, geometry and statistics. Judging from
personal experience and from literature sources (Dragana, Zekeriya, & Viktor, 2010;
Goos & Bennison, 2008), the most commonly used (mathematics dedicated)
technologies in Queensland schools are computer algebra system (CAS) calculators,
dynamic geometry software (DGS) and spreadsheet software, as well as mathematics
web sites that provide resources such as worksheets and interactive visualizations or
virtual manipulatives. Unfortunately, all of these technological aids suffer from a
series of hindrances: CAS calculators are expensive and not quite user friendly, DGS
software requires specific hardware and training, and spreadsheet software usually
involves the use of a computer room and of antecedent experience from the students
and the teacher as well. Not to mention the inconvenience from having to transfer
data/work or to switch from one technology tool to another, depending on the topic
taught.
Apparently, making a choice of which technology tool is appropriate for
teaching each syllabus topic is not easy. There are plenty of barriers that a teacher has
to overcome, such as steep learning curves, time constraints, lack of training and
technical support, unavailability of resources, equipment cost, reluctance of students
and colleagues (J. Hohenwarter, Hohenwarter, & Lavicza, 2009). M. Hohenwarter
(2002) claims that he has invented a software package called GeoGebra that addresses
all the above issues. GeoGebra is advertised as the latest evolution of mathematics
software, combining the capabilities of CAS, DGS and a spreadsheet component, in
one package.
Hohenwarters own research has shown that in-service secondary school
teachers characterize it as user friendly, easy and intuitive to use (J. Hohenwarter et
al., 2009) and that no advanced computer skills are required by novice users.
Furthermore, GeoGebra is free to use, it runs in multiple platforms (Windows, Apple
and Android devices), has low hardware requirements, and it is open-sourced. This
latter characteristic has encouraged a broad community of secondary school teachers
11

from all over the world to help toward further developing and updating the software,
and to also create and share learning and teaching resources (Hall & Chamblee,
2013).
Thanks to the dynamic nature of the software, students may explore patterns,
visualize graphs and dynamically change them by performing simple drag and drop
actions. This way, instruction becomes more student-centred, as students discover and
construct themselves mathematical objects, functions and procedures, instead of
passively copying the teachers graphs from the whiteboard and being engaged in a
drill and kill type of work. Hence, the teachers role becomes less authoritarian and
transforms into a role of a facilitator and a counsellor, allowing a more constructivist
way of learning (Tytler, 2004). Besides, thanks to the bigger screen where the output
may be seen, compared to the private small screens of handheld CAS devices (Pierce,
1999), the teacher may instruct students to work on the software by forming
collaborative teams that will further enhance their performance and their spirit of
cooperation (Brown, 2010).

SYNOPSIS

The above scholarly literature synthesis indicates that the implementation of a

dynamic mathematics software application into mathematics teaching is an
educational approach that may effectively incorporate technology into the
mathematics classroom while concurrently caring for social justice concerns.

12

CHAPTER 3 EXPLANATION OF ACTION RESEARCH APPROACH

INTRODUCTION TO ACTION RESEARCH

After the early 1950s, it became apparent that the traditional academic
research, based on the rigorous scientific method, was inadequate to provide means
for improvement of a teachers quality of practice, and to lead to personal and
professional development (Cohen & Manion, 1998). Generalized theories cannot
apply in social situations, as the latter ones tend to behave rather chaotic, because
they depend on too many independent variables which are hard to control. This is
why another approach, called action research is more appropriate in situational
environments such as the classroom, where there are a specific context and
circumstances that differ substantially compared to other alike environments (other
classrooms). In other words, no classroom is ever the same, therefore colonial type
methods that apply the same theory irrespective of the context cannot be effective
(Hunter, Emerald, & Martin, 2013d). Unlike applied research, in action research the
researchers own ontological, epistemological, ethical and theoretical points of view
do influence the methodology and the outcomes of the project; this is rather
inevitable, as the researchers role is to actively participate and intervene, instead of
stereotypically observing from a distance, trying not to contaminate or bias the
specimens (Martin, Hunter, & McLaren, 2006). Nevertheless, this does not mean that
action research is not scientific; it does involve rigorous and systematic procedures
and data/evidence collection and analysis techniques (Selener, 1997).
The most important characteristic of action research is probably that it is not
research done on people (Tinning, Macdonald, Tregenza, & Boustead, 1996, p. 394)
but rather research done with people. Teachers not only become researchers
themselves, but they also collaborate with other participants, in order to improve
education by changing it (McTaggart & Kemmis, 1982). This intervention is a step by
step, ongoing and flexible process that it is based on feedback and evidence collected
by various observation and monitoring tools (such as questionnaires, diaries,
interviews, checklists), and it is applied according to comparative studies found in the
relative literature (Cohen & Manion, 1998; Elliott, 1997; Hunter, Emerald, & Martin,
13

2013c). This way, action research manages to bridge the gap between theory and
action, as the educational practitioners, informed by the findings of social science
theory, analyse critically field data in order to strategically remedy real and practical
(as opposed to theoretical) problems that arise in their individual classroom, in each
single case (Selener, 1997). Last but not least, action research may be considered as a
professional development tool that empowers teachers and helps them broaden their
skills (Goodnough, 2011).

METHODOLOGY

After defining the initial research problem/question, the procedure that comes
next is called reconnaissance and it involves a systematic gathering of field data
that will help to describe, understand and explain the facts of the situation (Emerald,
2013). Based on the reconnaissances findings, a first cycle of intervention is
implemented, consisting of the four following theory informed stages (McTaggart &
Kemmis, 1982):

1.

Development of a critically constructed plan that aims to ameliorate

the identified issue. The plan must be
versatile enough to confront

un-

expected variables.
2.

Action to implement the plan: this is

where deliberate change takes place.

3.

Planned observation that carefully

records and documents the

con-

sequences derived from the previous

stage.
4.

Reflection, based on the observation

analysis, is the determinant procedure
based on which a revised second cycle
of intervention will be re-planned and
implemented.

14

While an action research project may include multiple cycles of intervention,

according to the guidelines of the present project (Emerald, 2014) the number of
cycles required for the purposes of this dissertation is two. Additionally, Emerald
(2014) and Martin et al. (2006) highlight the importance of four interdependent core
values that comprise the pillars of action research: social justice, reflective practice,
deliberative action and ethical considerations.

SOCIAL JUSTICE

The issue of social justice epitomises the central axis around which this action
research project is constructed, imbued and inspired. In order to interpret the meaning
of social justice, the most common analysis found in the literature, distinguishes three
major points of view, which originate from the political theories of conservatism,
liberalism and socialism (Starr, 1991). While many scholars debate regarding abstract
philosophical matters related to social justice (Fraser, 2003; Gewirtz, 2001), when it
comes to the purpose of education, the fact is that education (in Australia and in other
western countries) has been traditionally used by the dominant hegemony as a tool
that aims to perpetuate the status quo, to establish social control and social
reproduction (Pendergast & Chadbourne, 2010). Contemporary educational reforms
espouse social change rather than the preservation of stereotypes and differences that
have been used to classify people depending on their gender, age, cultural
background, physical appearance, religion, family or other socio-economical criteria.
Progressive education advocates that schooling should be aiming to lift all students
performance and to ensure equity6 instead of equality7 (Brown, 2013); in other words,
justice instead of fairness (Rowan, 2013).
Having a non Anglo-Saxon origin, speaking English as a second language and
having recently arrived to Australia after experiencing the consequences of the
neoliberal dogma that overwhelmed Europe, are just a few of the reasons why social
justice is a matter of high priority for me. Embracing the socialist approach to social
justice, I find no reason to maintain a status quo if there are better options to promote
justice, even if they are considered as revolutionary. As a result, in my teaching

Equity is defined as the unequal treatment of students with the intention of producing equal
outcomes.
7
Equality is defined as the equal treatment of students that produces unequal outcomes.

15

practice I preach students to reason and to think critically, including my own sayings,
as in science and mathematics there is no such thing as an infallible authority. I also
try as much as possible to take nothing for granted, as students come from diverse
backgrounds and therefore their levels of mathematical understanding and technology
acquaintance are quite dissimilar.

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE
Reflection is a process through which the field texts are transformed into
research texts and set against the relative literature in order for the effectiveness of the
action plan to be weighed and revised. During the reflective practice, the credibility
of the evidence has to be considered, and the same goes for re-examining the social
justice and ethics implications (Hunter, Emerald, & Martin, 2013a). Furthermore,
new or unexpected problems may be identified and addressed. The significance of
reflection is undisputable, as change does not come about as a result of spontaneous
acts, but through reflection on and understanding on specific problems within their
social, political and historical contexts (Selener, 1997, p. 104). Finally, for reflection
to be successful, the teacher has to be prepared to bypass his/her own stereotypes,
biases and superficial perceptions, by showing an attitude of open-mindedness,
impartiality and dedication (Pollard & Tann, 1994).
The same way that formative assessment provides feedback for students
learning, reflection provides feedback for the effectiveness of teachers lessons. Being
a beginner in teaching, I feel that reflection always has to be an inextricable part of
my everyday practice; this is exactly the reason why lesson after lesson, I have been
taking actions such as writing down anecdotal notes, interviewing students,
colleagues and my mentor teacher and researching the relevant bibliography, in order
to ascertain what worked and what did not, within the context of the special
circumstances that were present at the time of each teaching session.

DELIBERATIVE ACTION
Action in action research is often called praxis and it is inextricably linked to
critical social theory (Hunter, Emerald, & Martin, 2013e). To rephrase, it is critically
informed committed action, informed by literature (Martin et al., 2006, p. 23) that

16

has profound political purposes and implications, as it has to answer questions such
as who is winning and who is losing because of the action undertaken.
Consequently, deliberative action means that the basis of action is not a hunch, or an
impromptu reaction, but rational reflection tied to interrelated evidence and argument
(Selener, 1997). As a direct result of deliberation, the researchers decisions become
more respectable and defensible, when judged and compared against potential
alternative courses of action (Hunter, Emerald, & Martin, 2013b).
With reference to my research project, feedback acquired through thoughtful
reflection and careful study of the relevant literature was applied in order to
deliberatively adapt my teaching approach, aiming to achieve an effective
implementation of technology into the classroom practice. As it will be analytically
shown in chapter 4, the reflection of the first cycle revealed some approaches that
were of limited effectiveness; therefore I had to research further into the pertinent
literature for there to plan and effectuate (in the second cycle) alternative or
complementary strategies that have been proven to work better under the special
context of my own classroom.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
The key ethical issues that any action researcher has to consider, involve the
maintaining of confidentiality and privacy, the judicious use of power relations
between the participants and the researcher, the informed acquiescence of the
participants, and most of all the minimization of any potential negative implications
(Keatinge, 2010). Another determinative concern that Martin et al. (2006) address,
has to do with procuring about the potential winners or losers because of the action
research itself.
Regarding this specific action research project, it is important to emphasize that
all action taken and data gathered was within the normal classroom routines and
activities, in accordance with the guidelines suggested by Emerald (2014). Before the
project took place, a human ethics approval application form was sent to the course
convenor, the mentor teacher was consulted and approval was requested from the
schools principal. As expected, the principal approved the study without requiring
sending an informational - consent letter to parents. Subsequently, the students
themselves were informed about the purpose of the study and they were assured that

17

their anonymity would be guaranteed. Also, the students were briefed about the
salutary benefits that their avocation with technology will yield, regarding the
development of their skills and their mathematics abilities.

