An exploration of student online experiences during mathematics class in the middle school

The approaches to using new technologies available to schools, teachers and students, require adoption of learner and teacher practices different from traditional practice. The focus of this research concerns student perceptions about their online mathematics experiences as they apply to middle school youth (12-14 years old). Essentially, this research examines the dynamics of student online experiences and the relationships amongst themselves and with teachers during the mathematics lesson, utilising technology supported learning from a student perspective. In this respect it was deemed necessary that a research design has the ability to meet the challenges related to collecting data from students as well as accommodating the complexity of the research topic. The research used mixed methods methodology as a means of securing an in-depth understanding of the perception of online experiences by students during mathematics class. The research design used three online contexts, within two rounds of data collection. One round comprised two interactive contexts namely, mathematics blogs and RLOs and the other utilised the read-only digital copy of the textbook. Results from the data analysis identified seven constructs used by students to describe their online experiences. The prominent perception about student online experiences during mathematics class concerned the construct of usefulness. Results also revealed students’ influence of the online context used in the mathematics classroom. It was found the students were more positive about the use of a read-only textbook online than the interactive online experience. It was also found that students valued the presence of their teacher during class and considered where the teacher role was to be one of assistance and advocacy. The results from this research can inform curriculum design and teacher practice with regard to online learning in mathematics in middle schooling. Recommendations on teacher planning and use of student online experiences in the mathematics classroom and areas for further research are presented.