"Varför lär vi oss det här?" : En kvalitativ studie av verklighetsbaserad matematikundervisning

Background: Traditional mathematics teaching involves a form of education that is based on educational materials where pupils’ skills are trained through individual silent work. It is currently the kind of teaching that is currently used most in Swedish schools. Reality-based mathematics means that the teacher implements real situations that occurs in everyday life / reality in mathematics teaching. It aims to clarify the relationship between mathematics as practiced in school and practiced outside school. This study is based on Jean Piagets cognitive constructivism and Lundgrens (1972) and Stensmos (2008) frame factor theory. That proposes that humans must construct and build their knowledge through experience and which factors that have an affect on the tuition. Aim: The aim of this study is to look into the teachers' experiences of reality-based mathematics. To answer this following questions were prepared: What is reality-based mathematics and when is it used? How do different factors affect the possibility to conduct reality-based mathematics? What are the advantages and disadvantages concerning a reality-based mathematics? Methods: The study is qualitative in nature, where semi-structured interviews and observation were chosen as the research method. Results: The analysis shows that teachers mainly have positive experiences into reality based teaching, with elements of negative experiences. Four themes emerged from the results: Varied teachings, the relevance of mathematics, lack of time and relationships and results. Conclusion: The interviewed teachers mainly have positive perceptions of reality based mathematics, but they do not have enough time to plan it as required. For that reason they claim that the time is the primary factor that limits their teachings. The school system has a responsibility to reduce teachers' workload so that they can focus on teaching