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1 – 10 of 763Matilde Lafuente-Lechuga, Javier Cifuentes-Faura and Úrsula Faura-Martínez
This paper aims to identify the current situation of higher education institutions in Spain regarding the introduction of the Sustainable Development Goals in the classroom, and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify the current situation of higher education institutions in Spain regarding the introduction of the Sustainable Development Goals in the classroom, and what is the role of mathematics in this task.
Design/methodology/approach
A review is made of how the concept of sustainability has evolved in higher education, its gradual introduction in the University and the way in which this subject is approached in the field of mathematics.
Findings
The study concludes that higher education has a key role to play in designing strategies that lead to the global sustainability of the planet. This implies major changes in degree curricula, assessment, competences and teacher training. Cross-disciplinarity and interdisciplinarity between different subjects within the same degree is a strategy for students to analyse the Sustainable Development Goals using mathematical techniques.
Social implications
The University as an institution must train socially responsible professionals who are aware of the importance of promoting a sustainable world. Changes should be made to introduce values in the classroom that promote and encourage sustainability. Training should be seen as a continuous process that leads to the preparation of professionals committed to society and nature and who develop strategies aimed at improving the planet through values.
Originality/value
Through practical activities, the Sustainable Development objectives can be analysed from several subjects of the same degree, emphasising the interdisciplinary and transversal nature that should be the central axis of higher education. Each subject can develop a strategy for change in favour of sustainability that will be reinforced and increased by working together on the proposed teaching practice. In this way, the contents of the different subjects are not isolated, but rather the student can see how there is an interrelationship between them and with real life.
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There is some evidence to suggest that the historical challenge associated with recruiting and retaining Black and Brown Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM…
Abstract
Purpose
There is some evidence to suggest that the historical challenge associated with recruiting and retaining Black and Brown Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) collegians is tied to early their teaching and learning experiences in Mathematics. This paper describes an National Science Foundation (NSF) funded project (NSF #2151043) whose goal is to attract, prepare and retain math teachers of color in high need school districts ensure that those teachers remain in the field long enough to make a meaningful impact on the minds and hearts of BIPOC students who are often, extrinsically, and intrinsically, discouraged from pursuing careers in STEM professions.
Design/methodology/approach
This mixed-methods study, which began in the summer of 2023, seeks to recruit, prepare, support and retain nineteen (19) Black and Brown math teachers for two (2) high need urban school districts. The expectancy value theory will be used to explain the performance, persistence, and choices of the teachers, while grounded theory will be utilized to understand the impact of the intensive mentorship and wellness coaching that applied over the first year of their preservice preparation and subsequent in-service years.
Findings
Measures of project efficacy won’t begin until 2025 and as such there are no findings or implications to draw from for the study at this time.
Originality/value
The intention of this paper is to augment the body of knowledge on recruiting and retaining Black and Brown math teachers for urban schools where the need for quality STEM teachers is critical.
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Catarina Lucas and Joana Paulo
The purpose of this study is to present a general review that provides an overview of the concept of sustainability and the effectiveness of mathematics curricula in courses where…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to present a general review that provides an overview of the concept of sustainability and the effectiveness of mathematics curricula in courses where deeper work on economic and environmental sustainability has become central.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative methodology consisting of a review based on a pre-defined systematic method was used to exhaustively search and identify the most relevant answers to the research question: What is the role of mathematics to sustainability? To facilitate answering such a broad question, several concrete questions were formulated. Answers from published and unpublished documents were analysed. The quality of the extracted data was assessed, and the results were synthesized.
Findings
It was concluded that, on the one hand, the discipline of mathematics has much to contribute to solving the problems of sustainability; on the other hand, new mathematics is appearing stimulated by new challenges.
Social implications
This work presents social implications in an innovative way. It allows for an increase in educational sustainability by bringing the academic community closer to the business world and the challenges of society and, furthermore, by having a major impact on the motivation of teachers and students to develop cooperative work within university institutions.
Originality/value
The originality is based on an a priori analysis for the construction and implementation of didactic tools for university teacher training in the area of mathematics within the framework of sustainable development, both economically and environmentally.
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Rongjin Huang, Joanna C. Weaver, Gabriel Matney, Xingfeng Huang, Joshua Wilson and Christine Painter
This study aimed to explore teachers' learning processes through a hybrid cross-cultural lesson study (LS) because little is known about the learning process through this novel…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aimed to explore teachers' learning processes through a hybrid cross-cultural lesson study (LS) because little is known about the learning process through this novel and promising LS approach.
