Classroom Teachers Doing Research in the Workplace

Abstract

This chapter describes a methodology for using classroom teachers to gather information about mathematics in the workplace. It was used as one aspect of a project run by the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers Inc (AAMT). The purpose of the project was to develop better understandings of what it means for a person to use mathematics when completing practical tasks. To help with this task snapshots of people at work were collected by having teachers, go into the workplace, shadow a worker for up to a day, interview the worker, then write up their findings. This chapter provides an overview of the project, an outline of the broader educational context, a description of the processes used and the methodology issues which emerged, some snippets from the research and how the teachers felt about the experience.