How do grade 3 teachers infuse pedagogies of higher order thinking skills in their teaching?

Abstract

Higher order thinking skills (HOTS) are an important aspect of teaching and learning in the current global era. Teachers’ understanding of HOTS and its teaching and learning strategies are fundamental to successful education. The present study aims to explore Grade 3 teachers’ pedagogies used to promote HOTS in a South African context. Despite having clear curricular guidelines to help teachers infuse HOTS in their classroom practice, past studies have reported that teachers are still not fully prepared to do so. The descriptions of Shulman’s PCK framework (1986), Alexander’s conceptualisation of pedagogy (2003) and Bloom’s (1956) taxonomy contributed towards a richer understanding of which attributes are considered most important in the analysis of teachers’ pedagogies in HOTS. A qualitative case study, within an interpretive paradigm, to understand how two teachers make sense of HOTS and their strategies to infuse it into their teaching, were used. A primary school in a low socio-economic suburb on the Cape Flats was selected. This study incorporated a multiplicity of data collection instruments, which include the primary techniques of interviews, observations and post-observation interviews. A documentary review is a minor component to complement the primary techniques to explore the perceived value of HOTS implementation in the classroom. One of the main findings is that teacher motivation and beliefs impact their implementation of HOTS pedagogies. One of the key recommendations arising from this study is the need to develop the competency of all in-service teachers’ pedagogy around HOTS with the provision of in-depth, systematic professional development course, in order for teachers to effectively infuse HOTS in their teaching.