Interactive Pathway for an Inclusive Mathematics Education

The recent technological revolution is affecting not only industry, but also education. On one side, schools are required to develop new skills, as digital and problem solving competences, to prepare students to face rapid transformations of the world of work. On the other side, they are pervaded of innovative tools, digital environments and technological infrastructures, which enable different cognitive and non-cognitive processes. This contribute deals with the integration of ICT in the didactic activities in Italian lower secondary school, in the context of Mathematics education. It discusses an interactive pathway, designed according to problem posing and solving methodology and automatic formative assessment, and implemented in a virtual learning environment, aimed at developing Mathematics and problem solving competences with a special attention to the inclusion of students with special needs or challenging backgrounds. Method The interactive pathway was experimented in the City of Turin in 2017/2018 school year, involving six schools chosen in different areas of the city, characterized by different social and economic contexts. The digital materials were used during the Mathematics lessons in 13 classes (299 students) while other 11 classes (247 students) from the same schools composed the control group, going through the same topics in a traditional way. The digital materials were proposed in the classrooms via group-work supported by the Interactive White Board; automatically assessed assignments with interactive feedback were assigned as homework. Learning improvements were measured through a pre and a post test, while the effects of the methodologies on engagement and motivation were measured through questionnaires at the beginning and at the end of the experimentation. Teachers were involved in the design and use of the materials through focus groups. Outcomes (expected) The results of the learning tests show a significant improvement in Mathematics and problem solving skills in the classes which used the interactive materials, while a similar improvement cannot be detected in the control group. The effects of the interactive materials were higher in the classes located in disadvantaged contexts, both in terms of learning and in terms of engagement and motivation. According to the teachers, the methodologies were particularly appreciated by students with special needs and they turned out to be inclusive.