Helping students develop an understanding of mathematical ideas is a persistent challenge for teachers. This work focuses on ways to engage upper elementary, middle school, and high school students in thinking, reasoning, and problem solving to build their mathematics understanding and proficiency.

This book builds on the Teachers Empowered to Advance Change in Mathematics (TEACH Math) project, which was an initiative that sought to develop a new generation of preK-8 mathematics teachers to connect mathematics, children’s mathematical thinking, and community and family knowledge in mathematics instruction – or what we have come to call children’s multiple mathematical knowledge bases in mathematics instruction, with an explicit focus on equity. Much of the work involved in the TEACH Math project included the development of three instructional modules for preK-8 mathematics methods courses to support the project’s goals. These activities were used and refined over eight semesters, and in Fall 2014 shared at a dissemination conference with other mathematics teacher educators from a variety of universities across the United States. Chapter contributions represent diverse program and geographical contexts and teach prospective and practicing teachers from a variety of socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds, in particular providing accounts of supports, challenges, and tensions in implementing equity-based mathematics teacher education. The chapters supply rich evidence and illustrative examples of how other mathematics teacher educators and professional developers might make the modules work for their unique practices, courses, workshops, and prospective teachers/teachers. It promises to be an important resource for offering guidance and examples to those working with prospective teachers of mathematics who want to create positive, culturally responsive, and equity-based mathematics experiences for our nation’s youth.

The diversity of research domains and theories in the field of mathematics education has been a permanent subject of discussions from the origins of the discipline up to the present. On the one hand the diversity is regarded as a resource for rich scientific development on the other hand it gives rise to the often repeated criticism of the discipline’s lack of focus and identity. As one way of focusing on core issues of the discipline the book seeks to open up a discussion about fundamental ideas in the field of mathematics education that permeate different research domains and perspectives. The book addresses transformation as one fundamental idea in mathematics education and examines it from different perspectives. Transformations are related to knowledge, related to signs and representations of mathematics, related to concepts and ideas, and related to instruments for the learning of mathematics. The book seeks to answer the following questions: What do we know about transformations in the different domains? What kinds of transformations are crucial? How is transformation in each case conceptualized?

Content-Focused Coaching is a long-range professional development practice in which coaches work individually or with groups of classroom teachers.

Teachers often want to learn new ideas and approaches to improve their teaching, but their efforts are often blocked by structural constraints in their districts and schools. How can schools overcome these barriers to provide more supportive environments for change? The authors answer this question through the study of six cases of schools and districts where teachers and researchers collaborated to develop teaching for understanding in math and science. This new book features: a new conceptual model of how school resources relate to teaching and learning, focusing not only on material resources such as time and money but also on human and social resources; methods that administrators can use to support teachers who want to improve their teaching of math and science; elements that professional developers should look for in a school environment when they are considering working with staff on teaching improvements; and answers to important questions, including how schools operate as organizations, how they control work, how they respond to changes in their environment, and how they improve classroom teaching and learning.

This book surveys and examines different approaches and practices that contribute to the changes in mathematics instruction, including (1) innovative approaches that bring direct changes in classroom instructional practices, (2) curriculum reforms that introduce changes in content and requirements in classroom instruction, and (3) approaches in mathematics teacher education that aim to improve teachers’ expertise and practices. It also surveys relevant theory and methodology development in studying and assessing mathematics instruction. Classroom instruction is commonly seen as one of the key factors contributing to students’ learning of mathematics, but much remains to be understood about teachers’ instructional practices that lead to the development and enactment of effective classroom instruction, and approaches and practices developed and used to transform classroom instruction in different education systems. Transforming Mathematics Instruction is organized to help readers learn not only from reading individual chapters, but also from reading across chapters and sections to explore broader themes, including: - Identifying what is important in mathematics for teaching and learning emphasized in different approaches; - Exploring how students’ learning is considered and facilitated through different approaches and practices; - Understanding the nature of various approaches that are valued in different systems and cultural contexts; - Probing culturally valued approaches in identifying and evaluating effective instructional practices. The book brings new research and insights into multiple approaches and practices for transforming mathematics instruction to the international community of mathematics education, with 25 chapters and four section prefaces contributed by 56 scholars from 10 different education systems. This rich collection is indispensable reading for mathematics educators, researchers, teacher educators, curriculum developers, and graduate students interested in learning about different instructional practices, approaches for instructional transformation, and research in different education systems. It will help readers to reflect on approaches and practices that are useful for instructional changes in their own education systems, and also inspire them to identify and further explore new areas of research and program development in improving mathematics teaching and learning.

