 Name of School: Marist Brothers High School

Dete
 Name of pupil: Anesu T Dzere
 Level: Form 4
 Project Title: Unlocking the Triangles: A
Project to Enhance Trigonometry Understanding
Learning area : Mathematics
 Syllabus topic: Trigonometry,Bearing and
Distances
 Project 🎯 Objectives
 To develop and implement a project that will
improve students' understanding of
trigonometry and their ability to apply it
accurately. The project will focus on:
o Building a strong conceptual foundation
o Enhancing visualization skills
o Providing varied and engaging practice
opportunities
o Connecting trigonometry to real-world
applications
Stage 1: Problem Identification
 Statement of Problem:
o What is the problem? Many students at
Marist Brothers struggle with
understanding trigonometry. This
difficulty arises from issues such as:
 Abstract nature of trigonometric
concepts
 Difficulty in visualizing angles and
their relationships
 Confusion with trigonometric ratios
and their applications
 Lack of understanding of the unit
circle and its connection to
trigonometric functions
o Who is affected? The students' academic
performance in mathematics is affected,
hindering their ability to grasp more
advanced mathematical concepts that
rely on trigonometry. This also affects
their confidence and interest in pursuing
STEM-related fields.
 o Where is the problem happening? The
problem is evident in classroom
discussions, homework assignments,
and test results, particularly in topics
related to right-angled triangles,
trigonometric functions, and their
applications.
 Statement of Intent:
o To develop and implement a project that
will improve students' understanding of
trigonometry and their ability to apply it
accurately. The project will focus on:
 Building a strong conceptual
foundation
 Enhancing visualization skills
 Providing varied and engaging
practice opportunities
 Connecting trigonometry to real-
world applications
 Design Specifications:
o The project will involve:
 Developing a series of interactive
lessons and activities focused on the
fundamental concepts of
trigonometry.
  Utilizing visual aids, manipulatives,
and technology to enhance
understanding and engagement.
 Providing differentiated instruction
and practice problems to cater to
diverse learning needs.
 Implementing formative assessment
strategies to monitor student
progress and provide timely
feedback.
 Creating supplementary resources,
such as worksheets, tutorials, and
online simulations, for additional
support.
o Materials:
 Whiteboard or projector
 Markers or pens
 Protractors and rulers
 Calculators
 Molecular models or manipulatives
 Worksheets with varying difficulty
levels
 Online simulations or interactive
software (e.g., GeoGebra)
  Real-world examples of trigonometry
applications (e.g., surveying,
navigation, construction)
 Assessment tools (e.g., quizzes,
problem sets, projects)

Stage 2: Investigation of Related Ideas

 How has the problem been solved before?
1. Using Real-World Applications
(Place: Various Schools): Teachers
connect trigonometry to practical
scenarios like surveying, navigation, and
construction.
 How successful?
(Advantages/Strengths): Increases
student motivation and engagement,
helps students see the relevance of
trigonometry.
 How successful?
(Disadvantages/Weaknesses): Can be
 time-consuming to implement,
requires finding suitable real-world
examples and resources.
2. Visual Aids and Manipulatives (Place:
Mathematics Classrooms): Teachers use
diagrams, models, and interactive tools
to illustrate trigonometric concepts.
 How successful?
(Advantages/Strengths): Helps
students visualize abstract concepts,
caters to different learning styles.
 How successful?
(Disadvantages/Weaknesses): May
not be effective for all students,
requires access to appropriate
materials and technology.
3. Step-by-Step Problem-Solving
Strategies (Place: Textbooks): Textbooks
provide algorithms and examples for
solving trigonometric problems.
 How successful?
(Advantages/Strengths): Provides a
structured approach, can be
effective for procedural learning.
 How successful?
(Disadvantages/Weaknesses): May
 not promote conceptual
understanding, students may
struggle with non-routine problems.