In summation, this action research project, tried to apply the research process
outlined in this chapter, by following the four stages described by McTaggart and
Kemmis (1982) and by making sure not to deviate from the axioms of social justice,
reflective practice and deliberative action. During the first two weeks, systematic
observations were recorded in order to understand the context of the class to be
taught. These reconnaissance data were transformed into research texts that led to the
implementation of a first cycle plan, ensued by a second cycle, as described in the
following chapter.

18

CHAPTER 4 REPORT OF ACTION RESEARCH CYCLES

REPORT OF RECONNAISSANCE
(Tuesday 29th January 2014 to Friday 8th February 2014)

The construction of field data during the reconnaissance phase was the corner
stone of this action research project: the problematic issue that was identified was the
lack of any technology tool being used in the classroom8:

Mr Erp had not been using graphics calculators in his lessons at all
(appendix R-6).

Informal conversations with other mathematics teachers revealed that

year 10 students would not be using any technology tools before term
two or later.

Most students admitted that they have minimal experience using

graphics calculators.

The school is one of the best performing schools state-wide (appendices R-1,
R-2, R-3). Almost all students were highly motivated and therefore incidents of
misbehaviour were practically non existent. Indeed, this was confirmed by my
anecdotal notes (appendix R-4) and by the complete absence of any negative
behaviour observation incidents.
A de-identified classroom map is presented in appendix R-59. It can be seen
that girls chose to sit next to girls and the same goes for boys.
A grade book had not been used so far, as it was too early in the term and no
formal assessment had been applied yet.
Quite interestingly, research information constructed via the statistical analysis
of the anonymous survey forms that students were asked to fill in right before week
three, showed that10:
8

besides the digital textbook

The names shown are imaginary, in order to protect the students identity. Girls names are shown in
red color and boys names in blue color.
10
The questionnaires are shown in appendix R-7, the data and statistics follows in appendix R-8 and
the analysis is presented in appendix R-9). No student names were asked for and a special procedure
was followed to ensure anonymity.
9

19

The vast majority of students enjoyed mathematics and appreciated the

usefulness of mathematics in every day life and regarding their future
careers, as well. Nevertheless, they found mathematics as not an easy
subject; girls were more insecure about their mathematical skills.

Students were not familiar with using scientific or graphic calculators,

but they were quite familiar with using computers.

Students could not see how calculators or computers would help them
toward learning and understanding mathematics.

REPORT OF CYCLE ONE

(Monday 11th February 2014 to Friday 22nd February 2014)
Plan
According to ACARA (2013), the Australian National Curriculum necessitates
the implementation of digital technology into mathematics; ICT capability is
considered as one of the seven capabilities that support students to become successful
learners (Queensland Studies Authority, 2012). The reconnaissance data analysis
confirmed that scientific calculators (which are perhaps the most commonly used
technology tools in mathematics classrooms) suffer from many disadvantages: they
are costly, there are many different models, and they have a steep learning curve11;
most of all, around half of the students consider graphics calculators contribution in
learning

and

understanding

mathematics

as

questionable.

Moreover,

the

reconnaissance findings ensured that there were no students not owning their own
laptop and no students not familiar with the use of a laptop. Therefore, the classroom
context was found to be conducive for there to embed an innovative technological
tool such as GeoGebra into everyday teaching practice. Furthermore, the occasion
that the class consists mainly of female students, offered a unique opportunity to
focus the research on the social justice area of gender.

11

There is limited time for teachers to dedicate into showing the students how to use graphics
calculators. Watching YouTube tutorials is often suggested instead of providing instructions. Also, the
manuals that come with scientific calculators are often quite abstruse.

20

Action
The action planned to be taken was to introduce the software to students and to
consistently show them how to use the softwares commands in order to explore,
validate and visualize the newly taught content. This instruction had to be done
during the same lesson that each specific topic has been taught, in order for the
correlation between technology and mathematics to be timely and direct. M.
Hohenwarter and Fuchs (2004) indirectly suggest three methods in teaching
mathematics using GeoGebra: teacher demonstrations, students interacting with files
created by the teacher, and students creating their own files. Due to time restraints,
the second method was omitted.
The mathematics curriculum to be taught during the first cycle of intervention
consisted of knowledge that students were supposed to know from their previous
years of education; there were no demands for constructing any algebraic or
geometric graphical representations, with the exception of one simple case12
(appendix 1-1). Originally, a 15 minutes workshop session was scheduled to be
allocated towards the end of each lesson, dedicated in embedding the technology tool
into the mathematics lessons. In reality, time limitations and suggestions from the
supervising teacher deterred this plan from actualization. A mid-term exam was
scheduled for the Monday following the end of this two week period; there were three
additional year 10 mathematics classes in the school, and all classes had to be taught
exactly the same curriculum content within the two week period, therefore there was
no time for students to get accustomed to GeoGebra and to dedicate time for
familiarizing with the software, during classroom time.
Since action research is a flexible process, it has to adapt to reality and to the
evolution of circumstances over time (Elliott, 1997). Consequently, the following
alternative action approach was implemented:

Short (around five minutes at the end of each lesson) demonstration by

the teacher of the way that the technology tool is used in order to work
on the topic taught earlier in the lesson.

12

Written detailed instructions e-mailed to students (appendix 1-2).

that was the representation of inequalities on the number line

21

Digital homework assigned through e-mail (appendix 1-3); students had

to solve a series of problems using the technology tool, create their own
file and submit it to the supervising teachers e-mail address before the
commencement of cycle two, set for March 4th (samples of students
work are presented appendix 1-4).

Timely feedback and further instructions e-mailed back to students that

submitted their homework (see appendix 1-5 for samples of feedback
given to students).

Observation
The data construction tools planned to monitor progress and to plan further
effective action were adapted from the framework developed by Pierce and Stacey
(2004). The aspects to be monitored were mainly the students willingness to use
GeoGebra (personal aspect) and the students ability to effectively manipulate
GeoGebras commands in order to apply and enhance their mathematical skills
(technical aspect). The technical aspect is directly linked to effective teachers
instruction and to the students level of mathematical knowledge and understanding.
The personal aspect has two elements, namely the attitude towards Geogebra and the
judicious use of it. The main instruments employed to analyse these aspects were
(Hunter et al., 2013c):

Students work samples (appendix 1-4),

Excerpts from digital correspondence between teacher and students

(appendix 1-5),

Surveys that provided quantitative data (appendices 1-6, 1-7, 1-8 and 1-9),

Semi-structured open ended interviews with selected students, conducted

in need of further qualitative analysis (appendix 1-10) and

Mid-term summative assessment grades and the submission (or no

submission) of the assigned GeoGebra homework (appendix 1-11).

After analysing the data constructed by the above instruments, the following
key findings were identified:

22

Some unexpected technical difficulties (mainly different software versions

and language settings13) caused confound that could have been avoided.

Students mostly superficially read or understood the e-mailed instructions,

as demonstrated by their work.

Having given limited instructions and no hands-on practice time during

lessons (because of the time constraints) caused some students to feel that
working with GeoGebra is difficult. It also discouraged these students
from addressing the teacher questions.

There is a significant correlation between performance in mathematics and

willingness or ability to interact with the technology tool. Students that
completed their homework were mostly the ones with a sound
mathematical background, as shown by their mid-term exam results.

Some students were not motivated because of the transient nature of the
intervention, meaning that they knew that the implementation of
GeoGebra would only last for a term. As they could not see immediate
benefits from using the software, they chose not to pore over it.

Only 40% of the students completed and submitted their homework.

Knowing that the use of a laptop is forbidden during an exam discouraged

students from adopting GeoGebra; the highly exam-driven schools
mentality made the imminent upcoming mid-term exam to monopolize
their attention.

The nature of the curriculum being taught, lacking graphical

representations, was not opportune for implementing GeoGebra, whose
main advantage is visual representations of algebra and geometry.
Therefore, students could not intuitively perceive how this tool could help
them understand mathematics better and how to expand and explore
further the mathematics concepts they were learning.

The option of attending after school complimentary GeoGebra workshops

was ruled out by students, who were mostly in favour of workshops during
classroom time.

13

The default software language setting is English-American and this led to some mathematics
terminology incompatibility, as some commands are different under the English-Australian setting.
Technical issues such as this one can be easily avoided in the future, once they are known and
identified.

23

Reflection
With regard to the main research question (the implementation of the chosen
technology tool into the mathematics classroom), the key findings unveiled some
assumptions and biases that influenced cycle ones deliberative planning, as well as
what went wrong and the reasons why.

The

unavailability

of

assessment

information

from

within

the

reconnaissance data led to an overestimation of the students prior

knowledge, which was in reality not as advanced as hypothesised. This
coloured interpretation was nurtured by the absence of behaviour
management issues, by the observed intentness of students, and certainly
by the expectations of the researcher (Hunter et al., 2013c); as the midterm assessment data showcased, good behaviour is not synonym with
satisfactory performance.

As Bebell, O'Dwyer, O'Connor, and Russell (2003) have identified, time

limitations14 and lack of support from the supervising teacher hindered the
originally planned action plan and deprived students the chance to explore
and get accustomed with the technology tool. Furthermore, in accordance
with the scholar literature (Imrie, 2010), the drive for success in exams
and for measurable outcomes led the school to adopt a fast paced work
program with time enough to teach only to the test.

The chosen pedagogical approach did not address the multiple types of
learners intelligences, as these are highlighted by Gardner (1985), causing
some students neither to get

engaged nor to understand the

meaningfulness and the usefulness of the software. This approach also did
not bear peer interaction, which is an essential ingredient for learning to be
social and collaborative (Wei & Ismail, 2010). What is more, it appears
that having to submit the homework file to the supervising teachers email address impersonalised the whole process and caused delays in
giving feedback.

One of the main advantages of GeoGebra is the integration of geometric

and algebraic input and output in a single interface (Baydas, Gktas, &

14

Each cycle could not last for more than two weeks, given that three weeks during the internship were
allocated as year 10 student camp week, revision week and exam block week.

24

Tatar, 2013); because of the curriculum topics being taught during cycle
one, GeoGebra could not assist into what Quane (2013, p. 21) refers to as
enhancing comprehension through visualisation.
As for gender related implications, the constructed qualitative and quantitative
texts did not demonstrate any significant differentiation between girls and boys. The
observed differences in levels of engagement are tightly correlated to performance
and prior mathematical knowledge, rather than attributed to gender, as illustrated in
appendix 1-11.
Finally, for reasons detailed in appendix 1-9, it has to be noted that the
trustworthiness of girls responses in the survey may be debatable. Furthermore, it is
likely that more students would have submitted their GeoGebra homework if the
circumstances were different15.