The digital age provides ample opportunities for enhanced learning experiences for students; however, it can also present challenges for educators who must adapt to and implement new technologies in the classroom. The Handbook of Research on Transforming Mathematics Teacher Education in the Digital Age is a critical reference source featuring the latest research on the development of educators’ knowledge for the integration of technologies to improve classroom instruction. Investigating emerging pedagogies for preservice and in-service teachers, this publication is ideal for professionals, researchers, and educational designers interested in the implementation of technology in the mathematics classroom.

Recent research in problem solving has shifted its focus to actual classroom implementation and what is really going on during problem solving when it is used regularly in classroom. This book seeks to stay on top of that trend by approaching diverse aspects of current problem solving research, covering three broad themes. Firstly, it explores the role of teachers in problem-solving classrooms and their professional development, moving onto—secondly—the role of students when solving problems, with particular consideration of factors like group work, discussion, role of students in discussions and the effect of students’ engagement on their self-perception and their view of mathematics. Finally, the book considers the question of problem solving in mathematics instruction as it overlaps with problem design, problem-solving situations, and actual classroom implementation. The volume brings together diverse contributors from a variety of countries and with wide and varied experiences, combining the voices of leading and developing researchers. The book will be of interest to any reader keeping on the frontiers of research in problem solving, more specifically researchers and graduate students in mathematics education, researchers in problem solving, as well as teachers and practitioners.

Foster a love of mathematics by creating a more inclusive and empowering learning environment through asset-based teaching! An asset-based perspective on math education means starting with what students already know instead of focusing on what’s missing. This approach elevates student thinking and reasoning skills. In this way, educators acknowledge that all students bring prior experiences, strengths, talents, and resources to the learning process and can contribute meaningfully in an authentic learning environment. Transform Your Math Class Using Asset-Based Teaching for Grades 6-12 provides insight into asset-based perspectives in mathematics education to create an environment where all students feel valued and capable of being doers of mathematics. In the book, Michael Steele and Joleigh Honey highlight the importance of using language, instructional routines, and systemic structure that positively impact student engagement, their math identity, and ultimately their outcomes. Providing a wealth of knowledge and practical strategies that can be used to transform math classrooms into inclusive, supportive, and empowering learning environments, this book: Introduces an asset-based perspective that focuses on students′ strengths, assets, and potential to learn mathematics Includes a variety of frameworks and tools that teachers can use to build and grow their sense of asset-based perspectives Offers strategies for promoting a growth mindset in mathematics, encouraging productive struggle in math, and promoting equitable math instruction Supports teachers in reflecting on their decisions, self-awareness, and self-management Includes a companion online study guide to support teachers individually or as part of a professional learning community Adopting asset-based perspectives is about movement over time, not about flipping a switch. This book paves the path for an asset-based journey that ultimately helps to transform our math classrooms and advance all students’ learning and development.

The book represents a crop of wide-ranging research conducted by renown scholars in sub-Sahara Africa revolving around mathematics teaching and professional development programs for mathematics teachers. The research-based proposals and actual how-to-conduct professional development initiatives that enhance effective mathematics instruction are rooted in teacher input and informed by learners’ errors and misconceptions. The book provides a comprehensive snapshot on mathematics teaching, learning and effective professional development programmes for mathematics teachers in sub-Sahara Africa. It is the only research output that advances and disseminates issues of mathematics education and research in the region with input from South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Malawi, Namibia, Lesotho, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe.