Preparing preservice elementary teachers to teach engineering: Impact on self‐efficacy and outcome expectancy

Research indicates there is a need for teachers to experience multiple mastery experiences with engineering teaching in order to improve teaching engineering self‐efficacy. To prepare future K–5 teachers to teach the engineering design process, one science methods course integrated 2‐day engineering mini‐units into the class meeting and school‐based field experience. The preservice teachers participated as students in an exemplar mini‐unit and then designed their own mini‐unit, which they later taught to K–5 students. Pre‐ and post‐testing of the preservice teachers indicated significant improvement in engineering pedagogical content knowledge self‐efficacy, engagement self‐efficacy, and disciplinary self‐efficacy. Significant improvement was not observed in engineering outcome expectancy.     

“Do we teach subjects or students?” Analyzing science and mathematics teacher conversations about issues of equity in the classroom

Teachers involved in a Master's level course in diversity participated in virtual, synchronous, anonymized discussions around issues of ethnic and racial diversity, gender, and stereotypes that could impact their students’ participation in fields related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Guided by theoretical frameworks from Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) and Critical Race Theory (CRT), a convenience sample of 14 science and mathematics teachers participated in a series of virtual chats using open‐ended questioning and facilitated by two university instructors. Using conversation and critical discourse analyses, three primary themes emerged: understanding of issues related to stereotypes, encouragement of females and minorities to pursue careers in STEM, and the place for diversity discussions in science and mathematics classrooms. The teachers felt burdened by curricular and administrative constraints that inhibit their ability to participate in thought‐provoking critical conversations. The paper concludes with a discussion of ways teachers can assist in the STEM career identity development of their underrepresented females and students of color and calls for research that combines the key findings in SCCT and CRT to build confidence and capacity for teachers to effectively confront issues of racism, sexism, and stereotyping in science and mathematics classrooms.     

Preservice teachers’ mathematics task modification for emergent bilinguals

Implementing mathematically challenging tasks is difficult for teachers when working with emergent bilinguals because cognitively demanding tasks in mathematics commonly have high language demand. Currently, inadequate teacher preparation for teaching emergent bilinguals is becoming a significant concern in the United States as this population of students is rapidly growing. This study investigated how two mathematics preservice teachers (PSTs) support middle school emergent bilinguals to understand cognitively demanding mathematical problems through task modification. Fieldwork with a concurrent intervention was designed for the PSTs to work with emergent bilinguals in a one‐on‐one setting. The PSTs modified cognitively demanding mathematics tasks and designed a lesson for the emergent bilinguals based on the modified tasks. The results revealed that the task modification made by the PSTs tended to shift from reducing cognitive demands in mathematics and language to maintaining the demands through learning strategies of contextual support.     

A study of early career teachers’ practices related to language and language diversity during mathematics instruction

The role of language in mathematics teaching and learning is increasingly highlighted by standards and reform movements in the US. However, little is known about teachers’, and especially early career teachers’ (ECTs) practices and understandings related to language in mathematics instruction. This multiple case study explored the language-related understandings and practices of six ECTs in diverse elementary classrooms. Using iterative cycles of analysis, we found that all ECTs regularly attended to students’ mathematical vocabulary use and development. Yet, there was variability in ECTs’ focus on how to teach mathematical vocabulary, expectations for students’ precise use of mathematical terminology, and the use of multiple languages during instruction. These findings indicate that ECTs need more targeted support during teacher preparation and early career teaching in order to better support all students’ language development in the mathematics classroom.     

模糊综合评价模型在教师评价中的应用

教师评价是教育评价的一个重要环节 ,我国教师评价的历史不长 ,所以目前尚未建立起科学的评价体系 ,由于教师评价的多因素性及评价因素的模糊性 ,可以用模糊数学建立综合评价模型 .     