4. Technology and Simulations (Place:

Online Educational Platforms): Websites
and apps offer interactive simulations
and tutorials on trigonometry.
 How successful?
(Advantages/Strengths): Engaging
and interactive, provides immediate
feedback, allows for personalized
learning.
 How successful?
(Disadvantages/Weaknesses): May
not be accessible to all students,
requires technology, may not fully
replace hands-on learning.
Stage 3: Generation of Ideas
1. Inquiry-Based Learning with Technology:
Use dynamic geometry software (e.g.,
GeoGebra) to guide students in discovering
trigonometric relationships and solving
problems.
o Strengths: Promotes active learning,
allows for visualization and manipulation
of concepts, provides immediate
feedback.
o Weaknesses: Requires access to
technology and teacher training, may
need careful scaffolding.
o (Drawings/Diagrams: A sequence of
activities where students use GeoGebra
to explore the relationships between
angles and side lengths in right
triangles, a worksheet with guided
inquiry questions.)
2. Contextualized Problem Solving with
Projects: Engage students in extended
projects that apply trigonometry to real-
world scenarios, such as designing a
building or planning a navigation route.
o Strengths: Increases student motivation,
develops problem-solving skills,
 connects trigonometry to other
disciplines.
o Weaknesses: Can be time-consuming
and complex to implement, requires
careful planning and assessment.
3. Peer Teaching and Collaborative
Learning: Have students work in groups to
explain trigonometric concepts to each
other and solve problems collaboratively.
o Strengths: Promotes communication
skills, encourages active learning,
provides peer support.
o Weaknesses: May require careful group
formation and monitoring, some
students may rely on others.
4. Differentiated Instruction with
Scaffolding: Provide a range of instructional
materials and activities that cater to
different learning styles and levels of
understanding, with targeted support and
feedback.
o Strengths: Addresses diverse learning
needs, builds confidence, and promotes
mastery.
o Weaknesses: Requires careful
preparation of materials and ongoing
 assessment, may need additional
teacher support.
5. Targeted Trigonometry Workshops:
Organize focused workshop sessions outside
of regular class time to provide additional
support, address specific areas of difficulty,
and offer opportunities for collaborative
learning and practice.
o Strengths: Provides focused attention
on problem areas, allows for more
interactive and hands-on activities,
fosters peer support and learning, can
accommodate different learning paces
through differentiated activities within
the workshop.
o Weaknesses: May require extra time
commitment from students and
teachers, participation might be
voluntary and not reach all struggling
students, requires careful planning of
content and activities to be effective.
Stage 4: Development of Selected Ideas
(Workshops)
I will select the idea of organizing trigonometry
workshops.
Why the workshop solution was chosen:
Workshops provide a focused and interactive
environment where students can actively
engage with trigonometry concepts, receive
targeted support, and collaborate with their
peers. This format allows for addressing
common areas of difficulty through hands-on
activities, problem-solving sessions, and peer-
to-peer learning.
Workshop Objectives:
 To provide a supportive and interactive
space for students to deepen their
understanding of trigonometry.
 To address specific areas of difficulty
identified in Stage 1.
 To encourage peer learning and
collaborative problem-solving.
 To offer varied practice opportunities and
immediate feedback.
 To build confidence and reduce anxiety
related to trigonometry.
Workshop Structure and Content
The workshops will be structured around key
trigonometry topics and common areas of
student struggle. Each workshop session might
include the following elements:
1. Review of Fundamental Concepts: A
brief, interactive review of essential
definitions, ratios, and theorems.
2. Targeted Instruction: Focused
explanations and examples addressing
specific difficulties identified (e.g.,
visualizing angles, understanding the unit
circle).
 3. Hands-on Activities: Engaging activities
using manipulatives, diagrams, or real-world
scenarios to illustrate concepts.
4. Collaborative Problem-Solving: Group
work on practice problems, encouraging
students to explain their reasoning to each
other.
5. Interactive Q&A: Ample time for
students to ask questions and receive
immediate clarification.
6. Technology Integration (Optional):
Utilizing online simulations or interactive
tools to enhance visualization.
Workshop Schedule:
 Workshop 1: Unraveling the Basics of
Trigonometric Ratios: Focus on sine, cosine,
and tangent in right-angled triangles.
 Workshop 2: Navigating Angles and the Unit
Circle: Exploring angle measurement, radian
measures, and the connection to the unit
circle.
 Workshop 3: Mastering Trigonometric
Identities: Understanding and applying
fundamental trigonometric identities.
  Workshop 4: Solving Trigonometric
Equations and Applications: Practicing
solving equations and applying
trigonometry to real-world problems (e.g.,
bearings, distances).
Materials to be used in the Workshops:
 Whiteboard or projector
 Markers or pens
 Protractors and rulers
 Calculators
 Worksheets with targeted practice problems
 Diagrams and visual aids
 Manipulatives (e.g., cut-out triangles, unit
circle models)
 Optional: Computers with relevant software
(e.g., GeoGebra)
Process involved in the development and
delivery of the workshops:
1. Needs Assessment: Review student
performance data (from initial assessments
or classroom observations) to identify
specific areas of difficulty in trigonometry.
2. Content Development: Design workshop
content, activities, and practice problems
 that directly address the identified needs
and learning objectives.
3. Material Preparation: Gather and
prepare all necessary materials, including
worksheets, visual aids, and any technology
resources.
4. Workshop Scheduling and Logistics:
Determine the dates, times, and location for
the workshops, ensuring accessibility for
