A model for mathematics teachers to promote ESL acquisition through questioning strategies

Abstract

Questions have been used in centres of learning and teaching all over the globe since time immemorial for student-teacher interaction, student learning and assessment. In most of South Africa’s multilingual classrooms, these questions are phrased in English, a medium of instruction and also a second or third language for most of the students. However, the types of questions, their roles, questioning techniques and teacher strategies have not been widely explored, especially in mathematics classrooms in as far as the development of English Second Language (ESL) on the part of the students is concerned. The purpose of this study is therefore to explore this with the ultimate purpose of enabling grade 10 mathematics teachers to promote learners’ understanding of mathematical discourse and ESL development through the types of questions used, questioning techniques and teacher strategies. The study also focuses on the functions of questions, questioning techniques and strategies that teachers can apply during lessons for learners to comprehend the lesson, to process and interact using language (ESL), to produce language in the form of output, and to receive feedback on their utterances. The research followed a qualitative approach within an interpretivist paradigm. The qualitative research design and multiple case study approach allowed the participants to give meaning to the construct by sharing their own experiences in mathematics classrooms. Ultimately the results from the data analysed and the literature reviewed, were used to design a hands-on tool to promote questioning and language acquisition in mathematics classrooms.