Abstract:
The Specialised Content Knowledge (SCK) is an
important sub-domain under Mathematical Knowledge for
Teaching (MKT) framework that describes the mathematical
content knowledge that is unique to the profession of teaching
and not necessarily required by other professions in which
mathematics is used. Research on SCK in the context of
secondary education is still underdeveloped while SCK of in service teachers have also received limited attention. The
current study investigates the SCK of Sri Lankan in-service
secondary mathematics teachers in teaching an important
Calculus concept in G.C.E. (Advanced Level) combined
mathematics curriculum: the concept of Derivative. Lessons of
ten mathematics teachers from seven schools were observed.
The data comprises of field notes and video recordings of
lessons and these video recordings were transcribed verbatim
for analysis. Transcripts of lessons were analysed through the
lens of Ball’s MKT framework while placing more emphasis on
SCK sub-domain. Analysis of data identified four different
components that describe SCK in teaching the concept of
derivative, namely: SCK-PK (Building new knowledge on
prior knowledge), SCK-MR (Multiple Representations), SCK MJ (Mathematical Justifications), and SCK-ML
(Mathematical Language). Teachers exhibited each SCK
component in varying degrees of proficiency. Majority of
teachers elicited their content knowledge under SCK-MR and
SCK-ML components while gaps were noticed in SCK-MJ and
SCK-PK components. This study sheds light on the current
status of G.C.E. (Advanced Level) combined mathematics
teachers with respect to SCK and provides insights for
planning teacher education programs and workshops.