Design/methodology/approach
This cross-cultural LS lasted over six months focusing on developing a research lesson (RL) related to linear functions/equations by addressing a commonly concerned student learning difficulty. The data collected were lesson plans, videos of RLs, cross-culture sharing meetings and post-lesson study teacher interviews. A cultural-history activity theory (CHAT) perspective (Engeström, 2001) was used as a theoretical and analytical framework, and contradictions were viewed as driving forces of teachers' learning. The data were analyzed to identify contradictions and consequent teachers' learning by resolving these contradictions.
Findings
The results revealed four contradictions occurring during the hybrid cross-cultural LS that are related to the preferred teaching approach, culturally relevant tasks, making sense of the specific topic and enactment of the RL. By addressing these contradictions, the participating teachers perceived their learning in cultural beliefs, pedagogical practice and organization of the lesson.
Research limitations/implications
This study details teachers' collaborative learning processes through hybrid cross-cultural LS and provides implications for effectively conducting cross-cultural LS. However, how the potential learning opportunity revealed from this case could be actualized at a larger scale in different cultures and the actual impact on local practices by adapting effective practices from another culture are important questions to be investigated further.
Originality/value
This study expands teacher learning through cross-cultural LS by focusing on contradictions cross-culturally as driving forces.
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Rongjin Huang, Christopher T. Bonnesen, Amanda Lake Heath and Jennifer M. Suh
This paper examines how mathematics teacher educators (MTEs) learn to enact equitable mathematics instruction using technology through lesson study (LS).
Abstract
Purpose
This paper examines how mathematics teacher educators (MTEs) learn to enact equitable mathematics instruction using technology through lesson study (LS).
Design/methodology/approach
A LS team with three MTEs conducted three iterations of LS on teaching the Pythagorean Theorem in an in-person, technology-mediated environment. Many forms of data were collected: Desmos activities, videos of research lessons (RLs), videos of MTE RL debriefings, artifacts of student learning in the Desmos Dashboard, and MTEs' written self-reflection. The authors investigate the teacher educators' learning through LS by analyzing the MTE debriefings of the RLs using Bannister’s (2015) framework for teacher learning in communities of practice.
Findings
The MTEs learned to enact equitable mathematics instruction using technology through addressing emerging issues related to intellectual authority and use of student thinking. Throughout the LS, the MTEs sought ways of promoting students' mathematical authority and using student thinking through features of the Desmos platform.
Research limitations/implications
This study focuses on MTEs' learning without examining participating preservice teachers' learning. It demonstrates the benefits of LS for MTEs' professional learning.
Practical implications
This study showcases how a research-based Desmos activity is used and refined to promote MTE learning how to implement equitable mathematics instruction.
Originality/value
The study contributes to better understanding of how LS could be used to develop MTEs' professional learning. Moreover, the dual process of participation and reification was concretized through diagnostic and prognostic frames in the LS context, which enriches the concept of community of practice.
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Maria Gorete Ramos Fonseca and João Pedro da Ponte
This research aims to understand the learning with regard to didactic knowledge of an early childhood teacher who participated in a Lesson Study (LS) on the topic of patterns, as…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to understand the learning with regard to didactic knowledge of an early childhood teacher who participated in a Lesson Study (LS) on the topic of patterns, as well as her perspective about LS as a teacher education process.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a qualitative case study of an early childhood teacher who participated in a LS alongside three other colleagues and a facilitator. Data collection was made by participant observation with elaboration of a research journal, audio recording of sessions and a collective interview. Data analysis was made by content analysis based on the conceptual framework.
Findings
This case study shows that early childhood teachers may become aware of the importance of working with their children mathematical ideas. It also shows that they may develop their didactic knowledge in several dimensions such as school mathematics, curriculum, children and their learning, and teaching practice and that they may appreciate LS as a means of professional development.
Originality/value
This study shows the potential of LS for the professional development of early childhood teachers, a scarcely researched area. It also shows that their learning may include dimensions related to specific curricular areas such as mathematics.
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Bridget Flanagan, Mairéad Hourigan and Aisling Leavy
This research seeks to explore the potential of Lesson Study as a vehicle to support professional development (PD) in a rural, Irish primary school. Lesson Study was utilised to…
Abstract
Purpose
This research seeks to explore the potential of Lesson Study as a vehicle to support professional development (PD) in a rural, Irish primary school. Lesson Study was utilised to design and implement integrated STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) lessons with young children (ages 4–7 years).