REPORT OF CYCLE TWO

(Monday 4th March 2014 to Friday 15th March 2014)
Plan
The mid-term exam results revealed a significant gap in performance between
students. As shown in appendix 1-11, these results virtually divided the class into two
distinct groups of high performing and low performing students. The school
management decided to turn this problematic ascertainment into an advantage, by
splitting the class into two classes, assigning the intern teacher to teach the group of
eleven best performing students (the new seating plan is illustrated in appendix 2-1),
and Mr Erp to teach the rest of the students. This fact offered the chance to plan an
intervention not only free of time and supervision limitations that were present in
cycle one, but also with a group of gifted students. This time, the boys-girls ratio was
36%, as opposed to 26% in the first cycle16.
15

The class was split in two, right before the commencement of cycle two, as described in the section
to follow.
16
This percentage difference originated not because boys performed better than girls, but because three
girls opted to stay with the low performing group, due to social reasons having to do with their friends
being in that class.

25

According to cycle one findings, a noteworthy number of students were unable

to determine the relative advantages of the ICT tool, because of the reasons identified
in the reflection section of cycle one. In order to appropriately embed technology into
the classroom, Driscoll (2002) suggests a technology integration framework where
learning is active, social and reflective. This means that Geogebra workshop sessions
would have to become an integral part of the lessons, for there students to be able to
realise how technology may bring their mathematical understanding to a greater level.
During these workshop investigations, the classroom would transform into a
collaborative learning environment, where students, guided by the teacher, would use
GeoGebra to explore key mathematical topics while experimenting, cooperating and
exchanging ideas with their peers. Additionally, the workshop pedagogical approach
would provide students with instant feedback and instant solutions on technical
difficulties, while at the same time accommodating more types of learner
intelligences. Hence, the goal would be GeoGebra to be considered by students not
any more as another type of homework or as a tool of no use for exams, but rather as
a powerful technological tool that can empower mathematical thinking and make
learning more interesting throughout the years. Last but not least, teaching a relatively
small number of gifted students would provide the opportunity to plan differentiated
lessons with enrichment activities that would go beyond the well-worn provision of
worksheets of more difficult questions, thus stimulating higher order thinking
(Edwards & Jones, 2006).
Action
Second cycles curriculum (appendix 2-2) was considerably more opportune for
exploiting the visualising advantages Geogebra has to offer: topics such as solving
simultaneously linear equations, graphing absolute value functions and Pythagoras
theorem were ideal for bringing into light GeoGebras features in regards to
enhancing learning by dynamically visualising mathematics concepts. For example,
one of these features involves sliders (Hall & Chamblee, 2013) which can used to
animate coefficients in algebraic expressions and to explore their properties. By
adjusting the sliders (appendix 2-3), students may easily rewrite equations without

26

having to retype them17. Sliders also help to conceptualize the meaning and the
importance of pronumerals and variables, which while they are abundant in Algebra
they are quite often not understood or appreciated by students (appendix 2-4), who
are traditionally not familiar with manipulating expressions that contain not only
numbers but letters as well.
The planned action involved two main pedagogical approaches:
1. Workshop sessions which incorporated three distinct stages, as
suggested by Lu (2008): presentation by the teacher, students
interacting with GeoGebra and students investigating open ended
questions by working in pairs or in small teams.
2. Teacher demonstrations of pre-prepared advanced visualisations, aimed
to highlight the depth of explorations that may be performed with the
assistance of technology, and consequently to motivate students and
ignite the spark of mathematical curiosity within them (appendix 2-5).
Observation
The instruments employed to observe the implementation of this cycles
interventions were mainly anecdotal notes and records of critical incidents
(qualitative data, appendix 2-6) that produced the following key findings:

Visualisations and graphical representations helped students to transform

procedural knowledge into conceptual knowledge. Students also had some
chance to work on higher order problems, as opposed to cycle one.

GeoGebra may help students to graphically derive and explore

mathematical theorems, making them become mathematicians rather than
trained chimpanzees (Lockhart, 2009, p. 9) who only carelessly rely on
teachers sayings, without being able to criticize or wonder about the
validity of these preachings.

Students appreciated the ability to instantly verify their pen and paper
answers, especially in cases where the textbooks answers were wrong or
when their homework involved problems not found in the textbook.

17

A feature well appreciated by students that embraced GeoGebra in cycle one, as demonstrated in the
relative focused interviews (appendix 1-10).

27

A notable peer interaction was evident; students who were more familiar
with technology were often observed to assist and encourage any of their
falling behind classmates.

The workshops fostered direct communication with students and therefore

nurtured towards the development of teacher-student rapport. They also
offered variation into the lessons, helping to relieve the monotony.

Additional findings coming from quantitative data (namely the end-of-term

written exam grades; appendix 2-7) indicated that most students achieved a notably
higher score in their final exam, than in the mid-term exam.
Reflection
With reference to the main research question, qualitative observational data
attested an evident improvement toward learning, engagement and motivation that
may be attributed to the integration of technology into the mathematics classroom.
While quantitative data indicated similar outcomes, the amelioration of students
performance certainly shall not be ascribed solely to the benefits of ICT, but also to
factors such as the smaller class size and the segregation of charismatic students
together. Further investigation would be quite interesting but it would require
additional data and complementary observation techniques.
In detail, working in workshops proved to be the literature advisable (Briscoe,
2011) pedagogical approach that works better, compared to the approach
implemented in the first cycle. As mathematical concepts were animated, students
were able to connect the dots between the graphical and the symbolic representations
(Escuder, 2011), thus enhancing their understanding (Adams & Muilenburg, 2012).
Moreover, as narrated in appendix 2-6, students reactions confirmed that powerful
optical demonstrations performed by the teacher using GeoGebra, further motivated
them to appreciate the beauty of mathematics. More importantly, the findings of this
cycle affirmed studies such as the one published by Wei and Ismail (2010) claiming
that dynamic mathematics software assists toward the establishment of a computersupported collaborative learning environment. With respect to the technical part of
the main question (how to implement technology), some practical conclusions are
presented in appendix 2-8.

28

Regarding gender implications, no social justice issues seemed to emerge,

according to the data collected. It seems that in a context such as the one encountered
at QAHS, there is no gap in performance between girls and boys. Certainly, the brief
time frame of two weeks did not allow for unambiguous outcomes to be ascertained;
considerably more time would be required in order to collect more trustworthy
information.

29

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION
This chapter summarizes and encloses the final reflections evaluating the main
aspects of the accomplished research. It is divided into three distinct parts: The first
section revisits the findings of this action research project related to the main research
question as well as the sub-question. The following section acknowledges the
difficulties and limitations encountered with respect to the effectuation and the
effectiveness of the project, correspondingly. Finally, the last section discusses the
attainment of action research goals and the repercussions on the development of my
professional knowledge and practices.

FINDINGS AND INFERENCES RELATED TO RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Despite that state curriculum documents in Australia mandate the use of digital
technologies in the secondary mathematics classrooms (Geiger, Faragher, & Goos,
2010), recent studies have revealed on the one hand the rather marginal or occasional
role that actually technology has been playing in learning high school mathematics
and on the other hand that the question of how to optimally implement contemporary
technology into mathematics classrooms is identified my mathematics teachers as the
most sought after need for professional development (Goos & Bennison, 2008). This
action research has focused primarily on this very question and its findings confirm
the scholarly literature, according to which this issue does involve a convolute
process (J. Hohenwarter et al., 2009).
While no straightforward recipes for success exist, the literature does suggest a
number

of

valuable

research

proven

guidelines

regarding

the

effective

implementation of dynamic mathematics software such as GeoGebra into the

mathematics classroom. This project validated that there is indeed a technical and a
personal aspect to be considered, exactly as suggested by Pierce and Stacey (2004).
The most efficacious technical aspect approaches were identified to be the following:
the introduction of commands with explicit instructions (by using a projector screen
or an interactive whiteboard), the provision of regular practice workshop sessions
within lessons as often as possible and not sporadically, the avoidance of unnecessary
use of complicated technical features and the instant feedback on any difficulties that
30

otherwise may discourage students. Regarding the personal aspect, the research
concluded that the most effective strategies include: the intentional demonstration of
the impressive capabilities of the platform in order to bolster students positive
attitude, the fostering of a friendly and collaborative classroom atmosphere and the
allocation of adequate time for students to experiment and familiarise with the
software.
Concerning the second research question, this project tried to ascertain if this
specific pedagogical approach amalgamating technology into mathematics would
equally benefit female and male students. There was no issue such as to mitigate any
motivation and performance gap that the scholarly literature (Deshler & Burroughs,
2013; Gilbert, 2001; Kane & Mertz, 2012; Linn & Hyde, 1989) attributes to gender
differences, because no such gap was diagnosed to exist, due to the selective nature of
the school. Both cycles observational data analysis affirmed that there is a strong
correlation between achievement/confidence in mathematics and attitude/confidence
in technology, as outlined by Pierce, Stacey, and Barkatsas (2007). Nonetheless, no
similar gender related correlation was detected, in accordance with the mixed results
mentioned by Lyublinskaya and Tournaki (2011). Characteristically, Hutkemri and
Zakaria (2012, p. 3802) did not notice any gender based significant difference in
students conceptual and procedural knowledge and Jackson, Brummel, Pollet, and
Greer (2013, p. 324) admit that the question of whether interactive tabletops have
the potential to reduce the gender gap in mathematics is more complicated than a
simple yes or no. All in all, the magnitude of this problems perplexity is reflected
by contradictory or dubious literature research outcomes which report that when a
particular technology is employed in the mathematics classroom, girls outperform
boys (Jackson et al., 2013; Lyublinskaya & Tournaki, 2011), despite that boys usually
express a more positive stance towards learning mathematics with the aim of
technology (Barkatsas et al., 2009).

