Effects of instructional strategies on high school students in mathematics: West-Gojam zone, Ethiopia

This study was designed to examine the possible effects of instructional strategies on mathematical discourse. The effectiveness, retention, application and the usefulness of teacher-centered instruction were in question. To obtain data, questionnaire, classroom observation, and semi-structured interviews were used. A total of one hundred fifty-six teachers and five hundred sixteen students from the entire sample schools were selected using simple random sampling technique for the questionnaire and classroom observation. Twenty teachers and thirty-five students were interviewed. The quantitative data were analyzed using one sample t-test whereas the qualitative one was analyzed using descriptive interpretations. The findings implied that improving teachers’ status has a great impact on mathematics discourse. Furthermore, the findings showed that the kind of appropriate teaching methods for a particular topic, cooperative learning and learning mathematics outside the classroom have a strong effect on mathematics discourse. The results spotlight that both the cognitive and material decisions teachers make, in relation to classroom discourse, significantly influence learning. In general, the results demonstrated that teachers are at the essence of effective Mathematics education. However, the findings also disclosed that there are disconfirming constraints pretending teachers’ effectiveness in teaching Mathematics. An awareness of these elements can assist increase a teacher’s effectiveness if they are addressed successfully. Recommendations are also forwarded.