Investigating the Effects of Integration on the Development of Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching: A Case of Pre-Service Teachers in the Colleges of Education in Ghana amidst Curriculum Changes

Abstract

The study examined the effects of integration on the development of Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching (MKT) among pre-service teachers while enrolled in a math program at the colleges of education in Ghana in the face of the new curriculum. In all, two hundred and forty-seven (247) pre-service teachers (PSTs) were sampled for the study. The experimental group comprised one hundred and thirty (130) PSTs who were taught both Mathematics content and method courses in an integrated manner, while the control group, comprised of one hundred and seventeen (117) PSTs, was taught Mathematics content and method courses separately. The non-equivalent static-group comparison design was used for the study. Both groups of PSTs were post-tested after they had received instruction in mathematics courses up to the point where they were ready to go for their macro teaching (Off Campus Teaching Practice) to compare their achievements in terms of their mathematical knowledge for teaching. Analysis of data using the independent sample t-test revealed that the control group had a mean score lower than the experimental group, and the standard deviation showed that the scores of the control group were far from their mean score. That is, the scores of the control group were more heterogeneous than that of the experimental group. The experimental group scored higher than the control group on the post-test, and their scores were more homogeneous than the control group. At a significant level of 0.05, there was a statistically significant difference between the means of the two groups on the post-test. With a mean difference of 5.042, the experimental group performed better than the control group on the post-test. Hence, the students in the experimental group turned out to achieve better on MKT components than the students in the control group. It was recommended, among others, that the use of the integrated approach in the teaching and learning of Mathematics should be encouraged, monitored, and supported throughout the Colleges of Education in Ghana.