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Eric.ed.gov – Catalyst Schools Research Study: Technical Report

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: In January 2012, the West Virginia Governor’s Office released an influential report, “Education Efficiency Audit of West Virginia’s Primary and Secondary Education System,” written by Public Works (2012), a management consulting company headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Based largely on this report, the West Virginia Legislature passed education reform legislation, which was signed into law by the Governor in spring 2013. The Catalyst School Research Study examined the initial stage of an initiative that grew out of that reform. The Transforming Professional Learning initiative focused on changing the way the West Virginia Board of Education (WVBE) defined professional learning and the ways major providers involved themselves in the professional learning of educators in the state, especially the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) and regional education service… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Free-Operant Field Experiences: Differentially Reinforcing Successive Approximations to Behavior Analysis through a ShaperSpace

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Over the past few years an increasing number of schools and community organizations have developed transformative learning spaces referred to as “MakerSpaces” for research and training purposes. MakerSpaces are organizations in which members sharing similar interests in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) gather to work on self-selected projects. Proponents of MakerSpaces highlight the implicit benefits arising from participants’ increased engagement with complex technical content in a voluntary, authentic context. We extend the MakerSpace concept to applications of training special education teachers to address the needs of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Applied behavior analysis (ABA) has vast empirical support for treating ASD. We believe the MakerSpace model provides a platform for developing a new generation of special education teachers. However, rather than making novel products,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Math in the Workplace.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This document, which is designed to assist workplace education practitioners in business, education, and labor partnerships funded through the Massachusetts Department of Education’s Workplace Literacy Program, includes materials about and/or for use in developing workers’ mathematics skills. The first section, which examines the current state of the art of workplace math programs, lists math skills needed in the workplace and strategies for teaching mathematics in the workplace (teacher as facilitator, integration into other curriculum areas, collaborative learning, development of individual problem-solving strategies, importance of process, use of hands-on activities/manipulatives, and application of learning). In the second section, the author relates her own experiences in developing and presenting workplace mathematics programs to help employees accomplish the following: improve job performance, pass an examination/test, and become better-informed employees. The… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Provoking Mathematical Thinking: Experiences of Doing Realistic Mathematics Tasks with Adult Numeracy Teachers

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This action research project looks at what happened when a small group of adult numeracy teachers with widely different experiences of learning and teaching mathematics explored their own informal numeracy practices and undertook a series of collaborative mathematical tasks. Evidence from qualitative data collected during the enquiry suggests that “realistic” tasks can provoke a range of mathematical thinking and learning responses which allow us to identify ways in which “procedural” and “conceptual” thinking is being used, and to track learning journeys through different stages of problem-solving. Although more experienced numeracy teachers could move between and within their “real worlds” and “maths worlds” with intent and ease, others had less integrated experiences, often valuing perceived mathematical powers over their own intuitive powers, with mixed success. Link til kilde

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Eric.ed.gov – Much More than It’s Cooked-up to Be: Reflections on Doing Math and Teachers’ Professional Learning

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The author argues that students’ persistent struggles with mathematics suggest a new form of professional development for teachers is needed. The author draws on a model of professional learning in literacy education to propose an analogous model for mathematics education: teachers of mathematics need to produce mathematical ideas, themselves, in order to better support their students in becoming mathematical thinkers. It is not enough to focus singularly on developing teachers’ content understanding, however, because mathematical ideas are embedded within their representational forms; therefore, any content-related professional development must also include pedagogical discussions. The author concludes by describing a research-based, high-quality professional development community–the Philadelphia Area Math Teachers’ Circle (PAMTC)–in which authentic mathematical inquiry and pedagogical analysis occur hand-in-hand. Link til kilde