eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The ubiquity of the subject of percentages in our everyday life demands that math teachers and pre-service math teachers demonstrate a profound knowledge and thorough understanding of the concept of percentages. This work, which originated from one specific lesson in an 8th grade math class, studies the conceptual understanding and problem-solving strategies of 17 pre-service math teachers. We exhibit and analyze the pre-service teachers’ misconceptions and their inefficient or false problem-solving strategies. We identify two main misconceptions. The first we name “In percentage problem is 100 always the denominator?” and the second “One can handle percentage problems using the same techniques as in numerical problems” (or Over-transferring of numerical problems). We hypothesize reasons and explanations for these misconceptions. The frequent use of percentages in everyday life and… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: (Purpose) The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of math teacher program on students’ performances in math teacher training programs in five selected colleges in North Carolina. (Methodology) This study collected 300 data (150 pre-tests and 150 post-tests) data of college students enrolled in the five selected colleges. The ANOVA and multiple comparison t-tests analyses showed that there were significant differences among students in the experimental group compared to those in the control group. (Results) Results indicate that there was a major role teaching pedagogy played in the performances of the students. (Conclusions) Results revealed that over a period of three years (2010-2013), there were more improvements in the performances of the students as they proceeded through the math teaching pedagogy at the experimental… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Principals are widely seen as a key influence on the educational environment of schools, and nearly all principals have experience as teachers. Yet there is no evidence on whether we can predict the effectiveness of principals (as measured by their value added) based on their value added as teachers, an issue we explore using administrative data from Washington. Several descriptive features of the principal labor market stand out. First, teachers who become principals tend to have higher levels of educational attainment while teaching and are less likely to be female, but we find no significant differences in licensure test scores between those teachers who become principals and those we do not observe in the principalship. Second, principal labor markets appear to be quite localized: about 50 percent… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Calls to advance students’ ability to engage in mathematical reasoning practices including conjecturing, generalising and justifying (CGJ) place significant new demands on teachers. This case study examines how Mathematics Studio provided opportunities for a team of U.S. middle school teachers to learn about these practices and ways to promote them in the classroom. Findings demonstrate how CGJ readings and focused discussions, coupled with repeated cycles of collaborative lesson planning, observation and debrief, supported the development of teacher knowledge, professional community, and teaching resources. In addition, this paper explores the role school leadership played in facilitating Math Studio to ensure these learning opportunities were realised. Documenting how Math Studio features and participants contributed to teachers’ ability to implement CGJ focused lessons not only provides insights into the difficulties… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: “Maths by Email” (MbE) is a free fortnightly email newsletter produced through a partnership between CSIRO Education and the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute (AMSI), with funding from the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR). The principal aim of MbE has been “to communicate that mathematics is making a valuable contribution to the community, is relevant, beautiful, interesting and enjoyable and provides many employment opportunities.” This evaluation study was commissioned by CSIRO Education to provide independent feedback to the editors and publisher of the “Maths by Email” (MbE) initiative to potentially improve the service and to inform decision making regarding future plans for the service. In detail, the study was concerned with (i) who is using MbE and how it is being used; (ii)… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This study reports on an intervention that was aimed at improving the content knowledge of first-year intermediate-phase education students at a South African university. The study gives some insight into preservice teachers’ perceptions of an online programme for the development of mathematics common content knowledge for teachers of mathematics in the intermediate grades. The effectiveness of the intervention programme was analysed according to Shapiro’s evaluation criteria for intervention research. The findings show that there has been a positive shift in preservice teachers’ common content knowledge but that there is much room for further development. The student teachers found the programme to be of great benefit with regard to the development of their mathematics knowledge as well as their confidence as future teachers of mathematics. The findings highlighted… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: In the fall of 2009, the President asked his President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) to develop specific recommendations concerning the most important actions that the administration should take to ensure that the United States is a leader in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education in the coming decades. In responding to this charge, PCAST decided to focus initially on the K-12 level. This report examines the history of Federal support for STEM education and consider actions that the Federal Government should take with respect to improving leadership and coordination. Subsequent chapters discuss Standards and Assessments, Teachers, Technology, Students, and Schools. Many of the recommendations in this report can be carried out with existing Federal funding. Some of the recommendations could be funded… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This set of mathematics instructional materials are examples of how a teacher can integrate career education into math. Six topics related to the career education concept are featured. “Sample Math Problems” was written for a class studying about jobs in a bakery, and the problems are ones that would be encountered in a bakery. “Careers as Related to Math” is a sample of how career education can be effectively correlated and integrated into math texts (Elementary School Mathematics published by Addison-Wesley) for grades 4, 5, and 6. Occupations requiring high school or college education and/or on-the-job training are listed, and the concepts required for most math-related occupations are itemized. Other materials include an outline of concepts and enrichment materials to be used along with the Addison-Wesley textbook.… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The present study examined lower secondary students’ images of mathematics, comprised of stated attitudes to and perceived needs for mathematics, and views about mathematicians and their work. A group of 1284 lower secondary students drew a picture of mathematician at work and described their drawings. The students’ drawings fell into two distinct groups: drawings that depicted their view of what a mathematician at work would look like, and drawings that depicted a mathematician who was clearly a mathematics teacher. This article presents the data regarding the latter group. Trends that emerged from the drawings in this sample included that mathematics teachers were: predominantly female; had a positive image; incorporated lectures, explanations, and demonstrations; and used whiteboards and books as tools of the profession. The article concludes with… Continue Reading →
eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Teacher’s gaze communicates consciously and unconsciously her pedagogical priorities to the students. By creating and responding to eye contact initiatives, people can communicate both status and affection. This research explores the frequency of teacher-student eye contacts and their connection to teachers’ scaffolding intentions. The data consisted of mobile gaze tracking recordings of two teachers and stationary classroom videos during three collaborative mathematical problem-solving lessons. The quantitative analysis showed that most of the teacher gazes on student faces did not lead to dyadic eye contacts and those gazes that did, occurred often during affective and cognitive scaffolding. These results offer us novel and important insight in the nonverbal part of scaffolding interaction. Link til kilde
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