Boston (2013)

Connecting Changes in Secondary Mathematics Teachers' Knowledge to Their Experiences in a Professional Development Workshop

• Author: Melissa Boston
• Journal: Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education
• Year: 2013
• Source: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10857-012-9211-6

Abstract

This investigation describes secondary mathematics teachers' learning and instructional change following their participation in a professional development workshop, the Enhancing Secondary Mathematics Teacher Preparation Project (ESP) (2004–2005), specifically focused on the selection and implementation of cognitively challenging mathematical tasks. Data consist of a pre/post-assessment of teachers' knowledge of the cognitive demands of mathematical tasks and videotaped discussions and written artifacts from the professional development sessions. A mixed methods approach was used to identify connections between teachers' learning and their experiences in the ESP workshop. Results indicate that ESP teachers developed new ideas about the influence of mathematical tasks on students' learning. Increases in teachers' knowledge of the cognitive demands of mathematical tasks were closely linked to ideas represented in frameworks and discussions from the ESP workshop and to teachers' experiences in solving challenging mathematical tasks as learners.

Outline of Headings

• Introduction
• Background
  • Enhancing teachers' learning and instructional practices in the ESP workshop
• Methodology
  • Subjects
  • Data on teachers' knowledge: The task sort
  • Data on teachers' participation in the ESP professional development workshop
• Results
  • Changes in teachers' knowledge
  • Teachers' specific learning about cognitive demands
    • Identifying the level of cognitive demand
    • Providing rationales for task levels
    • Use of new language
    • Comparisons to the contrast group
  • Connecting teachers' learning to the ESP Workshop
    • Opportunities to learn about cognitive demands
    • Emergent and prominent language
• Discussion
  • Increase in teachers' knowledge of cognitive demands
  • Connecting teachers' learning to changes in their instructional practices
  • Improvements to the ESP "Improving Practice" workshop
• Conclusion

Corrolary

APA

Boston, M. D. (2013). Connecting changes in secondary mathematics teachers' knowledge to their experiences in a professional development workshop. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 16(1), 7–31. doi:10.1007/s10857-012-9211-6

BibTeX

@article{Boston2013,
author = {Boston, Melissa D.},
doi = {10.1007/s10857-012-9211-6},
journal = {Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education},
keywords = {Cognitive demands,Instructional change,Mathematical tasks,Professional development,Teachers' learning},
number = {1},
pages = {7--31},
title = {{Connecting changes in secondary mathematics teachers' knowledge to their experiences in a professional development workshop}},
url = {http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10857-012-9211-6},
volume = {16},
year = {2013}
}