Mathematics and Computer Science Education
As part of the College of Humanities at UKZN, We are committed to developing the university as a premier institution of African scholarship.
As an integral part of the School of Education, the mathematics and computer science education cluster has been working diligently to maintain the excellent programmes we have established in teaching, while opening up new areas for research. Some of our community engagement include working with teacher organisations such as AMESA, and running workshops for teachers and learners in the areas of mathematics education and information technology. We are committed to enhancing the democratic values and social justice imperatives of UKZN, while responding to the development challenges. Based in the peaceful and green surroundings of Edgewood campus, we are made up of two main disciplines namely, Mathematics Education, and Computer Science Education. We offer over 20 modules per semester for Initial Teacher Education, as well as Postgraduate programmes. We have 14 permanent staff and two research associates. Although we form a small cluster, we are proud of the quality of our teaching and the impact of our research. As the MCSE cluster, we are excited about the programmes that we offer as part of our mission to develop the next generation of excellent mathematics and computer science teachers. Our team of contract staff who have been working closely with us over the years and have helped us deliver our programmes with zest and enthusiasm.
As part of the College of Humanities at UKZN, the Mathematics and Computer Science Education Cluster is committed to developing the university as a premier institution of African scholarship. Thus our strategic vision and mission emphasises the intellectual, educational and cultural development of the region and globally in its concerns around Mathematics and Computer Science Education.
In general, research interests of staff include:
One of the most famous sequences in mathematics is the Fibonacci sequence, where each number is the sum of the two previous numbers in the sequence. Therefore, the sequence begins with 0, and then continues on like this: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233…
Leonardo Pisano, called Fibonacci was born in Pisa around 1170. His father (Guglielmo dei Bonacci) was a Pisan merchant and Fibonacci means “son of Bonacci”.
Around 1192 Leonardo’s father took him to Pisa. It is believed that this is where his interest in mathematics started for the young Leonardo, as he was taught by a Arabic teacher, who guided him in learning calculation techniques, especially those concerning Indo-Arabic numbers, which had not yet been introduced in Europe.
Leonardo spent close to 25 years dedicating himself to writing mathematical manuscripts. These include the Liber Abaci (1202), Practica Geometriae (1220), Flos (1225) and Liber Quadratorum (1225).