ICT integration in mathematics initial teacher training and its impact on visualization: the case of GeoGebra

This case study investigates the impact of the integration of information and communications technology (ICT) in mathematics visualization skills and initial teacher education programmes. It reports on the influence GeoGebra dynamic software use has on promoting mathematical learning at secondary school and on its impact on teachers’ conceptions about teaching and learning mathematics. This paper describes how GeoGebra-based dynamic applets – designed and used in an exploratory manner – promote mathematical processes such as conjectures. It also refers to the changes prospective teachers experience regarding the relevance visual dynamic representations acquire in teaching mathematics. This study observes a shift in school routines when incorporating technology into the mathematics classroom. Visualization appears as a basic competence associated to key mathematical processes. Implications of an early integration of ICT in mathematics initial teacher training and its impact on developing technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) are drawn.     

Examining the design features of a communication-rich,problem-centred mathematics professional development

While there is considerable scholarship describing principles for effective professional development, there have been few attempts to examine these principles in practice. In this paper, we identify and examine the particular design features of a mathematics professional development experience provided for middle grades teachers over 14 weeks. The professional development was grounded in a set of mathematical tasks that each had one right answer, but multiple solution paths. The facilitator engaged participants in problem solving and encouraged participants to work collaboratively to explore different solution paths. Through analysis of this collaborative learning environment, we identified five design features for supporting teacher learning of important mathematics and pedagogy in a problem-solving setting. We discuss these design features in depth and illustrate them by presenting an elaborated example from the professional development. This study extends the existing guidance for the design of professional development by examining and operationalizing the relationships among research-based features of effective professional development and the enacted features of a particular design.     

A typological analysis: understanding pre-service teacher beliefs and how they are transformed

This article describes the beliefs and their transformations of members of a cohort of early-childhood, elementary and middle-level pre-service teachers (PSTs) as they professionally develop. A typological analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data collected between August 2011 and May 2013 was utilized to categorize how 40 PSTs’ beliefs transformed throughout their formal teacher preparation. Five typologies were identified, showing variation in how PST beliefs transform or remain static.

Among the findings, strong support related to the development of innovative beliefs during coursework coupled with at least one transformative experience where innovation was observed ‘working’ in the field were sufficient for the transformation to innovative beliefs, despite potential constraints by supervisors, cooperating teachers and/or mandated curricula (Typology 3). Another finding revealed disguised growth toward innovation among those in Typology 5, who reported being innovative and having productive beliefs but described extremely traditional practices. Implications call for improved connections between mathematics methods professors and field supervisors, particularly during clinical internships when PSTs are no longer enrolled in methods courses, to enhance PSTs’ productive struggle in their development of innovative beliefs (T3) and to increase opportunities for disconnects between innovative beliefs and traditional practices to be made explicit and negotiated (T5).     

Preservice mathematics teachers' conceptions and enactments of modeling standards

Mathematical modeling has been highlighted recently as Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) included Model with Mathematics as one of the Standards for Mathematical Practices (SMP) and a modeling strand in the high school standards. This common aspect of standards across most states in the United States intended by CCSSM authors and policy makers seems to mitigate the diverse notions of mathematical modeling. When we observed secondary mathematics preservice teachers (M‐PSTs) who learned about the SMP and used CCSSM modeling standards to plan and enact lessons, however, we noted differences in their interpretations and enactments of the standards, despite their attendance in the same course sections during a teacher preparation program. This result led us to investigate the ways the M‐PSTs understood modeling standards, which could provide insights into better preparing teachers to teach mathematical modeling. We present the contrasting ways in which M‐PSTs presented modeling related to their conceptions of mathematical modeling, choices of problems, and enactments over an academic year, connecting their practices to extant research. We consider this teaching and research experience as an opportunity to make significant changes in our instruction that may result in our students enhanced implementation of mathematical modeling.     

Conditions and decisions of urban elementary teachers regarding instruction of STEM curriculum

The study was situated in a National Science Foundation supported Math Science Partnership between a private university and an urban school district. This study sought to understand the decision‐making process of elementary teachers as they implement an integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) curriculum in their classrooms and the interactions that occur between the teachers and curriculum during that process. This qualitative study utilized a comparative case study approach to understanding the decision‐making process of three elementary teachers enacting the same lesson. Analysis of the interactions revealed that the teachers' perceptions of student ability, their pedagogical design capacity, and time were influences that impacted implementation. These findings have implications for STEM‐focused professional development of elementary teachers.