My purpose in this paper is to situate a university-school mathematics and science
education partnership within a social justice perspective in education. The focus of
the systemic intervention endeavour was school-based teacher professional development
in which university-based facilitators embarked on class visits with the aim of
identifying teacher needs, co-teaching and offering professional support over a
three-year period. This was in contrast to evaluation (inspection visits) often undertaken
by the subject advisors under the auspices of the Department of Education
which, for historical reasons, tend to be viewed with suspicion by teachers and teacher
unions. Five historically disadvantaged secondary schools and their 10 feeder
primary schools were involved in this study with a view to providing equal opportunities
to learners from marginalized communities in the Cape Winelands
district of the Western Cape. Initial results suggest that an intervention programme
that is responsive to local needs can go a long way in bringing about collaborative
teacher professional development that leads to reflective practice in professional
learning communities and can add value to the quality of student achievement in the
gateway subjects of mathematics and science.

doi: 10.15700/saje.v31n3a538