DIFFICULTIES AND LIMITATIONS OF THIS ACTION RESEARCH

The relative scholarly literature cites multiple social and technical reasons that
impede the effectual incorporation of technology into the mathematics classroom (J.
Hohenwarter et al., 2009; Keong, Horani, & Daniel, 2005). Some of these include
insufficient teacher training, poor funding, lack of resources, limited time in school
31

work programs and curricula, need for preparation of activities in behalf of the
teacher, negative student and colleague attitudes, inadequate technical support.
Relative to the context of the school and classroom that this project took place, the
most influencing factors of the above were found to be the short timeframe available
for proper realisation of the technology tool, as well as time constraints because of the
fast teaching pace required by the curriculum scheduled to be taught. This time
shortage made it strenuous to overcome the initial students reluctance to
acknowledge the value the software platform as an educational tool. As for the reason
for this reluctance, Reed, Drijvers, and Kirschner (2010), report that student attitudes
and behaviours, were found to be influenced by school and classroom factors;
indeed, the milieu seemed to manipulate student perceptions to a certain extent. In
addition to all the foregoing, it is noteworthy to mention that even though GeoGebra
is quite user friendly, this research validated Jackson et al. (2013), who advise that it
does require a fair amount of time in terms of software testing and preparation in
behalf of the teacher, especially the inexperienced teacher.
On top of the previously mentioned difficulties, this action research project
faced some limitations that may partially question its validity. The first of these
involves the disproportionate ratio of girls over boys in the classroom. The small
sample size of boys made it statistically impossible to infer accurate judgements
regarding comparisons between gender implications because of technology. The
second limitation has to do with having two differently composed classes in each
cycle, because of uncontrolled factors. Another structural factor that could not be
controlled was the allocated time length of the two cycles, which was clearly not
enough for the interventions to mature and to sufficiently produce noticeable
improvements. By the time students started to feel comfortable and familiar with the
technology tool, the second cycle was about to end, thus prohibiting them from
visiting more complex problems that would boost higher order thinking.
Besides the above limitations, my personal assumptions and stance have
undoubtedly impinged on the outcomes of the project, since in action research the
researchers ontological and epistemological orientations always influence his/hers
attitudes and actions (Hunter, Emerald, & Martin, 2013f). For example, my own
positive perceptions towards the technology tool as well as my high level of
mathematics confidence, combined with the lack of misbehaviour in the classroom,
induced an overestimation of the corresponding student perceptions and confidence
32

level. In a similar way, my inexperience in observational techniques probably made

me unskilfully apply observation techniques, or even omit some techniques that could
have constructed valuable field texts. In addition, the effectiveness of my
interventions was certainly affected by my novice level of teaching knowledge,
experience and confidence (Bennison & Goos, 2010).
All the aforementioned issues make the social complexity of the educational
problem evident. As a result, the outcomes of this action research project cannot be
duplicated or transferred to other contexts18. Different informed actions are needed
each time, depending on the individual context (Hunter et al., 2013d).

THE BENEFICIAL VALUE OF ACTION RESEARCH

Even if the exact same methodology of this project cannot be replicated in other
school contexts, and despite the issue of mess (Cook, 2009, p. 278) that I often
experienced during the implementation of this action research project, there are
multiple and undeniable salutary effects on my professional development as a teacher.
Through this strenuous process, having learnt to be a better observer and having
witnessed the importance of informed action and self-reflection, I managed to
improve my educational practice, which is what Selener (1997) considers to be the
main objective of action research.
What is more, this project achieved to meet supplementary aims of action
research, namely to remedy diagnosed problems, to supply teachers with new skills
and to introduce modern teaching methods (Cohen & Manion, 1998). After having
diagnosed the problem (the absence of technology in the mathematics classroom), in
order to accomplish the project, I had to train myself and to explore the teaching
approaches I needed to know, through studying extensively the academic and
technical literature, through meticulous observing and through thorough reflection.
This way I acquired life-long skills that will be certainly useful in my other teaching
area as well as in my career in general. Admittedly (and regrettably), personal
experience as well as literature (Boggan, Harper, & Bifuh-Ambe, 2009) testify that
pre-service mathematics teachers are not sufficiently trained during their studies

18

For example, this project did not have to deal with any ICT caused distractions impacting
achievement negatively, something that is a common concern in the relative literature (Song & Kang,
2012).

33

regarding the use of technology. Therefore, without this project neither I would have
been provided with the unique chance to build and broaden these skills, nor I would
have gained experience and insight into a crucial issue afflicting every contemporary
secondary mathematics teacher, that of the effective integration of technology into the
mathematics classroom, under a social justice perspective.

34

CHAPTER 6 REFERENCES
ACARA. (2013). The Australian Curriculum v4.2 Mathematics Foundation to Year
10 Curriculum. Retrieved March 30, 2013 from
http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Mathematics/Curriculum/F10#level=9
ACARA. (2014). Queensland Academy for Health Sciences - School profile
Retrieved January 27, 2014, 2014 from
http://myschool.edu.au/SchoolProfile/Index/64457/QueenslandAcademyforHe
althSciences/40815/2012
Adams, C., & Muilenburg, L. (2012). Incorporating GeoGebra into Secondary
Mathematics Instruction to Improve Student Understanding. Paper presented
at the Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International
Conference 2012, Austin, Texas, USA. Retrieved from
http://www.editlib.org/p/40135
Barkatsas, A., Kasimatis, K., & Gialamas, V. (2009). Learning secondary
mathematics with technology: Exploring the complex interrelationship
between students attitudes, engagement, gender and achievement. Computers
& Education, 52(3), 562-570. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2008.11.001
Baydas, ., Gktas, Y., & Tatar, E. (2013). The use of Geogebra with different
perspectives in mathematics teaching. ukurova University Faculty of
Education Journal, 42(2), 36.
Bebell, D., O'Dwyer, L., O'Connor, K., & Russell, M. (2003). Examining Teacher
Technology Use: Implications for Preservice and Inservice Teacher
Preparation. Journal of Teacher Education, 54(4), 297-310. doi:
10.1177/0022487103255985
Bennison, A., & Goos, M. (2010). Learning to teach mathematics with technology: A
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10.1007/BF03217558
Boggan, M., Harper, S. L., & Bifuh-Ambe, E. (2009). Elementary pre-service
mathematics teachers and technology: are they ready? Journal of Academic
and Business Ethics, 2, 1-6.

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Retrieved January 24, 2014 from Farnborough Sixth Form College action
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(http://actionresearch.farnborough.ac.uk/files/ARP/file/Wesley%20Briscoe%2
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Brown, R. (2010). Collaborative learning. In D. Pendergast & N. M. Bahr (Eds.),
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Cohen, L., & Manion, L. (1998). Action Research. In Research methods in education
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Cook, T. (2009). The purpose of mess in action research: building rigour though a
messy turn. Educational Action Research, 17(2), 277-291. doi:
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Crompton, H. (2011). Mathematics in the Age of Technology: There Is a Place for
Technology in the Mathematics Classroom. Journal of the Research Center
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Deshler, J. M., & Burroughs, E. A. (2013). Teaching mathematics with women in
mind. Notices of the AMs, 60(9), 1156-1163. doi: 10.1090/noti1042
Dragana, M., Zekeriya, K., & Viktor, F. (2010). First Decade of GeoGebra: Looking
back through Socio-Cognitive Lenses. GeoGebra : The New Language for the
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Driscoll, M. P. (2002). How people learn (and what technology might have to do with
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42

CHAPTER 7 APPENDICES
APPENDIX R-1: SCHOOL CONTEXT

This action research project is effectuated in Queensland Academy of Health

Sciences (QAHS), during the first term of the school year starting on January 28th,
2014. QAHS is one of the three selective QLD state schools that enrol high
performing students (the admission criteria include an interview and a special exam)
that are interested in health sciences, research, science and academic careers (State of
Queensland, 2014). The schools long and impressive achievement list for 2012 is
presented in appendix R-2. Appendix R-3 illustrates the school's vision and core
values. Notably, the schools motto is Bright Minds Brilliant Futures.
Since the school only enrols year 10, 11 and 12 students, year 10 students are
newcomers, coming from a variety of state and private schools. This fact makes them
carry a virtual backpack filled with an interesting variety of experiences and a wide
spectrum of different skills. Judging by my personal experience in other schools, in
general students at QAHS are significantly different than students in other state or
even other independent schools. Anecdotal discussions with staff members revealed
that nearby prestigious independent schools have been watching their best performing
students migrate to QAHS since the latter one opened its doors.

43

APPENDIX R-2: SCHOOLS 2012 SUCCESSES

44

APPENDIX R-3: SCHOOL VISION & CORE VALUES

45

APPENDIX R-4: EXCERPTS FROM ANECDOTAL NOTES

Wednesday, January 30th

This was the first lesson of the term and despite that it lasted for two hours
without any break, students did behave properly at all times. They seemed disoriented
and shy, as they were new to school and in addition they had a very experienced and
confident teacher in front of them. Mr X has been teaching mathematics and physics
for forty years and I can easily tell that his teaching style focuses on igniting students
curiosity spirit. He asked all students from which school they are coming from,
revealing this way the diverse background of this cohort.
Monday, February 3rd

Its my first period teaching at QAHS. I introduced myself to students and

informed them that I will be working for my dissertation for my Master in Teaching
at Griffith University, which is about improving my teaching and their learning. I
passed them the anonymous surveys to fill in, after asking permission from my
mentor teacher. The surveys were not asking anything beyond usual teaching
practice; their aim was to identify some general student perceptions about
mathematics, technology tools in classroom and about their aspirations and concerns.
In order to ensure anonymity, I asked students to turn the sheets upside down before
one of the students collected and returned to me the questionnaire forms. Students
were found to be engaged at all times.
Wednesday, February 5th

Today I verified that because of their different backgrounds, students

mathematical skills differ substantially. Some of the girls seem to be struggling, but
they are hard workers and they do pay attention to everything I say. In some cases
that a student or two monopolized my interest, I noticed some students becoming
disengaged. When I assigned them to work on some exercises, they all seemed to do
so. It is a double period once more, but this class is very promising. I asked students
if in the past years they have been using calculators in mathematics and around half
46

of them replied positively. A few of them brought calculators in todays class but
most students did not. The models reported by the ones who have been using
calculators vary substantially. This is highlights the advantage of using GeoGebra, as
there is no need for students to spend an amount of money or to physically carry an
apparatus with them, as long as they carry their BYO device (they always do, as this
is mandated by the schools policy).
Thursday, February 6th

I tried to make students feeling more comfortable by telling them that no

question is silly and that they should not hesitate to ask me anything (relative to the
lesson) more than once. This seemed to start working, as some girls that were having
some issues solving exercises involving percentages, did raise their hands asking for
help.

47

APPENDIX R-5: SEATING PLAN

APPENDIX R-5: CLASSROOM SEATING PLAN

48

APPENDIX R-6: INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEW

A semi-constructed interview with Mr Erp was conducted in order to identify

his beliefs about using technology in mathematics teaching, about girls performance
and attitude towards mathematics.
Q: For how long have you been a secondary school teacher?
A: For forty years. Seven of them are in QAHS.

Q: What are the main differences between boys and girls attitudes in year 10
mathematics classrooms that first come into your mind?
A: Girls are more mature, focused and organized, and at the same time they are more
shy and unassertive.

Q: What is the attitude of most girls towards mathematics?

A: Some of them are scared of mathematics. In general, they are less confident about
their mathematics skills than boys are. They think that mathematics is a males
domain. Despite that, my best students have traditionally been girls.

Q: What do you think would help girls achieve better in mathematics.

A: More practice, undoubtedly!

Q: Do girls work better when they are grouped with girls?

A: In my mathematics classes I do not use to assign students to work in teams.

Q: How do you use technology to improve your teaching?

A: I use the OneNote software, which allows me to modify the notes shown on the
interactive whiteboard in real time, and then save the changes so that students
may have immediate access on the notes through the schools shared e-folder. I

49

also use YouTube for various visualizations and virtual manipulatives, as well for
instructions for their scientific calculators, if needed. As for statistics, Microsoft
Excel is a convenient spreadsheet tool that all students already have installed in
their devices (the school has made it compulsory for all students to have installed
Microsoft Office 2010 in their BYO devices).