interested students. Grouping students from
different streams together can foster peer
learning.
5. Workshop Facilitation: Conduct the
workshops in an engaging and supportive
manner, encouraging active participation,
questions, and peer interaction. Facilitators
should guide discussions, provide
explanations, and offer individualized
support.
6. Formative Assessment: Observe student
engagement and understanding during the
workshops. Collect feedback through
informal questioning or short activities to
gauge comprehension.
Stage 5: Presentation of Results (Workshop
Report)
Report on Trigonometry Workshops for Form 4
Students
Introduction:
This report outlines the implementation and
outcomes of a series of trigonometry workshops
conducted for Form 4 students at Marist
Brothers High School Dete. These workshops
were designed to address the identified
challenges students face in understanding key
trigonometric concepts and to provide a
supportive environment for learning and
collaboration.
Workshop Implementation:
A series of 4 workshops were held between 11
April 2025 and1 may [Link] workshops
were open to all Form 4 students and were
structured around the key topics
To foster peer learning and diverse
perspectives, students from all Form 4 streams
(e.g., 4A1, 4A2, 4A3) were grouped together for
each workshop session. This deliberate mixing
of streams aimed to encourage students with
varying levels of understanding to learn from
and support one another.
Each workshop session incorporated a variety of
teaching methods, including:
  Concise reviews of fundamental principles.
 Targeted explanations of challenging
concepts.
 Hands-on activities using visual aids and
manipulatives.
 Collaborative problem-solving tasks where
students worked in small groups to discuss
and solve problems.
 Opportunities for students to ask questions
and receive immediate feedback from the
facilitators.
Observations and Outcomes:
Several key observations were made during the
workshop sessions:
 Increased Engagement: Students
demonstrated a high level of engagement
during the interactive activities and
collaborative problem-solving sessions. The
hands-on nature of the workshops appeared
to make the abstract concepts more
tangible.
 Active Peer Learning: A significant amount
of peer-to-peer teaching was observed.
Students actively explained concepts to
each other, shared their problem-solving
 strategies, and helped their classmates
overcome difficulties. This collaborative
environment fostered a sense of shared
learning and mutual support. For instance,
during the session on trigonometric ratios,
more confident students were seen guiding
their peers in identifying the opposite,
adjacent, and hypotenuse sides in various
triangles.
 Improved Understanding: Through active
participation and peer explanations, many
students showed a noticeable improvement
in their understanding of the topics covered.
Formative assessments during the
workshops, such as quick quizzes and
problem-solving checks, indicated a growing
grasp of the concepts.
 Reduced Anxiety: The supportive and
collaborative atmosphere of the workshops
appeared to reduce student anxiety related
to trigonometry. Students seemed more
comfortable asking questions and
attempting challenging problems in a less
formal setting than the regular classroom.
 Positive Feedback: Informal feedback from
students indicated that they found the
workshops helpful, particularly the
 opportunity to work with peers and receive
individualized attention. Many students
commented on the clarity of the
explanations and the usefulness of the
hands-on activities. For example, one
student noted, "Working with my friends
made it easier to understand sine and
cosine." Another mentioned, "The activities
with the triangles really helped me visualize
the ratios."
Challenges Encountered:
Managing Different Learning Paces: Students
inevitably grasp concepts at different speeds.
Some students quickly understood the
fundamental ideas and were ready for more
challenging problems, while others required
more time and repetition. This made it
challenging to cater to everyone's needs
simultaneously within the limited workshop
time. For instance, during the unit circle
workshop, some students readily grasped the
relationship between angles and coordinates,
while others needed more individual attention
to visualize it. Ensuring Active Participation of
All Students: While the collaborative activities
generally encouraged participation, some
students were more hesitant to contribute or
relied heavily on their group members. It was
sometimes difficult to ensure that every student
was actively involved in the problem-solving
process and not just passively observing. For
example, in some groups during the problem-
solving sessions, one or two students might
take the lead, while others contributed less.
Time Constraints for Covering All Desired
Content: Each trigonometry topic is quite
extensive, and the allocated time for each
workshop session was sometimes insufficient to
cover all the nuances and applications in detail.
This required making strategic decisions about
which aspects to prioritize and potentially
leaving some advanced topics or more complex
examples for regular classroom sessions. For
instance, the workshop on trigonometric
identities could have benefited from more time
to explore a wider range of identities and
problem-solving techniques. Varied Levels of
Prior Knowledge: Despite being in the same
form level, students entered the workshops
with varying levels of prior understanding of
trigonometry. Some had a stronger foundation
than others, which sometimes made it
challenging to pitch the content at a level that
was both accessible and engaging for everyone
Conclusion:
The trigonometry workshops proved to be a
valuable intervention for enhancing student
understanding and fostering a more positive
attitude towards the subject. The collaborative
learning environment, coupled with hands-on
activities and targeted instruction, facilitated
deeper comprehension and reduced student
anxiety. The success of these workshops
highlights the potential of supplementary,
interactive sessions in supporting students'
learning in mathematics.

