The Gauteng Province TIMMS 2019- Grade 9 Results

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The Grade 9 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) was administered in August 2019 by the Human Sciences Research Council in collaboration with the Gauteng Department of Education, the Department of Basic Education and the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement. TIMSS 2019 collected learner achievement data in the core subjects of mathematics and science, as well as contextual information from learners, educators and school principals, which enabled the exploration of factors that are associated with Grade 9 learners’ achievement. South Africa has participated in TIMSS at Grade 8 or 9 since 1995, with the assessment taking place every four years. In TIMSS 2019, the Gauteng province increased its sample size from 30 to 150 schools and participated as a self-standing benchmarking participant while still forming part of the national sample. This larger sample size allows a more precise measure of provincial mathematics and science achievement scores and an opportunity to understand the texture of Gauteng's achievement. Further, this larger sample allows for analysis to identify factors that are associated with Gauteng mathematics and science achievement. This report highlights how the results of international assessments can be used to provide meaningful insights at the provincial level. We analysed the data from a ‘building achievement and bridging achievement gaps’ perspective. The findings presented in the report are based on descriptive and inferential analysis of the TIMSS data and provide insights into learner achievement, as well as aspects of learners’ home environments and the school and classroom contexts within which teaching and learning take place. The report concludes with key findings and implications for the senior phase of the Gauteng education system.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

LIST OF FIGURES vii

LIST OF TABLES viii

LIST OF ACRONYMS x

READER’S GUIDE xi

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: GAUTENG TIMSS 2019 GRADE 9 RESULTS xiii

SECTION A: FRAMING THE TRENDS IN INTERNATIONAL MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE STUDY FOR THE GAUTENG PROVINCE AS A BENCHMARKING PARTICIPANT 1

CHAPTER ONE 2

1. GAUTENG DEMOGRAPHIC, SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONTEXT 2

The size and shape of the Gauteng educational system 4

A focus on achievement and achievement gaps 6

1. TIMSS DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 7

What is TIMSS? 7

TIMSS in the Gauteng province 7

The TIMSS Conceptual Framework 8

The TIMSS Assessment Framework 9

What did Grade 9 Gauteng participants do in TIMSS 2019? 9

The achievement booklets 9

The contextual questionnaires 9

TIMSS pre-administration and administration 10

Selecting schools and learners 11

Reporting TIMSS achievement scores 11

Structure of the report 12

SECTION B: ACHIEVEMENT AND ACHIEVEMENT GAPS 13

CHAPTER TWO 14

1. MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT 14

Mathematics achievement in an international context 14

Gauteng mathematics achievement and learners reaching international achievement benchmarks 17

Trends in mathematics achievement and achievement benchmarks in Gauteng

(TIMSS 2011 to 2019) 18

Mathematics achievement of Gauteng learners relative to other provinces 20

1. MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT GAPS 20

Mathematics achievement and ability levels by socioeconomic status of the school 20

Mathematics achievement and ability levels by school fee status 22

1. SUMMARY: MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT AND ACHIEVEMENT GAPS 23

CHAPTER THREE 24

1. SCIENCE ACHIEVEMENT 24

Science achievement in an international context 24

Gauteng science achievement and learners reaching international achievement benchmarks 27

Trends in science achievement and achievement benchmarks in Gauteng (TIMSS 2011 to 2019) 28

Science achievement of Gauteng learners relative to other provinces 29

1. SCIENCE ACHIEVEMENT GAPS 30

Science achievement and ability levels by socioeconomic status of the school 30

Science achievement and ability levels by school fee status 32

1. SUMMARY: SCIENCE ACHIEVEMENT AND ACHIEVEMENT GAPS 33

SECTION C: THE CURRICULUM: CONTENT AND COGNITIVE DOMAINS 34

CHAPTER FOUR 35

1. MATHEMATICS CURRICULUM 35
2. PERFORMANCE BY TIMSS MATHEMATICS CONTENT AND COGNITIVE DOMAINS 35

Mathematics achievement by content domain 35

Mathematics achievement by cognitive domain 37

1. SCIENCE CURRICULUM 38
2. PERFORMANCE BY TIMSS SCIENCE CONTENT AND COGNITIVE DOMAINS 39

Science achievement by content domain 39

Science achievement by cognitive domain 41

1. PERFORMANCE BY QUESTION TYPE 43
2. SUMMARY: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE CURRICULUM ANALYSIS 44