Design/methodology/approach
Three teachers were introduced to and participated in four cycles of Lesson Study over the course of one school year. Qualitative data were generated from interviews, collaborative weekly meetings and observation sheets.
Findings
Analysis suggests that Lesson Study supported the development of a culture of collaboration and provided an opportunity for teachers to share their knowledge. Findings also reveal that Lesson Study motivated teachers to reflect on their role within the classroom and enabled them to move away from teacher-led approaches. Although teachers perceived Lesson Study to be a beneficial form of PD, factors constrained their engagement, including practical, cultural and sustainability challenges.
Practical implications
The study explores the adaptability of Lesson Study in first level education in the context of STEM education. It reveals teachers’ first experience of Lesson Study, given its stark contrast to more “traditional” PD experiences they are accustomed to. This article will, therefore, be of interest to teachers, school leaders and policy makers.
Originality/value
This paper contributes initial findings to a currently under-researched area, Lesson Study in a rural context. This study also combines Lesson Study with STEM education, which has not been widely explored.
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Gwen Nugent, James Houston, Gina Kunz and Donna Chen
This study focused on unpacking the instructional coaching process, addressing key questions about what happens during a coaching session and what coaching elements predict…
Abstract
Purpose
This study focused on unpacking the instructional coaching process, addressing key questions about what happens during a coaching session and what coaching elements predict teacher outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
Using coaching observational data, the research examined critical coaching processes described in the literature: coaching practices (observation, feedback, reflective discussion and planning), the coach–teacher relationship, coaching strategies and coaching duration. The study also developed a path model documenting how coaching behaviors predicted teacher instruction.
Findings
Results showed that the coach talked more than the teacher and that most coaching time was spent in reflective discussion. The coach–teacher relationship was promoted by building rapport and reciprocal trust, with use of “we” language demonstrating that coach and teacher were working as a partnership. Most common coaching strategies were clarifying and the coach prompting the teacher to attend to teacher or student behaviors. Path model analysis showed that (a) the coach–teacher relationship quality predicted the level of teacher engagement in coaching and their instructional reflection and (b) the quality of coaching strategies predicted the overall quality of the classroom instruction.
Originality/value
The study provides empirical evidence about the active ingredients of coaching – those underlying processes that impact and improve teacher practice.
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In this chapter, we explore group counseling interventions for Black males and explain the Achieving Success Everyday (ASE) group model for racial and mathematical development. We…
Abstract
In this chapter, we explore group counseling interventions for Black males and explain the Achieving Success Everyday (ASE) group model for racial and mathematical development. We use critical race theory (CRT) as a framework to analyze school counseling (SC) and mathematics literature that focuses on Black male students to inform the reconceptualization of the ASE group model for school counselors. We examine the programs and interventions that have been published with Black male participants in school settings within the SC literature. We also examine programs and interventions that have been specially designed to improve Black males' mathematics skills. We specifically focus on gathering findings that provide successful outcomes for Black males in public schools. We examine literature that reflects the role school counselors (SCs) take when supporting Black male students' academic, social, emotional, college, and career identity development. We believe uncovering ideas to capture Black males' experiences in school settings could shed light on how to foster Black excellence. Gaining an understanding of programs and interventions for Black male students through a CRT lens could inform future research, policy, and practice in SC while combating ongoing racism that continues to persist.
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Michelle Hudson, Heather Leary, Max Longhurst, Joshua Stowers, Tracy Poulsen, Clara Smith and Rebecca L. Sansom
The authors are developing a model for rural science teacher professional development, building teacher expertise and collaboration and creating high-quality science lessons…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors are developing a model for rural science teacher professional development, building teacher expertise and collaboration and creating high-quality science lessons: technology-mediated lesson study (TMLS).
Design/methodology/approach
TMLS provided the means for geographically distributed teachers to collaborate, develop, implement and improve lessons. TMLS uses technology to capture lesson implementation and collaborate on lesson iterations.
Findings
This paper describes the seven steps of the TMLS process with examples, showing how teachers develop their content and pedagogical knowledge while building relationships.
Originality/value
The TMLS approach provides an innovative option for teachers to collaborate across distances and form strong, lasting relationships with others.
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