Q: Do you use graphics calculators in your mathematics teaching?

A: No, I do not know how to use them.

Q: Do laptops in classroom distract students from learning?

A: Some times they do, indeed. Of course, at the same time they surely are a useful
tool for teaching and learning.

Q: Are you aware of GeoGebra?

A: No, I havent seen it before.

Q: After showing it to you, do you think that it could be used effectively in teaching?
A: Yes, I like the way that you can visualize mathematics with it, and especially its
dynamic input function, that immediately changes the plotted graph. For example,
teaching translations, dilations and reflections becomes so much easier. The same
goes for graphing quadratics. I think you should present its features to the rest of
the schools mathematics teachers. In fact, I will arrange this for you.

50

APPENDIX R-7: RECONNAISSANCE QUESTIONNAIRE

YEAR 10 MATHEMATICS QUESTIONNAIRE

Mark the appropriate boxes below, using a or an :
Boy
Girl
1. I enjoy mathematics.
Strongly agree
Agree

Not sure

Disagree

Strongly disagree

2. I am familiar with the use of scientific calculators.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree

Strongly disagree

3. I think that scientific calculators do not really help me to learn and understand mathematics.
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree
4. I am comfortable using a computer or laptop or tablet.
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree

Strongly disagree

5. Scientific calculators are difficult to use.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure

Disagree

Strongly disagree

6. I plan to take High Level Maths next year.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure

Disagree

Strongly disagree

7. Mathematics is useful in my everyday life.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure

Disagree

Strongly disagree

8. Mathematics is useful for my future career.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure

Disagree

Strongly disagree

9. In general, boys and girls have about the same performance in mathematics.
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree
10. If I had the option not to study mathematics at school, I would take it.
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree
11. I enjoy mathematics more if the lesson involves using computers.
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree

Strongly disagree

12. I am having difficulties understanding some mathematics topics.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree

Strongly disagree

13. I need more help in mathematics from my teacher.

Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree

Strongly disagree

51

APPENDIX R-8: RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY DATA AND STATISTICS

A) SURVEY DATA
APPENDI X R-8: REC ONNAI SSANCE SURVEY DATA AND STATI STI CS

question # Strongly agree

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
question # Strongly agree
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
question # Strongly agree
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13

Agree

Not sure

1
1

4
2

3
3
1
5
3
3
1
2
4
1

1
1
2
2
1
Agree
5
2
1
7

1
5
3

9
12
3
8
2
5
13
9
1
3
1
6
8

6
3
1
11
0
1
4
5
8
0
3
5
4

Agree
13
14
3
11
5
6
18
12
4
4
3
10
9

1
3
4
6

BOYS
Disagree Strongly disagree
2
4
3
3
2
1
1
2
1
3
3

Not sure

Number of students

1
2

7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7

3
2
GIRLS
Disagree Strongly disagree

6
6
6
8
4
1
8
9
5
5
3
1
7
13
4
8
9
9
3
5
8
1
WHOLE CLASS
Not sure
Disagree Strongly disagree
8
0
10
0
9
9
4
1
11
10
7
7
4
1
8
1
15
0
5
11
12
9
3
8
11
3

2
1
4

5
1

0
0
5
0
1
6
0
1
0
7
0
1
0

Number of students
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
Number of students
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27

52

APPENDIX R-8: RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY DATA AND STATISTICS

B) SURVEY STATISTICS

question # Strongly agree

1
14%
2
14%
3
0%
4
57%
5
0%
6
0%
7
14%
8
14%
9
29%
10
0%
11
29%
12
0%
13
14%
question # Strongly agree
1
25%
2
10%
3
5%
4
35%
5
0%
6
5%
7
15%
8
20%
9
30%
10
0%
11
5%
12
25%
13
15%
question # Strongly agree
1
22%
2
11%
3
4%
4
41%
5
0%
6
4%
7
15%
8
19%
9
30%
10
0%
11
11%
12
19%
13
15%

BOYS
Agree Not sure Disagree Strongly disagree Total
57%
29%
0%
0% 100%
29%
57%
0%
0% 100%
0%
43%
14%
43% 100%
43%
0%
0%
0% 100%
43%
43%
14%
0% 100%
14%
29%
29%
29% 100%
71%
14%
0%
0% 100%
43%
14%
14%
14% 100%
43%
29%
0%
0% 100%
14%
14%
43%
29% 100%
29%
43%
0%
0% 100%
57%
0%
43%
0% 100%
14%
43%
29%
0% 100%
GIRLS
Agree Not sure Disagree Strongly disagree Total
45%
30%
0%
0% 100%
60%
30%
0%
0% 100%
15%
30%
40%
10% 100%
40%
20%
5%
0% 100%
10%
40%
45%
5% 100%
25%
25%
25%
20% 100%
65%
15%
5%
0% 100%
45%
35%
0%
0% 100%
5%
65%
0%
0% 100%
15%
20%
40%
25% 100%
5%
45%
45%
0% 100%
30%
15%
25%
5% 100%
40%
40%
5%
0% 100%
WHOLE CLASS
Agree Not sure Disagree Strongly disagree Total
48%
30%
0%
0% 100%
52%
37%
0%
0% 100%
11%
33%
33%
19% 100%
41%
15%
4%
0% 100%
19%
41%
37%
4% 100%
22%
26%
26%
22% 100%
67%
15%
4%
0% 100%
44%
30%
4%
4% 100%
15%
56%
0%
0% 100%
15%
19%
41%
26% 100%
11%
44%
33%
0% 100%
37%
11%
30%
4% 100%
33%
41%
11%
0% 100%

53

APPENDIX R-9: RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY ANALYSIS

An impressive 70% of all students answered in Q1 that they do enjoy doing

mathematics (the percentages are around the same for boys and girls). This reflects
the high level of QAHS students compared to the one of other schools The rest 30%
werent sure, but probably an estimated 15% do not like mathematics: this is
extrapolated from Q10, which is a control question verifying that indeed 85% of the
students have answered honestly in Q1, but there is a 15% that wouldnt had taken
mathematics if they had the option.
The usefulness of mathematics in every day life is agreed by more than 80% of
all students (see Q7), but when it comes to the value of mathematics for future
careers, less students are convinced (the numbers are 57% and 65% for the boys and
the girls, respectively, see Q8). Still, the numbers are high though; I can recall a
year10 mathematics class I taught in a prestigious independent school where the
majority of students did not recognize much correlation between mathematics and
careers.
A significant percentage of boys (57%) and girls (30%) were dubious as for if
they are familiar with scientific calculators (see Q2). The discomfort of students
regarding the use of scientific calculators is apparent, judging by the responses in Q5:
86% of the boys and 50% of the girls dont think that it is easy to use a scientific
calculator. This finding is in accordance with the identified difficulty that students
confront in using a scientific calculator. It further amplifies all GeoGebra advantages,
as discussed in the introduction section of this project. 50% of the girls and 43% of
boys are not convinced that scientific calculators help their mathematics learning and
understanding (see Q3). This is clearly aligned with their responses in Q2, so it can be
attributed to their insufficient training in using scientific calculators.
As for using computers, all the boys and 75% of the girls are comfortable using
them (see Q4). Therefore, it is very important to take advantage of the fact that
students are wonted in this technology platform and thus to exploit it in order to
improve teaching and learning. As expected, no boy would find the idea of learning
mathematics using computers as not enjoyable; on the contrary, almost half of the
girls cannot see how computers could make learning mathematics more enjoyable
(see Q11). Chances are that boys are attracted by computers more by girls, as they
tend to use them more often for recreational purposes, whereas this is not the case
54

with girls. This does not mean though that they cannot appreciate computers
usefulness, once they are properly taught and guided how to use them.
Q6 confirms that despite the high level of students, they still think that
mathematics is not an easy subject: almost 60% of the students admit that they are
having some difficulties. Notably, 20% of the girls are categorical about this, while
no boys are found to strongly agree about this (see Q12). Girls seem to be more
insecure about their mathematics skills: this is shown by a whopping 65% of them
that answered not sure regarding if girls and boys have about the same performance
in mathematics (see Q9). It is worthwhile to mention that more than 70% of the boys
responded that yes, boys and girls have around the same levels of performance. This
confirms the literature, according to which secondary school males who believe they
are good mathematics students tend to have more gender-neutral perceptions than
those who believe they are average or below average; no such pattern appears for
secondary school females (Kloosterman, Tassell, Ponniah, & Essex, 2008, p. 149).

55

APPENDIX 1-1: MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM DURING CYCLE ONE

Source:
Buchanan, Fensom, Kemp, and Stevens (2012)

56

APPENDIX 1-2: GEOGEBRA E-MAILED INSTRUCTIONS

Subject: GeoGebra and more

Hello class 10!

Practicing with GeoGebra will help make mathematics more enjoyable and
understandable for you.

It's quite easy software to use, compared to scientific calculators. You don't need to
figure out the commands yourselves, because I am here to show you everything you
need to know. Also, GeoGebra can make graphing functions really easy as you will
see in the following lessons. It can help you explore things, visualise, verify your
answers and avoid tedious calculations while you're working on something complex.
Quite importantly, many answers at the back of your textbook are wrong, so
GeoGebra may also help you to verify if your answers are indeed correct or not.

I have to remind you though that GeoGebra, just like any other scientific calculator,
won't work if you don't know your maths.

Unfortunately, we haven't had enough time available in class to practice GeoGebra.

Here is everything we have learned and that you need to know:

Bring in the CAS window by clicking View-->CAS.

Whenever you type a command, a list of highlighted suggestions appears. Choose the
one that's appropriate and replace the highlighted part with your input.

When in CAS view, you can either select the first button on the bar (evaluate) which
will give you exact answers or the second button (numeric) which will return
approximated answers.

So when in evaluate mode, click on the first line and:

57

Type any number and GeoGebra will evaluate this number as a fraction in lower
terms. Alternatively, you may use the command: Rationalise [number]

Type any fraction and GeoGebra will simplify it.

Type any fraction with surds in the denominator and GeoGebra will simplify the
fraction and rewrite it with the surds in the numerator.

LCM [number1, number2] will give you the lowest common multiple.

HCF [number1, number2] will give you the highest common factor.

When you want to round a number, just type the number and press enter. GeoGebra
will round the number according to its predefined settings. These settings can be
changed if you click Options-->Rounding and select a different choice for decimal
places or significant figures.

To get the scientific notation (standard form) of a number, type ScientificText

[number]

To factor a number, type factors [number]. You will get a matrix with two columns.
The first column shows you the factors and the second column how many times every
factor appears.

To solve an equation, just type the equation (for example 3x-4=2) and press the
"solve" button. GeoGebra will return the solution (x=2).

If you need to type special symbols, you can either click on View-->Keyboard or on a
little square with the letter alpha inside it. This little square is found on the furthest
right point of your input line.

