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Teacher Educators' Word Use when Teaching Student Teachers how to Teach Place Value to Early Years Learners
By Longwe, Justina
This article discusses the findings of a case study that explored the use of explanatory talk in mathematics teacher education lessons on how to teach the concept of place value. The Mathematics Discourse in Instruction framework guided the study, in particular the element of naming in explanatory talk. Three teacher educators' lessons on the teaching of place value of whole numbers were observed and video recorded. Findings indicate that across all the lessons, 66% of the naming was mathematical and was seen to provide opportunities for student teachers to learn to use mathematical terms correctly, while 34% of the naming was non-mathematical and might have constrained student teachers' understanding of some concepts related to place value. Furthermore, two-thirds of the non-mathematical naming was use of ambiguous pronouns, which could have been avoided. The findings suggest that teacher educators need to pay more attention to correct mathematical naming of terms related to place value. How mathematical concepts are named in teacher education is important because correct naming is likely to help student teachers learn to regard mathematical talk as an important part of their work of teaching.
Mathematics Mediational Means and Learner Centredness: Insights from ‘traditional’ Malawian Secondary School Geometry Lessons
By Kazima, Mercy
We re-examine a Malawian teacher’s lessons which, using the framework of mathematic problem-solving developed by Polya, the typology of levels of task demand from Stein and colleagues and Malawi’s description of learner-centred education (LCE), were described as teacher-centred and evaluated as ‘not good’. We studied seven video-recorded circle geometry lessons taught by the teacher and analysed these first using an LCE framework and then the Mathematics Discourse in Instruction (MDI) framework, adapted to suit the analysis of geometry lessons. The LCE analysis revealed that while the lessons were undoubtedly teacher-centred, they were not at the extreme end of an LCE continuum. Analysis using an adapted MDI framework showed that the teacher’s use of mediational means opened opportunities to learn mathematics. We argue that LCE frameworks are useful in mathematics education research as they do not dichotomise teaching practices, but they are insufficient. They can obscure opportunities made available to learn mathematics. Frameworks that illuminate such opportunities are needed to fully describe mathematics teaching practices. Furthermore, we identified links between the elements of LCE exhibited and the mathematical mediational means in use. These suggest that supporting teachers to strengthen their mathematical mediational means in use could enable movement towards more learner-centered teaching. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Challenging Malawian primary teachers' views on mathematics teaching and learning through lesson study
By Fauskanger, Janne
Purpose The aim of the study is to better understand how lesson study (LS) contributes to challenging teachers' views of mathematics teaching and learning. Design/methodology/approach This study is part of a wider ongoing project aiming at improving primary mathematics teaching in Malawi through professional development (PD) of teachers using a LS model. The units being analyzed are teachers' written reflections and lesson plans. The analytical approach is qualitative content analysis. Findings Initially, the participating Malawian primary teachers report traditional views of mathematics teaching and learning. After having participated in a LS cycle, they reported on the need to work on how to involve and create space for learners' participation in mathematic lessons and highlight the importance for learners to discover mathematics on their own. Research limitations/implications This is a small-scale study due to LS being quite new in the Malawian context and the need to test before possible upscaling. Practical implications The paper includes a description on how LS might contribute to challenging Malawian teachers' views of mathematics teaching and learning; this can be valuable information for others who are attempting to use LS in a similar context. Originality/value This paper fulfills an identified need to learn more about how LS might contribute to challenging teachers' views of mathematics teaching and learning worldwide.
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