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Teachers’ Learning Journeys Toward Reasoning and Sense Making

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Research Trends in Mathematics Teacher Education

Part of the book series: Research in Mathematics Education ((RME))

Abstract

Despite ongoing recommendations by NCTM over the past 30 years, research points to a persistent deficit between national recommendations and classroom practice. Consideration of teachers as learners, and the examination of underlying issues, are critical to addressing this deficit. The purpose of this study was to investigate seven teachers’ experiences attempting to align their practice with a recent iteration of NCTM (Focus in high school mathematics: Reasoning and sense making, 2009) recommendations, Focus in High School Mathematics: Reasoning and Sense Making. Narrative inquiry, designed for the study of experience, is used to illustrate the complexity of teachers’ changes through the perspective of the teacher. Findings, presented through four mathematical analogies, illustrate teachers’ varied experiences moving through stages of the change process. This research is timely and relevant to teacher educators working with prospective and practicing high school mathematics teachers. An understanding of teachers’ experiences attempting changes informs the consideration of ways of supporting other teachers in enacting similar changes.

This research was completed to fulfill the dissertation requirement for a doctoral degree at Purdue University, under the advisement of Jill Newton. I would like to thank the following people who provided feedback on earlier versions of the manuscript: Jill Newton, Keith Leatham, Jillian Cavanna, and Beth Herbel-Eisenmann. I would also like express gratitude to the teachers who participated in this dissertation research. Their willingness to invite me into their classrooms and share their dilemmas and challenges provided a great opportunity to push my thinking as a mathematics teacher educator

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Teacher Education, Michigan State University, 620 Farm Lane, 245 Erickson Hall, 48824, East Lansing, MI, USA

    Lindsay M. Keazer

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  1. Lindsay M. Keazer
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Correspondence to Lindsay M. Keazer .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mathematics, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA

    Jane-Jane Lo

  2. Department of Mathematics Education, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, USA

    Keith R. Leatham

  3. Department of Mathematics, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan, USA

    Laura R. Van Zoest

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Keazer, L.M. (2014). Teachers’ Learning Journeys Toward Reasoning and Sense Making. In: Lo, JJ., Leatham, K., Van Zoest, L. (eds) Research Trends in Mathematics Teacher Education. Research in Mathematics Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02562-9_9

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