Euclidean Geometry is a challenging topic for most of the learners in the secondary schools. A
qualitative case study explores the reasoning skills of ninth graders in the proving of congruent
triangles in their natural environment. A class of thirty-two learners was conveniently selected to
participate in the classroom observations. Two groups of six learners each were purposefully
selected from the same class of thirty-two learners to participate in focus group interviews. The
teaching documents were analysed. The Van Hiele’s levels of geometric thinking were used to
reflect on the reasoning skills of the learners. The findings show that the majority of the learners
operated at level 2 of Van Hiele’s geometric thinking. The use of visual aids in the teaching of
geometry is important. About 30% of the learners were still operating at level 1 of Van Hiele
theory. The analysed books showed that investigation help learners to discover the intended
knowledge on their own. Learners need quality experience in order to move from a lower to a
higher level of Van Hiele’s geometry thinking levels. The study brings about unique findings
which may not be generalised. The results can only provide an insight into the reasoning skills of
ninth graders in proving of congruent triangles. I recommend that future researchers should focus
on proving of congruent triangles with a bigger sample of learners from different environmental
settings. / Mathematics Education / M. Ed. (Mathematics Education)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/27367 |
| Date | 09 1900 |
| Creators | Mapedzamombe, Norman |
| Contributors | Phoshoko, Moshe Moses |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | 1 online resource (xii, 174 leaves) : illustrations (some color), application/pdf |
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