eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This is a record of the proceedings of the 30th annual conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (MERGA). The theme of the conference is “Mathematics: Essential research, essential practice.” The theme draws attention to the importance of developing and maintaining links between research and practice and ties in with the joint day of presentations with the 21st biennial conference of the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers (AAMT). This special feature highlights the benefits of collaboration between researchers, practicing classroom teachers, and curriculum developers. Volume 1 contains the following papers: (1) The Beginnings of MERGA (Ken Clements); (2) Teaching and Learning by Example: The Annual Clements/Foyster Lecture (Helen L. Chick); (3) Introducing Students to Data Representation and Statistics (Richard Lehrer); (4) Studies in the Zone… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The universities and faculties which educate teachers of mathematics for teaching pupils/students of any age group from pre-school age to higher education carefully monitor and compare valuable results of this research, detect the areas in which the mathematical achievements of pupils should be improved at the national level and propose the ways to improve the quality of education and achieve better learning outcomes. We deem particularly valuable contributions of the researchers regarding the samples of poorer mathematical achievements at the “local level” in neighbouring countries, as well as the presentation of examples of good practice by means of which we pave the path towards better achievements of pupils and, consequently, the improvement in the quality of teaching mathematics at the “local,” as well as the global level.… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This article reports on a study that investigated the causes underlying a sample of eighteen third-year Australian pre-service primary teachers’ negative beliefs and anxiety about mathematics. It was found that most of the participants’ maths-anxiety could be attributed to their primary school experiences in learning mathematics. Situations such as teaching mathematics or being evaluated in mathematics were noted as particularly stressful and mathematical topics such as algebra, space and number sense were specifically identified to cause maths- anxiety. The paper concludes with a brief discussion about the implications of these findings for an ensuing program whose purpose is to help these pre-service teachers address their negative beliefs and anxieties about mathematics. [For complete proceedings, see ED489597.] Link til kilde
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This is a narrative article, highlighting effective teaching strategies for teacher candidates at a four-year university in the South. The author examined preconceived negative notions teacher candidates expressed about being enrolled in a Math Block class and having to teach children about mathematics. After involving the teacher candidates in a hands-on series of classroom discussions and role playing related to problem-solving strategies, teacher candidates became excited about not only facilitating children’s exploration of problem-solving strategies but how much they thoroughly enjoyed themselves, engaging in hands-on lessons compared to rote and memorization skills they had experienced as children. Link til kilde
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This study aims to determine the attitudes of prospective teachers of Secondary Mathematics Education toward Instructional Technologies and Material Development (ITMD) Course. The participants of this descriptive research include 44 students, who take ITMD Course at Department of Secondary Mathematics at Necatibey Faculty of Education in Balikesir University. The questionnaire developed by researchers was conducted before and after the course at 2007-2008 fall semesters. The accuracy of the difference in the attitudes of the prospective math teachers before and after the course was tested by t test and it was seen to be statically significant in the level of p=0.05. Moreover, according to results of the interviews, the prospective teachers emphasized that ITMD Course aims to provide permanent learning and to prepare materials that are appropriate to… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Literature suggests that the mathematical language of teachers impacts a student’s understanding of math concepts. When teachers unintentionally use ambiguous language, students’ understanding of a subject can be negatively affected. We share background on specific instances in which teachers can create confusion with the language they use, and we investigate both pre-service teachers’ and college algebra students’ concepts of three common terms in mathematics: Solve, Evaluate, and Simplify by asking both groups to unpack their understanding of these terms through a writing prompt. We compare the language used by both groups in their definitions. Preservice teachers’ reflections on their experience with the writing prompt are also examined to identify ways that such a task can help them identify gaps in their own understanding and in their thinking… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This study examined gender differences in attitudes toward mathematics of undergraduate students. The Attitudes Toward Mathematics Instrument (ATMI) was administered to students enrolled in introductory mathematics classes (Pre-Calculus, Calculus, and Business Calculus) at two Southeast universities, one a large state university and the other one a small private liberal arts college. The subjects of the study were 275 college students; 141 attended the state university and 134 attended the liberal arts college. General linear analysis revealed no significant differences between students from the state university and students from the liberal arts college in any of four factors (self-confidence, value of mathematics, enjoyment of mathematics, and motivation). Also, there were no significant differences between males and females on each of the four factors. These results suggest that gender… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Questioning techniques have historically been considered the measurement by which teachers challenge and gauge student learning. Much has been said about questioning strategies used by teachers; yet little is known about the strategies used by pre-service teachers, especially those that are working with English language learners. This study presents findings from a qualitative study that explored what types of questions pre-service teachers use and their reflections on the use of such strategies. Eight bilingual/ESL pre-service teachers in South Texas were videotaped during a math and a language arts lesson, attended focus groups, and participated in an exit interview. The findings revealed the type of questions used by the participants, how they made sense of their teaching, and how accountability measures influenced their teaching. This research recommends education… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This study examines a group of prospective teachers’ reflections upon the way they were taught (Set 1) and the way they want to teach (Set 2) through drawings which respectively describe their past learning experiences as students and their future plans as teachers. The purpose of this study is to identify: (a) the emerging themes that appear in each set of drawing data, (b) the possible factors that influence prospective teachers’ drawings, and (c) the implications for mathematics teacher educators. Overall, prospective teachers showed predominantly negative or mixed feelings about their past experiences as mathematics students. In response to their own past negative experiences and struggles, the prospective teachers tended to highlight emotionally supportive classroom environment and versatile instructional teaching strategies in their future plans. This study… Continue Reading →
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eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Ideals play a key role in a student teachers’ identity work. They form targets to strive for and a mirror for reflection. In this paper, we examine Finnish mathematics student teachers’ metaphors for the teacher’s role (N=188). We classified the metaphors according to a model that identified teachers as subject matter experts, didactical experts, and pedagogical experts, with the addition of another two categories, self-referential and contextual. For the exploration of emerging professional identities, we studied the self-referential metaphors, which formed the most common category in the data. We observed that every third metaphor described either student teachers’ personalities or their incompleteness as teachers, or new beginnings or eras. Although these aspects were expected, they also inform us as teacher educators of the values and ideals that… Continue Reading →
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