Teachers using iPad apps to fashion the pedagogy of primary mathematics: A TPACK perspective

The research presented here is part of a larger project, funded by the Teaching and Learning Research Institute (TLRI), to examine how teachers’ use of iPad apps might enhance learning in primary mathematics. Studies have indicated how the affordances of iPads can support student engagement and motivation as well as enabling personalised learning in mathematics. However, few studies have explored the relationship between iPad technology, pedagogy, and student learning.

Across the two years of the project we have worked with twelve teachers, with various experiences in using iPad technology, across the primary age range. The research used an interpretive methodology related to the building of knowledge through collaborative analysis and critical reflection of classroom practice. A key outcome of the project was to co-construct, with the teachers, a framework based on the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) continuum (Koehler & Mishra, 2006), with the aim to support teachers in deciding how to use apps to support their students. Data have been collected through teacher and student interviews and through video material of students working with different apps in their classrooms. Collaborative analysis of extracts of video data have been used to help both teachers and researchers understand how the students interacted with the mathematics through the iPad interface within classroom practice.

Several themes, related to the teachers’ use of apps, have been identified, such as mathematical thinking, differentiation, and student collaboration. Initial findings indicate that a teacher’s pedagogy is an important factor in determining how apps are used according to these themes. For example, how a teacher uses an app can impact greatly on collaboration and mathematical thinking. Furthermore, we consider how collaborative analysis, based on the TPACK continuum, has provided opportunities for teachers to reflect on their practices in relation to the themes and, hence, fashion their pedagogy and their students’ learning.