SECTION D: THE HOME ENVIRONMENT AND LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS RELATED

TO ACHIEVEMENT 45

CHAPTER FIVE 46

1. A PROFILE OF LEARNERS 46

Learners’ gender and achievement 46

Learners’ linguistic characteristics and achievement 48

Age of learners and achievement 50

1. HOME ENVIRONMENT OF LEARNERS 51

Availability of home assets 51

Home asset scale 53

Profile of schools by learners’ socioeconomic status 53

Home educational resources and mathematics and science achievement 55

Home support for learning 56

1. SUMMARY: LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS AND THEIR HOME ENVIRONMENT 57

CHAPTER SIX 58

1. LEARNERS LIKE LEARNING MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 58
2. LEARNERS VALUE MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 60
3. LEARNERS CONFIDENT IN MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 62
4. SUMMARY: LEARNER ATTITUDES TOWARDS MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 64

SECTION E: SCHOOL AND CLASSROOM FACTORS RELATED TO ACHIEVEMENT 65

CHAPTER SEVEN 66

1. SCHOOL CHARACTERISTICS 66

Profiles of schools by their socioeconomic status 66

Profile of schools by socioeconomic status of learners 67

Profile of schools by population group of learners 68

Profile of schools by their geo-location 69

1. THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL 71

School principals’ educational qualifications and experience 71

Principals’ leadership style and school management characteristics 71

1. SCHOOL CLIMATE 72

Emphasis placed on academic success 72

Schools promoting academic excellence in mathematics and science 75

Safe and orderly schools 77

School discipline 79

Incidences of bullying in schools 81

1. SUMMARY: SCHOOLS AS ENABLING LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS 83

CHAPTER EIGHT 84

1. EDUCATORS 84

Preparation and experience 84

Educator professional development participation and future needs 85

1. RESOURCES TO TEACH MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 86

Class size and achievement 86

Resources and materials 89

Textbooks and workbooks 89

1. CLASSROOM INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES 91

Educators’ instructional clarity 91

Learner behaviour during mathematics lessons 92

Emphasis on science investigation and experiments 94

1. COMPUTERS IN EDUCATION AND INSTRUCTION 95

Computers in the home 95

Computer access in schools 96

Computer access and use in mathematics and science classrooms 96

1. SUMMARY: CLASSROOMS: EDUCATORS, RESOURCES AND INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES 97

SECTION F: A MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS OF FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH

MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT 98

CHAPTER NINE 99

1. AN OVERVIEW OF THE APPROACH USED 99

Basic associations 99

Grouped multivariate associations 99

Full multivariate model 100

Statistical analysis 100

1. BIVARIATE ASSOCIATIONS 100

School quintile rank 100

Household characteristics 101

Individual-level characteristics 102

Learner attitudes to learning 102

Educator and classroom characteristics 103

Principal and school-level characteristics 104

1. GROUPED MULTIVARIATE ASSOCIATIONS 105

Household characteristics 105

Individual-level characteristics 106

Learner attitudes to learning 106

Educator and classroom characteristics 107

Principal and school-level characteristics 108

1. HOW MUCH OF THE VARIATION IN ACHIEVEMENT CAN THESE CHARACTERISTICS EXPLAIN? 109
2. FULL MULTIVARIATE MODEL 110
3. SUMMARY: FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH MATHEMATICS ACHIEVEMENT 113

SECTION G: RESULTS AND IMPLICATIONS 114

CHAPTER TEN 115

1. RESULTS FROM THE GAUTENG PROVINCE TIMSS 2019 115

GRADE 9 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE PERFORMANCE 115

HOME AND INDIVIDUAL, SCHOOL AND CLASSROOM CONTEXTS 116

CURRICULUM 118

1. IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE GAUTENG PROVINCE TIMSS 2019

RESULTS 118

Monitoring and evaluating the Gauteng province’s mathematics and science achievement and achievement gaps 119

Improving school functionality and promoting whole school improvement 119

Schools must be safer places of learning that emphasise academic excellence 120

Improving learners’ attitudes to learning mathematics and science 120

CONCLUSION 121

REFERENCES 122

ANNEXURE 1: TIMSS DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 127

Translating and preparing assessment instruments 127

Field testing of instrument 127

Main administration of TIMSS 2019 127

Creating the TIMSS 2019 data files 128

ANNEXURE 2: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE CURRICULA 130 ANNEXURE 3: NON-COGNITIVE FACTORS IN THE CAPS DOCUMENTS 132