You can also graph inequalities on the number line. Example: type x>1 and press
enter. In your Algebra window, you will see that expression written there (it will look
like a:x>1). Right click on that expression and select Object Properties-->Style tab-58

>tick the "show on x axis" box. This way you will get a line instead of all points on
the xy plane that satisfy x>1.

If you want to type the symbol "greater or equal", you will find it in that pop up
window that will come up when you click the little square with the alpha symbol
mentioned earlier. There you will also find the symbol for intersection, which is a
reversed v.

So if you type two inequalities, for example x>1 and x<3, you will see them on the
Algebra window on your left, written as something like

a: x>1
b: x<3

You may make them invisible by selecting each and clicking on the gray circle left of
each. Then GeoGebra will stop showing the line graphs.
You can now type a intersection b (use the special symbol for intersection)
And voila, you have now your inequality graphed.

There also GeoGebra tutorials that you may download from the following page:
http://wiki.geogebra.org/en/Tutorial:Main_Page

I hope you will find it interesting! After all, you are the technology generation and
skills that you will develop by using GeoGebra, will be valuable for all years' maths
and science. The advantage of using GeoGebra is that you don't need to carry a
scientific calculator everywhere you go, or worry if it's charged or no, or having to
learn how to use different types of calculators. Geogebra is free and you can install it
in every device that you may have. It's also colourful and adjustable, unlike scientific
calculators. Also, whatever command you use in the CAS view, you can also use it in
your own scientific calculator, if you already own one. Bottom line, I think that
GeoGebra will make maths easier and more enjoyable to work with, besides helping
you verify if your pen and paper long calculations are right or not.

59

Please let me know if you have any questions on the above or on any other issue
regarding our maths lessons. If you don't let me know, you make it hard for me to
figure out if you have any issues that need to be answered. So please don't hesitate to
contact me.

I will be more than happy to assist you.

Regards,

Mr Koudounas

60

APPENDIX 1-3: GEOGEBRA HOMEWORK

Hello class,
This is your homework, due for Monday 4th of March.

Answer the following questions using GeoGebra, save all of your work as a single
GeoGebra file and e-mail it back to me. Name your file using your full name, so I can
easily distinguish different pupils work.

1) Plot the set A= { x|x R, 3 x < 9 } on the number line.

2) Factorise x2-7x+8.
3) Solve the equation x2-7x+8=0.
4) Find the lowest common multiple of two numbers of your choice (both
numbers have to be greater than 21 each).
5) Find the highest common factor of two numbers of your choice (both numbers
have to be greater than 21 each).
6) Solve the equation -2xy-4x=0.

7) Simplify

4 2
3 3

8) Express 8876.56 as a ratio.

9) Express 676050.234 in standard form.
I have already provided you with detailed instructions in a previous e-mail, but please
do not hesitate to contact me in case you have any questions.
Regards,

Mr Koudounas

61

APPENDIX 1-4: SAMPLES OF STUDENTS WORK

Kindys work before receiving feedback:

Tins work before receiving feedback:

62

Kindys re-submitted work after receiving feedback:

Tins re-submitted work after receiving feedback:

63

APPENDIX 1-5: SAMPLES OF FEEDBACK GIVEN TO STUDENTS

A) Feedback to Kindy

Kindy, a well performing female student, originally sent me a file showing

minimal work (see appendix 1-4), which in addition made it obvious that she had
technical difficulties using the software.

I replied to her as follows:

Hi Kindy,
Well done for being diligent with your homework.

Unfortunately, I get an error message when I try to open the file you sent me.
After clicking the OK button, I can only see six points plotted. This is not the way
described in my e-mail a couple of weeks ago. You have to type 3 x < 9 in the input
bar to graph the inequality. Right click on the inequality found in the algebra window
and select Object Properties-->Style tab-->tick the "show on x axis" box. This way
you will get a line instead of all points on the xy plane that satisfy the inequality.
Also, I cannot see any other questions answered. Could you please try to create a new
file and resend it to me?

Regards,

Mr Koudounas

The student replied to me as follows:

Hello!
As soon as I read the mail, I went back to my GeoGebra file and tried to edit the first
question, however, it also appeared as an error on my computer.

64

Therefore, I tried to do it all over again from the beginning, and this time the rest of
the program didnt work even though I went through the same procedure that I used
to finish the work last time (I attached the actual GeoGebra file on this e-mail and I
also inserted the screenshot below just in case it doesnt work again).
I succeeded on getting the first question and the scientific notation question; however,
the rest didnt solve the questions.
I tried again after re-downloading the program but it didnt work either.

As I couldnt do the homework on GeoGebra even after several attempts, I did them
instead by myself on a word document, which is also attached onto this e mail.
Thank you for your support, and see you tomorrow!

Kind regards,
Kindy

Then I replied right back to her as follows:

Hello Kindy!

It's not your fault. It's a conflict between Geogebra versions 4 and 5.
Files created with version 5 (the version at G drive) don't work with the version found
in www.geogebra.org (which is version 4). So if you re-downloaded the program, you
should create a new file to work with. I used v5 to open your file and it worked fine.

Here is your feedback:

Q2

Try to use the command ifactor instead of factorise. The factorise command
will only return rational factors, but there are no rational factors for this quadratic. If
you try the method we've learned at class, you won't be able to factorise this

65

quadratic. But GeoGebra can do it for you! I saw in your word file that you already
know how to factorise a quadratic by using the discriminant formula.

Q3

After factorising the quadratic, compare the factorised quadratic with the solutions
you found in question 3. Can you now see why we need to know how to factorise a
quadratic? It's because if we factorise a quadratic equation from the form ax2+bx+c =0
into the form (x-number1)(x-number2)=0, then the solution of the equation is
x=number1 and x=number2, because if a product of two numbers equals zero, then at
least one of the numbers (or both of them) has to be zero.

Q7

To simplify the fraction, just type (4+2)/(3+3). Don't forget the brackets!! Make
sure to have the evaluate button active, not the numeric one. The symbol for the
square root can be found if you click on that little box with the Greek alpha letter at
the right of each input line. Alternatively, you can type sqrt[number].

Congratulations for your work and for your effort.

Best regards,

Mr Koudounas

66

B) Feedback to Tin

Tin, an underperforming male student, submitted a piece of homework which

demonstrated some common errors students face when they are called to use
scientific calculators. I sent him the following response:

Hi Tin,

Well done for being diligent with your homework. Here's my feedback:

While in CAS view you had the numeric button active instead of the evaluate one.
This is why GeoGebra numerically processed your input instead of solving the
quadratic or solving the equation -2xy-4x=0.

Try again with the evaluate button highlighted (it is the first button on the left, in
your CAS view).

Q1

You have to type the inequality. You just typed 39. Type 3 x < 9 in the input bar
to graph the inequality. Right click on the inequality found in the algebra window and
select Object Properties-->Style tab-->tick the "show on x axis" box. This way you
will get a line instead of all points on the xy plane that satisfy the inequality.

Q2

Have you tried to factorise the quadratic using the method we learned in class? If you
do, you will see that you can't. This quadratic has no rational factors. We will soon
learn how to factorise any quadratic using the discriminant formula. Perhaps you have
been already taught this formula in year 9, perhaps not. The factorise command
only returns rational factors, therefore use the command ifactor instead of
factorise, in order to factorise the quadratic using irrational numbers (surds).

67

Q3 & Q6

Type x-7x+8=0 having the evaluate button active and press the solve button.

Q7

You mistyped 4+sqrt(2)/3+sqrt(3) instead of (4+2)/(3+3). You forgot the

brackets!! Make sure to have the evaluate button active, not the numeric one.

Try the above and re-submit your file to me, ok?

Regards,

Mr Koudounas

The student did follow my instructions and finally submitted a considerably

better piece of homework, as it can be seen in appendix 1-4.

68

APPENDIX 1-6: CYCLE ONE QUESTIONNAIRE

YEAR 10 MATHEMATICS QUESTIONNAIRE NO 2

Mark the appropriate boxes below, using a or an :
Boy
Girl
1. Did you get enough assistance from your teacher in order to work with
GeoGebra?
Yes
No
2. Did you do your GeoGebra homework?
Yes
No
3. Did you read the instructions given to you before trying to work on your
homework?
Yes
No
I did not notice any instructions given to me
4. How hard/difficult did you find it to work with GeoGebra?
Very difficult
Somehow difficult
Neither easy or difficult

Easy

Very easy

5. Would you like to attend a GeoGebra session workshop an afternoon after

school? (at 2.15pm)
Yes
No, I am not interested
No, I do not have time
No, better to do it while in class
6. Do you think that GeoGebra helped you apply and practice your
mathematical learning?
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree
7. Do you think that working with GeoGebra is easier than using a handheld
graphics calculator?
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree
8. Do you think that GeoGebra helped you (or will help you) to work on more
advanced mathematical problems?
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree
9. Did you face any technical difficulties when using GeoGebra? (i.e. weird
error messages, installation issues)
Yes, many (more than 2)
Yes, no more than two
No
10. Where did you look for help when facing difficulties with GeoGebra?
No help needed
Teacher GeoGebra homepage Youtube/Internet My classmates
11. Do you think that using CAS or graphics calculators or Geogebra is like
cheating in maths?
Strongly agree
Agree
Not sure
Disagree
Strongly disagree

69

APPENDIX 1-7: CYCLE ONE SURVEY DATA

Girls

20

Boys

1. Did you get enough assistance from your teacher in order to work with GeoGebra?
11
7
4
16
13
3
Yes
No
41% 35% 57%
59% 65% 43%
2. Did you do your GeoGebra homework?
19
16
3
8
4
4
Yes
No
70% 80% 43%
30% 20% 57%
3. Did you read the instructions given to you before trying to work on your homework?
24
18
6
0
0
0
3
2
1
Yes
No
I did not notice any instructions given to me
89% 90% 86%
0% 0% 0%
11% 10% 14%
4. How hard/difficult did you find it to work with GeoGebra?
4 Neither easy 9 7 2
4
3
1
Very 2 2 0 Somehow 10 6
Very 2 2 0
Easy
hard 7% 10% 0% difficult 38% 30% 57% or difficult 33% 35% 29%
15% 15% 14% easy 7% 10% 0%

5. Would you like to attend a GeoGebra session workshop an afternoon after school? (at 2.15pm)
Yes

1 1 0 No, I am not
4% 5% 0% interested

5
3
2
19% 15% 29%

No, I do not
have time

8
7
1
13
9
4
No, better
30% 35% 14% during class 47% 45% 57%

6. Do you think that GeoGebra helped you apply and practice your mathematical learning?
3 0
7
4
3 Not 9
7
2
5
4
1
3
2
1
Strongly 3
Strongly
Agree
Disagree
agree 11% 15% 0%
26% 20% 43% sure 33% 35% 29%
19% 20% 14% disagree 11% 10% 14%

7. Do you think that working with GeoGebra is easier than using a handheld graphics calculator?
2
1
6
4
2 Not 13 10 3
4
3
1 Strongly 1 1 0
Strongly 3
Agree
Disagree
agree 11% 10% 14%
22% 20% 29% sure 48% 50% 43%
15% 15% 14% disagree 4% 5% 0%

8. Do you think that GeoGebra helped you (or will help you) to work on more advanced problems?
5
4
1 Not 16 11 5
4
3
1
Strongly 2 2 0
Strongly 0 0 0
Agree
Disagree
agree 7% 10% 0%
19% 20% 14% sure 59% 55% 72%
15% 15% 14% disagree 0% 0% 0%

9. Did you face any technical difficulties when using GeoGebra?

5
3
2
7
5
2
Yes, many (more than 2)
Yes, no more than two
18% 15% 29%
26% 25% 29%

No

15 12 3
56% 60% 42%

10. Where did you look for help when facing difficulties with GeoGebra?
5
5 0 GeoGebra 2 0 2
9
7
2
5
4
1 No help 6
4
2
My
Teacher
Internet
19% 25% 0% homepage 7% 0% 29%
33% 35% 29% mates 19% 20% 13% needed 22% 20% 29%
11. Do you think that using CAS or graphics calculators or Geogebra is like cheating in maths?
Strongly 0 0 0
2 1 1 Not 5
4
1
4
3
1 Strongly 16 12 4
Agree
Disagree
agree 0% 0% 0%
7% 5% 14% sure 19% 20% 14%
15% 15% 14% disagree 59% 60% 58%
Numbers in blue color represent boys answers and numbers in red color represent girls answers.
Numbers in black color represent the sum of boys and girls replies.

