Number structure in learner workbooks

This paper reports on the extent to which different representational modes in current learner workbooks conceptually signal the structuring of number (especially base-ten thinking) which research shows to be vital for learners to shift from counting to calculating strategies. Tasks contained in two learner workbooks currently used in Grade 1 classrooms across South Africa, i.e. DBE and Bala Wande, were contrasted in light of the conceptual signalling contained in the representations used. Analysis of these workbooks showed that the Bala Wande workbooks had more explicit conceptual signalling for working with number structure, which helps to address the wide-spread use of counting strategies that underpin poor learner attainment on the ground