WALIA journal 34(1): 43-51, 2018 Available online at www.Waliaj.com ISSN 1026-3861 © 2018 WALIA 43 Teaching of mathematics: A comparative analysis of secondary school certificate (grade x) and general certificate of education (o-level) courses of studies in Karachi Muhammad Akhtar *, Ahmad Saeed Hamdard Institute of Education and Social Sciences, (HIESS) Hamdard University, Karachi, Pakistan Abstract: The important aim of school education is the development of cognitive domain of learning and within this domain; development of thinking skills (especially higher order thinking skills) is the most important goal of school education. Mathematics is a subject that can develop these cognitive faculties but the level of attainment depends on the way it is taught. Research in this area has shown that studentsǯ achievement level in mathematics is low a s compared to other subjects. They perform better on those items in which memorization of facts are required whereas their performance is poor on the items requiring comprehension and skills of problem solving. It is therefore very important to have an in depth study of the ways mathematics is taught in our schools. The purpose of this study was to identify weaknesses and to find measures for raising the standard of mathematics education in the Pakistani system of studies (SSC). To achieve this purpose SSC system has been compared with its internationally recognized counterpart the GCE (O-Level) system in this study. The design of study is descriptive in nature. The data were collected from a sample of 250 schools through questionnaires for teachers (N=300), students (N=200), semi- structured interviews for the subject experts (N=20) and a comparative content analysis of question papers (1994- 2013) of the examination boards of both the systems. The data collected through questionnaires were analyzed using t-test whereas the data collected through interviews and comparison of contents of the exam papers were analyzed qualitatively. Findings of the study revealed a clear difference in the assessment schemes of SSC and GCE systems of studies. GCE system was found assessing understanding of abstract mathematical concepts and their use to solve real-world problems from different perspectives whereas assessment in SSC system was not found going beyond studentsǯ mechanical ability of applying basic formulae and procedures to routine problems. The pattern, nature and purpose of assessment were found entirely different in these systems. The objectives of teaching/learning and approaches taken by teachers and students to achieve these objectives were also found significantly different. The study recommends drastic reforms in the SSC assessment system through the inclusion of constructed-response questions, giving a suitable number of application-based real-world problems to assess deep understanding of the concepts, giving unseen questions only as assessment items, curbing the approaches of selected-content teaching/studying and discouraging the trend of memorization of mathematical contents. Key words: Cognitive domain; Thinking skills; Mechanical ability; Real-world problems; Content-focused approach 1. Introduction Secondary school education is one of the important stages in the overall educational career of students. It provides a strong base for entering into higher secondary education with appropriate knowledge and skills or act as a terminal stage for those seeking employment. Quality secondary education is thus vital for a successful future, both at an individual and national level. In this regard, the importance of mathematics as a compulsory subject at the secondary school level is well acknowledged internationally, (Sharma & Sharan, 2008; Ediger & Rao, 2006). This subject contributes to the development of cognitive, affective and psychomotor faculties of students, but the extent to which it does so depends upon the way it is taught (Cockcroft Report, 1982). Educationists agree that one of the fundamental aims of mathematics education is training of the mind (development of cognitive domain) (Bruhlmeier, 2010; Sidhu, 2008; Sharma, 2007; Taneja, 1990). Gagne (1985) agrees with this point of view and asserts that the most important area of school learning is the cognitive domain and within the cognitive domain, he focuses on thinking skills (Martin & Briggs, 1986).Therefore, the chief target of mathematics education in schools should be to develop thinking skills among students, but there are many ways of thinking. Hence the primary goal of mathematics education should be to develop thinking habits in students to enable them tackle abstractions and to induce problem solving skills in them (NCERT, 2006). The cognitive domain is concerned with mental abilities of a learner and it deals largely with information and knowledge. It is further divided into six major categories proceeding from lower order to higher order thinking skills : knowledge (recall), comprehension (understanding), application (using knowledge in new situations), analysis (breaking things down/critical thinking), synthesis (putting things together/ creative thinking), and evaluation (judgment) (Bloom & Krathwohl, 1956).