APPENDIX 1-8: CYCLE ONE SURVEY DATA STATISTICS

1. Did you get enough assistance from your teacher in order to work with
GeoGebra?
100%
90%
80%
70%

No 43%
No 59%

No 65%

60%
50%
40%
30%
20%

Yes 57%
Yes 41%

Yes 35%

10%
0%
ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS
Yes

BOYS

No

2. Did you do your GeoGebra homework?

100%
90%

No 20%
No 30%

80%
No 57%

70%
60%
50%
40%

Yes 80%
Yes 70%

30%
Yes 43%

20%
10%
0%
ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS
Yes

No

BOYS

3. Did you read the instructions give n to you before trying to work on your
homework?
100%

95%

I did not notice

any
instructions
given to me
11%

I did not notice

any
instructions
given to me
10%

I did not notice

any
instructions
given to me
14%

90%

85%
Yes 90%

Yes 89%

Yes 86%

80%

75%
ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS
Yes

No

BOYS

I did not notice any instructions given to me

4. How hard/difficult did you find it to work with GeoGebra?

100%
Very easy 7%

90%
80%
70%
60%

Easy
14%

Very easy 10%

Easy
15%

Easy
15%

Neither easy
or difficult
33%

Neither easy
or difficult
29%

Neither easy
or difficult
35%

50%
40%
30%
20%

Somehow
difficult
38%

Somehow
difficult
30%

Very hard 7%

Very hard 10%

ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS

Somehow
difficult
57%

10%
0%

Very hard

Som ehow difficult

Neither easy or difficult

BOYS
Easy

Very easy

72

5. Would you like to attend a GeoGebra session workshop an afternoon after school? (at 2.15pm)
100%
90%
80%
70%

No, better
during class
47%

No, better
during class
45%

No, I do not
have time
30%

No, I do not
have time
35%

No, I am not
interested
19%
Yes 4%

No, I am not
interested
15%
Yes 5%

ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS

No, better
during class
57%

60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%

Yes

No, I am not interested

No, I do not
have time
14%
No, I am not
interested
29%

BOYS

No, I do not have time

No, better during class

6. Do you think that GeoGebra helped you apply and practice your mathematical learning?
100%
90%
80%

Strongly
disagree 11%

Strongly
disagree 10%

Disagree
19%

Disagree
20%

Not sure
33%

Not sure
35%

Agree
26%

Agree
20%

Strongly
disagree 14%

Disagree
14%

70%
60%
50%

Not sure
29%

40%
30%
20%
10%
0%

Strongly
agree 15%

Strongly
agree 11%
ALL STUDENTS
Strongly agree

Agree
43%

GIRLS
Agree

Not sure

BOYS
Disagree

Strongly disagree

73

7. Do you think that working with GeoGebra is easier than using a handheld graphics calculator?
100%
90%

Strongly disagree 4%

Strongly disagree 5%

Disagree
15%

Disagree
15%

Disagree
14%

80%
70%
60%

Not sure
43%

Not sure
48%

Not sure
50%

50%
40%

Agree
29%

30%
20%
10%
0%

Agree
22%

Agree
20%

Strongly
agree 11%

Strongly
agree 15%

ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS

Strongly agree

Agree

Not sure

Strongly agree
14%
BOYS

Disagree

Strongly disagree

8. Do you think that GeoGebra helped you (or w ill help you) to w ork on m ore advanced problem s?

100%
90%

Disagree
15%

Disagree
14%

Disagree
15%

80%
70%
60%
50%

Not sure
55%

Not sure
59%

Not sure
72%

40%
30%
20%

Agree
20%

Agree
19%

10%
0%

Strongly agree
7%

Strongly agree
10%

ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS

Strongly agree

Agree

Not sure

Agree
14%
BOYS

Disagree

Strongly disagree

74

9. Did you face any technical difficulties when using GeoGebra?

100%
90%
No
42%

80%
70%

No
56%

No
60%

60%
50%

Yes, no more
than two
29%

40%
30%

Yes, no more
than two
26%

20%
10%

Yes, no m ore
than two
25%

Yes, many
(more than 2)
18%

Yes, many
(m ore than 2)
15%

ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS

0%

Yes, many (more than 2)

Yes, many
(more than 2)
29%

BOYS

Yes, no more than two

No

10. Where did you look for help when facing difficulties with GeoGebra?
100%
90%

No help
needed
22%

No help
needed
20%

My mates
19%

My mates
20%

Internet
33%

Internet
35%

Internet
29%

Teacher
25%

GeoGebra
homepage
29%

GIRLS

BOYS

No help
needed
29%

80%
70%

My mates
13%

60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%

GeoGebra
homepage 7%

Teacher
19%

0%
ALL STUDENTS
Teacher

GeoGebra homepage

Internet

My mates

No help needed

75

11. Do you think that using CAS or graphics calculators or Geogebra is like cheating in maths?
100%
90%
80%
70%

Strongly
disagree
59%

Strongly
disagree
60%

Disagree
15%

Disagree
15%

Strongly
disagree
58%

60%
50%
40%
30%
20%

Not sure
19%

Not sure
14%

Not sure
20%

10%
Agree 7%

Agree 5%

ALL STUDENTS

GIRLS

0%

Strongly agree

Disagree
14%

Agree

Not sure

Agree
14%
BOYS
Disagree

Strongly disagree

76

APPENDIX 1-9: CYCLE ONE SURVEY ANALYSIS

While 60% of all students (the percentage does not differ substantially between
boys and girls) responded that they did not receive adequate assistance from the
teacher (question 1), only one out of four or five students did ask for help from the
teacher (question 10). This explains why a remarkable 40% of the girls and 57% of
the boys responded that working with GeoGebra was hard for them (question 4).
Although 80% of the girls replied that they completed their GeoGebra
homework (question 2), my notes (appendix 1-11) indicate that only 40% really did
so. If this fact applies in general for the girls responses in other questions, then the
validity of some of the survey data may be considered as partially questionable.
Nevertheless, appendix 1-11 data indicates that boys answered sincerely.
Notwithstanding the vast majority of students that replied positively in question
3, data from the digital correspondence with them (appendix 1-5) reveals that they
rather skimmed through the instructions given to them, rather than studying them.
This conclusion is supported by the fact that while most of them succeeded with the
simplest commands, when they had to apply a sequence of commands, despite that
this sequence was explicitly explained in the written instructions, they faced
significant difficulties.
Around half of the students suggested that they would prefer a session
workshop during class rather than attending an after-school session (question 5).
Only 30% of the boys and 14% of the girls confirmed that GeoGebra did or
would help them towards working with more advanced mathematical problems
(question 8). These percentages were higher in question 6, in regards to if GeoGebra
helped students to apply and practice their mathematical learning.
Question 7 was a control question verifying that students lack of familiarity
with scientific calculators. Despite this, most of them recognize their importance in
maths and they do not consider them as cheating instruments (question 11).
Finally, technical difficulties is a factor to be considered, as around 60% of the
boys and 40% of the girls struggled with a few software related matters (question 9).

77

APPENDIX 1-10: FOCUSED INTERVIEWS

A)

Manny, a high performing female student, was selected for the following
interview, which took place shortly before the end of cycle 1. She was chosen
because of her positive attitude towards GeoGebra, so interviewing her could lead to
useful deductions about what worked well for her and what made her appreciate the
experience of doing mathematics with this technology tool. Hereupon, Inferences of
this kind may be taken into account in order to identify effective strategies, reproduce
them and optimise them.

1) How useful do you feel that GeoGebra is?

It is an interesting scientific calculator replacement. I havent been using a

scientific calculator before, so I cannot compare. Sometimes it is difficult to enter
input in GeoGebra, but I guess it is easier than entering input in a scientific calculator.
I really like GeoGebra when it comes to graphing.

2) Do you find it engaging/interesting working with GeoGebra to do

mathematics?

At first it looked very complicated. But along the way I found it easier and as
the equations got more difficult, I found it useful to use GeoGebra to verify my pen
and paper answers. It is cool that I can get fast answers with GeoGebra.

3) Do you prefer working only with pen and paper?

I do like working with pen and paper, as I am more familiar with it. I also
understand that I need to have technology skills needed for my future assignments,
for example presenting and processing data or graphing functions.

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4) Do you use GeoGebra at home or outside lessons? If yes, can you give an
example?

I like GeoGebra because it is easy to type things. If I do something wrong, I

dont have to retype it, I just have to correct the specific characters that are wrong.
Then the output changes instantly. I really like this. I experimented with graphing
linear polynomials and I was impressed. The visuals I got were worth the time spent.
I also find it useful to verify my answers, as sometimes you assign homework out of
the textbook, so I cannot otherwise verify right away if my answers are right or
wrong.

5) Do you have any suggestions regarding ways to better implement technology

into mathematics teaching and learning?

Mmm, I dont know. Let me think Ok, I think what youre trying to do is
worthwhile, but some of my classmates are not convinced. Try to show them the
benefits of using GeoGebra. You have to show them in class something tangible,
something that will impress them; otherwise just preaching about the benefits wont
suffice. Also, we are not very experienced and we dont have much time to work on
this at home, so I guess you have to provide more technical support and more
instructions during the lessons. Oh, and tell them that they wont have to retype
things; this really handy!

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B)

Che, a well performing male student, was selected for the following interview,
which took place shortly before the end of cycle 1. He was chosen because of his
quite negative attitude towards GeoGebra (he would not even turn on his laptop, even
from the very first lessons), so it was really crucial to identify what made him exhibit
this kind of behaviour. Later anecdotal observations revealed that his attitude was not
only confined in the issue of Geogebra, but as well manifested in other cases: in
general, he showed a substantial wariness regarding learning new tools and adopting
methods and suggestions that seemed not important, according to his point of view.
He only agreed on giving this interview after he was categorically assured that his
honest answers would not interfere with his assessment.

