Teaching development grants final and financial report: Developing exploratory pedagogy to enhance teaching and learning mathematics

For most students, Mathematics is an abstract and difficult subject to learn. Quite often, they find it hard to understand abstract mathematical concepts (e.g. sets, functions, limits, etc.), or difficult to prove m athematics results in a rigorous manner. This project aims to develop exploratory pedagogy to facilitate the students to learn Mathematics more effectively. With a set of well-designed exploratory learning materials at hand, students will be able to explore the related mathematical concepts first, via numerical examples, real-life cases, diagrams, games or concrete objects, etc., before being introduced to the formal mathematical definitions or concepts. Consequently, under the guidance of the lecturers, students will be led to develop the ability to work out proofs deductively, using proper mathematical language. To this end, the project team will work closely with the module lecturers concerned to identify the mathematical concepts or topics that are often found difficult for students to learn; and then design and develop the related teaching and learning materials for use in several Mathematics modules. It is anticipated that the end products will contribute to enhancing the quality of teaching and learning of Mathematics via an exploratory pedagogy in our institute. Furthermore, they can serve as exemplified examples for in-serve teachers on how to improve students' Mathematics learning, and also as a reference for future designs of Mathematics modules in the 3-3-5 curriculum or new programmes offered by the HKIEd.