Stage 6: Evaluation and Recommendations

Evaluation:
Problems Faced During the Execution of the
Workshops:
Managing Varied Learning Paces: As
anticipated, students progressed at different
rates. Some grasped concepts quickly, while
others needed more time and individual
attention during activities. Ensuring Consistent
Active Participation: While most students
engaged actively, a few were more hesitant to
contribute in group activities, requiring
facilitators to employ strategies to encourage
their involvement. Time Constraints: The
allocated time for each workshop sometimes
felt limited, making it challenging to delve into
more complex applications or provide extensive
practice on every sub-topic. Logistical
Coordination: Scheduling workshops that
accommodated students from all streams and
ensuring adequate space and resources
required careful planning and coordination. How
They Were Overcome:
Differentiated Activities: To address varying
paces, workshop facilitators prepared
supplementary materials and offered more
challenging extension activities for students
who grasped concepts quickly, while providing
additional support and simpler examples for
those who needed more time. Facilitator
Encouragement and Group Roles: Facilitators
actively encouraged participation by posing
direct questions to quieter students and
suggesting assigning specific roles within
groups to ensure everyone had a task.
Prioritization of Core Concepts: Due to time
constraints, the workshops focused on the most
fundamental and challenging concepts, with the
understanding that more advanced topics would
be covered in regular classroom sessions. Clear
Communication and Resource Management:
Effective communication with students
regarding the workshop schedule and careful
preparation of materials and the venue helped
to streamline the logistical aspects.
Recommendations:
Integration with Regular Curriculum: Findings
and insights from the workshops should inform
regular classroom instruction. Areas where
students showed significant improvement or
continued struggle can be highlighted for
further attention. Peer-Led Support Sessions:
Encourage students who demonstrated strong
understanding during the workshops to lead
informal peer-tutoring sessions for those who
need additional help. This leverages the peer
learning observed during the workshops.
Development of Online Resources: Create
supplementary online materials (e.g., short
video tutorials, interactive quizzes) that
students can access outside of workshop hours
to reinforce their learning and address
individual learning paces. Targeted Follow-Up
Workshops: Consider organizing follow-up
workshops focusing on specific areas where
students showed less progress or expressed
continued difficulty in the initial sessions.
Teacher Collaboration: Share the workshop
materials, activities, and lessons learned with
other mathematics teachers to explore
incorporating similar interactive and
collaborative strategies into their regular
teaching. Student Feedback Integration:
Conduct a more formal post-workshop survey to
gather detailed feedback from students on what
aspects they found most helpful and what could
be improved in future iterations. This feedback
should directly inform the planning of
subsequent workshops or similar interventions.