1) How useful do you feel that GeoGebra is?

I think it is not very useful. I havent been using software before in mathematics
and I cant see how this is going to help me. I think it just takes up my time.

2) Do you find it engaging/interesting working with GeoGebra to do

mathematics?

I find it confusing and hard to use.

3) Do you prefer working only with pen and paper?

Yes, after all, we wont be allowed to use GeoGebra in our exams. We will be
allowed to use calculators, on the other hand, so I prefer to learn how to use a
scientific/graphics calculator rather than some software that I wont be allowed to use
during an exam.

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4) Do you use GeoGebra at home or outside lessons? If yes, can you give an
example?

Truth is I havent spent time using it at school, neither at home.

5) Do you have any suggestions regarding ways to better implement technology

into mathematics teaching and learning?

Yes, we have to use calculators. I have a calculator.

6) What kind of calculator do you have?

I have been using a simple SHARP calculator; It isnt an advanced one

(graphic) calculator though.

7) Have you ever used a graphics calculator?

No. Later this year I will have to buy one, I guess.

8) Do you know that in years 11 and 12 you will have to extensively use software
similar to GeoGebra, in order to do advanced mathematics?

No sir, I had no idea about this.

9) Do you have any other thoughts that you would like to share?

Well, so far I thought that this software is not useful for me because you are
only going to be here for a term, so after the end of this term I wouldnt need to use it
anymore. If I need to find out how to use some other software, then I will do it when
the time comes. Yes, I guess it would help me a little to work with GeoGebra right
now, but I will start using software if my future teacher requires me to do so.

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APPENDIX 1-11: CYCLE ONE ASSESSMENT DATA AND ANALYSIS

Name
Manny
Tenise
Katherine
Kindy
Sonny
Chaplinne
Linkette
Che
Yeremiah
Berry
Jim
Michelle
Lunette
Odette
Yuma
Dina
Mary
Linnie
Tin
Liza
Camara
Damy
Josephine
Justin
Larry
Charlotte
Macedonia

Mid-term summative assessment result

95%
93%
91%
91%
84%
83%
High-achievers
83%
72%
68%
63%
60%
59%
54%
51%
49%
34%
33%
32%
26%
26%
24%
Low-achievers
22%
22%
22%
21%
21%
17%

GeoGebra homework submitted

yes
no
yes
yes
yes
yes
cheated *
no
no
yes
yes
no
no
no
no
yes
no
yes
yes
no
yes
no
cheated *
no
no
no
no

It can be seen that a little less than half of the students failed to score a mark
above 50% in the mid-term exam. There is a significant performance gap that divides
students into two distinct groups, one of high-achievers (12 students with a mark
above 59%) and one of low-achievers (12 students with a mark below 34%). Only
three students lie in the middle bracket (mark between 34% and 59%).
There is also a statistically strong correlation between students with a mid-term
mark over 60% and engagement with Geogebra: 63% of these did submit their
homework, whereas only 25% of the students with a mark under 60% submitted their
GeoGebra homework.

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On the other hand, there is no important correlation between gender and

engagement with technology: 43% of the boys and 40% of the girls submitted their
Geogebra homework.

* A couple of students tried to cheat, presenting other peoples work as their

own, but they were easily identified, thanks to the open ended nature of the assigned
homework. The cases of these students are treated as if they have not submitted their
homework.

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APPENDIX 2-1: CLASSROOM SEATING PLAN

84

APPENDIX 2-2: MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM DURING CYCLE TWO

Source:
Buchanan et al. (2012)

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APPENDIX 2-3: VISUALISING PARAMETERS19 WITH SLIDERS

A very common frustration is apparent between students that face algebraic
expressions20 for the first time. Students find it hard to understand the usefulness of
using parameters in Algebra. GeoGebra may help them visualise these parameters by
animating them, with the form of sliders, as seen below:

Moving the sliders changes the value of the parameter (which is either the slope
of the line or the y intercept), thus instantly changing the graph of the plotted line.
The line equations are displayed in the algebra pane on the left.

19

Parameters are also known in mathematics as coefficients or pronumerals or constants, depending on

the instance.
20
Algebraic expressions are also known as alphanumeric expressions, because they consist of a
combination of alphabetic and numeric characters.

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APPENDIX 2-4: THE ADVANTAGE OF VISUALISATION OVER CAS

The problem of solving simultaneously a system of two linear equations can be

solved ostensibly easily using a computer algebra system (CAS) calculator, like the
ones usually found in typical Queensland secondary mathematics classrooms. A
shown in the image below, it only requires typing the values of a, b, c and d followed
by the command

where y=a*x+b and y=c*x+d, is the system of linear equations to be solved.

In reality, as classroom practice confirmed, students found it quite difficult to

reproduce and apply the above command; not only the right combinations of commas,
braces and brackets are hard to implement, but in addition, the above command does
not reveal anything about the meaning of parameters a, b, c and d.
In contrast, the graphical method that involves sliders (appendix 2-3) only
requires students to insert the sliders (by pressing the slider button

), adjust the

sliders values, type the two equations and then click on the find intersect button
(In the beginning of the workshop, to make it even easier, sliders can be omitted, so
students only have to type the equations and press the find intersect button).
Students overtly expressed their preference towards the graphical method of
solving the problem, compared to the CAS method.

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APPENDIX 2-5: ADVANCED TEACHER DEMONSTRATIONS

Pythagoras theorem, visual proof no 1:

By dragging the points A, B and C (which are the vertices of the right triangle
ABC) the shape and size of the right triangle ABC may change, but this attribute is
always valid: the sums of the areas of the squares formed by the smaller sides of
triangle ABC, always equal to the area of the square of the hypotenuse.

88

89

Pythagoras theorem, visual proof no 2:

Four congruent right triangles are constructed within a square, as shown in the
figure below, in a way that the sum of the lengths a, b of each right triangles smaller
sides equals the length c of the side of the big external square. This way, a smaller
internal square is formed within the big external square. The sides of the internal
square are the hypotenuses of the right triangles. It can be shown by dragging point M
to the left or to the right, that no matter the ratio a over b, the identity a2+b2=c2 is
always valid.

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APPENDIX 2-6: EXCERPTS FROM ANECDOTAL NOTES

Monday, March 4th

Knowing that some students were doubtful towards GeoGebra, I started a

conversation with them, analysing the necessity of them using some technology tool
in the mathematics classroom, and the relative advantages of GeoGebra. I did ask
students if they had some other alternative technology tool in mind that they would
prefer to use, and after their negative response, we all agreed to give GeoGebra
another chance.
Wednesday, March 6th

Despite that the curriculum does not offer yet the opportunity for graphical
representations, while students were solving problems on the whiteboard, I
demonstrated them that GeoGebra is useful in instantly verifying their answers. This
way, I started noticing the first signs of changing student attitude towards using
GeoGebra: some students instead of asking me to check answers that are mistyped at
the answer section of their textbook, they started used GeoGebra instead.
Thursday, March 7th

Finally, the topic (simultaneous linear equations) is opportune for graphical

representations. The textbook does not have any graphs, and students did not
comprehend that when they were asked to solve a system of linear equations, what
they are really asked to find, is the intersection point between two straight lines. In
the workshop, I asked them to type the equations and get the intersection point, after
they had solved the same equation system using pen and paper. They seem amazed
that the answers pointed at the same coordinates, and that this algebraic problem
could be visualised like this. Also, the introduction of sliders made them realize that
the parameters in the equations were in reality the slope and the y intercept, concepts
that they have been taught in year 9. When I asked them if they could recognize that a
linear equation written in the general form (ax+bx=c) is a straight line, just as a linear
equation written in the slope-intercept form (y=mx+c), they all answered negatively.

91

Then, I asked them to type both forms into GeoGebra. When they did, they realised
themselves that these two forms are different expressions of the same thing: a single
straight line. Another advantage of all this technology integration into the lesson was
that at no time cost, students had the chance to revise linear graphs, even though this
was planned for later in term two.
Monday, March 11th

During this workshop session, I noticed that the classroom was finally a
collaborative learning environment; students were following my real time instructions
shown on the interactive whiteboard, sharing their screens with their adjacent mates,
and assisting the ones who were facing difficulties.
There was still a particular male student still refusing to use GeoGebra and he
just spent time watching other pupils work. At the beginning I thought that his
stubbornness had only to do with GeoGebra, but later I realised that this is not the
only case where he refused to follow instructions, as he demonstrated an attitude of
excess confidence that actually costed him some marks in the end-of-term exam.
Wednesday, March 13th

I showed students how to solve a system of simultaneous equations using CAS,

as this would be useful in case they would need to do this using a handheld calculator.
Their reaction was not as welcoming as compared to the one they exhibited when I
demonstrated the graphical method (for more details, see appendix 2-4).
Thursday, March 7th

Unfortunately, both the current IB as well as the Australian Mathematics

Curriculum, they do not recognise the value of mathematical proof. Students are
being dogmatically taught theorems, without having the chance to explore their
validity. Therefore, it did not surprise me to listen to students saying that after all
these years that they have been applying Pythagoras Theorem, they have never
bothered to derive it, despite that there are literally hundreds of methods to prove it. I
used GeoGebra to demonstrate two graphical proofs (appendix 2-5), as well a pen and
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paper proof that accompanied the second graphical Proof I used in GeoGebra. The
result was an unexpected but sincere applause by all students, who looked I dare to
say excited!
That was the final lesson with the year 10 students, and they did reward me by
expressing their disappointment regarding that we would not be having any more
lessons together any more.

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APPENDIX 2-7: CYCLE TWO ASSESSMENT DATA AND ANALYSIS

Name
Katherine
Kindy
Manny
Sonny
Chaplinne
Jim
Che
Tenise
Linkette
Michelle
Yeremiah

end-term exam grade

100%
100%
96%
94%
90%
89%
89%
88%
81%
77%
54%

mid-term exam grade

91%
91%
95%
84%
83%
60%
72%
93%
83%
59%
68%

% difference
9%
9%
1%
10%
7%
29%
17%
-5%
-2%
18%
-15%

All students but two girls and a boy managed to improve their exam
performance.
While the two girls exhibited a statistically insignificant difference, the boys
deterioration is notable. Judging by his similar unsatisfying performance in other
subjects, it can be safely suggested that the main reason in his case was probably
cursoriness and inadequate preparation for the exam. As a matter of fact, in cycle one
he did not submit his digital homework, claiming that he had been facing network
problems; later on, he was found to be the only one having installed an obsolete
GeoGebra version.

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APPENDIX 2-8: PRACTICAL AND TECHNICAL CONCLUSIONS

Workshops bear better results when the first tasks were explicitly specific and
simple.

Being able to direct students using the interactive whiteboard is of crucial

importance.

Starting sessions from scratch (a blank GeoGebra file) works better, as students
can see all ideas being put into effect.

Complex technical features of GeoGebra have to be used with caution, as students

might be overwhelmed.

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