Background: Research has indicated that young learners are capable of learning mathematics because they are born with an innate core of mathematics knowledge. Teachers of young learners are, therefore, expected to offer mathematical curriculum that exposes learners to a deep and explicit knowledge of high mathematics. Aim: The study aimed at Grade R in-service teachers’ understanding of teaching mathematics in their classrooms. Setting: The study sampled five in-service Grade R teachers from four districts in Lesotho, while they were enrolled in an in-service programme at a college of Education. Methods: This is a qualitative approach, and a case study design was employed. Data sources included teachers’ interviews, classroom observations and document analysis for instance, the teachers’ files, lesson plans for Grade R curriculum for mathematics and course outline of mathematics offered to in-service teachers during their training in the Lesotho College of Education (LCE). Which focussed on four domains of knowledge, namely, common content knowledge, special content knowledge, knowledge of content and students, and knowledge of content and teaching. Results: The findings revealed that the in-service teachers in the LCE had insufficient understanding of the teaching of mathematics, which in turn had a negative influence on the teaching of mathematics in Grade R classes. Conclusion: Despite the Lesotho government’s commitment to improving the learning of mathematics at the Grade R level. Teachers’ difficulties raise concerns about the effectiveness of their teaching of mathematics.

中文翻译：

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在职教师对R年级课堂教学数学理解的探索：以南非夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省莱索托大学R年级为例

背景：研究表明，年轻的学习者能够学习数学，因为他们天生具有数学知识的天生核心。因此，期望年轻学习者的老师提供数学课程，使学习者深入了解高等数学。目的：该研究旨在让R级在职教师了解其课堂上的数学教学。地点：该研究从莱索托四个地区的五名在职R级教师中抽取了样本，而他们都被纳入了教育学院的一项在职课程。方法：这是一种定性方法，并采用了案例研究设计。资料来源包括教师访谈，课堂观察和文件分析，例如教师档案，在职教师在莱索托教育学院（LCE）培训期间向其提供的R级数学课程计划和数学课程大纲。其中集中于知识的四个领域，即共同内容知识，特殊内容知识，内容和学生的知识以及内容和教学的知识。结果：调查结果表明，LCE的在职教师对数学教学的理解不足，从而对R年级的数学教学产生了负面影响。结论：尽管莱索托政府致力于改善R级的数学学习水平。教师的困难引起了他们对数学教学效果的担忧。