The Learner's Perspective Study ascribes to the premise that the investigation of social practice within the mathematics classrooms must attend to the learners’ practice with at least the same priority as that accorded to the teachers’ practice. In focusing on student voice within this partnership, as enacted in many different guises across different cultures and socio-political learning environments, we hope that we will be better informed to understand the relationship between pedagogy and learning mathematics, and between pedagogy and the empowerment of diverse learners. Research findings from the Learner's Perspective Study reported in this book and its companion volumes affirm just how culturally-situated are the practices of classrooms around the world and the extent to which students are collaborators with the teacher, complicit in the development and enactment of patterns of participation that reflect individual, societal and cultural priorities and associated value systems. In this book, we attend closely to this collaboration with our focus on the voice of the student. Collectively, the authors consider how the deliberate inclusion of student voice can be used to enhance our understandings of mathematics classrooms, of mathematics learning, and of mathematics outcomes for students in classrooms around the world. The Learner’s Perspective Study aims to juxtapose the observable practices of the classroom and the meanings attributed to those practices by classroom participants. The LPS research design documents sequences of at least ten lessons, using three video cameras, supplemented by the reconstructive accounts of classroom participants obtained in post-lesson video-stimulated interviews, and by test and questionnaire data, and copies of student written material. In each participating country, data generation focuses on the classrooms of three teachers, identified by the local mathematics education community as competent, and situated in demographically different school communities within the one major city. The large body of complex data supports both the characterization of practice in the classrooms of competent teachers and the development of theory.

This book presents an international perspective on environmental educational and specifically the influence that context has on this aspect of curriculum. The focus is on environmental education both formal and non formal and the factors that impact upon its effectiveness, particularly in non-Western and non-English-speaking contexts (i.e., outside the UK, USA, Australia, NZ, etc. ).

Utilizing the LPS dataset, Algebra Teaching around the World documents eighth grade algebra teaching across a variety of countries that differ geographically and culturally. Different issues in algebra teaching are reported, and different theories are used to characterize algebra lessons or to compare algebra teaching in different countries. Many commonalities in algebra teaching around the world are identified, but there are also striking and deep-rooted differences. The different ways algebra was taught in different countries point to how algebra teaching may be embedded in the culture and the general traditions of mathematics education of the countries concerned. In particular, a comparison is made between algebra lessons in the Confucian-Heritage Culture (CHC) countries and ‘Western’ countries. It seems that a common emphasis of algebra teaching in CHC countries is the ‘linkage’ or ‘coherence’ of mathematics concepts, both within an algebraic topic and between topics. On the other hand, contemporary algebra teaching in many Western school systems places increasing emphasis on the use of algebra in mathematical modeling in ‘real world’ contexts and in the instructional use of metaphors, where meaning construction is assisted by invoking contexts outside the domain of algebraic manipulation, with the intention to helping students to form connections between algebra and other aspects of their experience. Algebra Teaching around the World should be of value to researchers with a focus on algebra, pedagogy or international comparisons of education. Because of the pedagogical variations noted here, there is a great deal of material that will be of interest to both teachers and teacher educators.

Meaningful school reform starts with your most powerful partner—your students! When you take time to listen, you’ll find that students’ aspirations can drive your school toward exciting new goals—and when students know they’re being heard, they engage meaningfully in their own academic success. Using examples drawn from student surveys, focus groups, observations, and interviews, this groundbreaking book presents a blueprint for a successful partnership between educators and students. You’ll discover how to: Ask the right questions—and understand how to build from the answers Engage students in decision-making and improvement-related processes Implement the Aspirations Framework to guide students toward their full potential

This book contributes towards the literature in the field of mathematics education, specifically on aspects of empowering learners of mathematics. The book, comprising eighteen chapters, written by renowned researchers in mathematics education, provides readers with approaches and applicable classroom strategies to empower learners of mathematics.The chapters in the book can be classified into four sections. The four sections focus on how learners could be empowered in their learning, cognitive and affective processes, through mathematical content, purposefully designed mathematical tasks, whilst developing 21st century competencies.

This book comprises the full selected Regular Lectures from the Proceedings of the 12th International Congress on Mathematical Education (ICME-12), which was held at COEX in Seoul, Korea, from July 8th to 15th, 2012. ICME-12 brought together 4700 experts from 100 countries, working to understand all of the intellectual and attitudinal challenges in the subject of mathematics education as a multidisciplinary research and practice. These selected Regular Lectures present the work of fifty-one prominent mathematics educators from all over the globe. The Lectures cover a wide spectrum of topics, themes and issues and aim to give direction to future research towards educational improvement in the teaching and learning of mathematics education. This book is of particular interest to researchers, teachers and curriculum developers in mathematics education.

This book focuses on the development of research in mathematics education cultures and its products from the perspective of local educators. It consists of contributions from Mainland China, Indonesia, Korea, Macao, Singapore, the Philippines, and Turkey. This book examines the development of the culture of research in the respective countries and also reviews the research conducted in the recent past in mathematics education. It takes a critical stance through identifying the various accomplishments, and identifying challenges for the future of research in terms of its diversification and quality. Divided into two sections, the first section considers factors around the development of a research culture in the respective countries by focusing on the means used to develop research expertise and quality. The second section consists of overviews of the area of research and methodologies conducted in mathematics education in the various countries, with the intention of highlighting the research topics conducted as well as discussing omissions of such research.

Education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is crucial for taking advantage of the prospects of new scientific discoveries initiating or promoting technological changes, and managing opportunities and risks associated with innovations. This book explores the emerging perspectives and methodologies of STEM education and its relationship to the cultural understanding of science and technology in an international context. The authors provide a unique perspective on the subject, presenting materials and experiences from non-European industrialized as well as industrializing countries, including China, Japan, South Korea, India, Egypt, Brazil and the USA. The chapters offer a wide scope of interpretations and comparative reviews of STEM education by including narrative elements about cultural developments, considering the influence of culture and social perceptions on technological and social change, and applying innovative tools of qualitative social research. The book represents a comprehensive and multidisciplinary review of the current status and future challenges facing STEM education across the world, including issues such as globalization, interdependencies of norms and values, effects on equity and social justice as well as resilience. Overall the volume provides valuable insights for a broad and comprehensive international comparison of STEM philosophies, approaches and experiences.

This volume documents a range of qualitative research approaches emerged within mathematics education over the last three decades, whilst at the same time revealing their underlying methodologies. Continuing the discussion as begun in the two 2003 ZDM issues dedicated to qualitative empirical methods, this book presents astate of the art overview on qualitative research in mathematics education and beyond. The structure of the book allows the reader to use it as an actual guide for the selection of an appropriate methodology, on a basis of both theoretical depth and practical implications. The methods and examples illustrate how different methodologies come to life when applied to a specific question in a specific context. Many of the methodologies described are also applicable outside mathematics education, but the examples provided are chosen so as to situate the approach in a mathematical context.

This book provides a one-stop resource for mathematics educators, policy makers and all who are interested in learning more about the why, what and how of mathematics education in Singapore. The content is organized according to three significant and closely interrelated components: the Singapore mathematics curriculum, mathematics teacher education and professional development, and learners in Singapore mathematics classrooms. Written by leading researchers with an intimate understanding of Singapore mathematics education, this up-to-date book reports the latest trends in Singapore mathematics classrooms, including mathematical modelling and problem solving in the real-world context.