UKZN Mathematician Reflects on His Research Journey in Inaugural Lecture

UKZN Mathematician Reflects on His Research Journey in Inaugural Lecture

Professor Anesh Maharaj used the occasion of his inaugural lecture to UKZN’s professoriate to highlight the research he has conducted on the teaching and learning of university mathematics.

Maharaj covered the first-year teaching context at UKZN as well as provided insights into the teaching and learning of mathematics.

‘Our first-year classes are huge, with about 250 to 500 students in the lecture venues,’ he said, going on to discuss the organisation and conducting of mathematics tutorials for large classes, and presenting a model for the design of mathematics tutorials and also possible scoring criteria for tutorial units.

‘Activities need to be designed so that students feel comfortable engaging with them,’ he said. ‘Students get greater benefit from tutorials that are more organised and include a homework requirement. The quality of their participation will determine success or failure.’

Maharaj touched on insights gained and research stemming from various projects, including the (Hewlett Packard) HP Global Catalyst Summits, the UKZN-ESKOM Mathematics project and the (National Research Foundation) NRF-funded project, Online diagnostics for undergraduate mathematics. ‘The problem of underprepared incoming students is universal,’ he said. ‘The use of technology to deal with this problem could be exploited.

‘Mathematics is a symbolic language. It is important that students extract and interpret the meaning.’

Maharaj also discussed research studies he has done based on the APOS theory and supervision of postgraduate studies. APOS theory considers Actions, Processes, Objects and Schemas as an individual’s successive mental constructions in learning a mathematical topic and interiorisation and encapsulation as the only mental mechanisms needed to build those mental constructions.

Maharaj, a professor in the Discipline of Mathematics in the College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science at UKZN, was awarded his BPaed degree with distinctions in Mathematics from the University of Durban-Westville in 1983, and obtained his honours (1991), masters (1998) and PhD degrees (2006) from the University of South Africa.

Maharaj joined the then University of Natal (Howard College) in January 2003 as a Mathematics senior tutor, and ascended the academic ladder to lecturer in 2008, senior lecturer in 2015, associate professor in 2018 and full professor in 2021 – all at UKZN’s School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science.

Maharaj’s research interests focus on the teaching and learning of mathematics topics/concepts using APOS Theory, and the use of technology to promote the teaching and learning of mathematics. He has successfully completed the supervision of seven doctoral and four master’s degree students, has mentored several NRF interns/research assistants, and has published more than 56 research articles in accredited journals. He currently supervises one master’s and five doctoral students.

Maharaj has examined several master’s and PhD theses and was a reviewer for national and international journals, including Pythagoras, the South African Journal of Science Education, the African Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, and the Journal of Mathematical Behavior.

He has been an invited speaker at several international conferences and workshops and has had the opportunity to give invited talks at a variety of universities. He was a visiting researcher at national and international universities and colleges from 2008 to 2022.

Maharaj is an NRF C3-rated scientist, valid from 2022 to 2027, and is the recipient of several awards and grants including the 2014 Distinguished Teachers’ Award at UKZN. He has developed many international collaborations as an associate member of the Multiversity Consortium of the HP Global Catalyst Education Summits.

He thanked his students, colleagues and the many collaborators he has interacted with throughout his journey in mathematics education.

Words: Sally Frost

Photograph: Supplied