Abstract
Our study investigates perspectives of mathematics teacher educators related to the usage of their mathematical knowledge in teaching “Methods of Teaching Elementary Mathematics” courses. Five mathematics teacher educators, all with experience in teaching methods courses for prospective elementary school teachers, participated in this study. In a clinical interview setting, the participants described where and how, in their teaching of elementary methods courses, they had an opportunity to use their advanced mathematical knowledge and provided examples of such opportunities or situations. We outline five apparently different viewpoints and then turn to the similar concerns that were expressed by the participants. In conclusion, we connect the individual perspectives by situating them in the context of unifying themes, both theoretical and practical.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Given the context of this study, “students” refers to prospective elementary school teachers, who are students in the methods course.
References
Adler, J., & Ball, D. (2009). Knowing and using mathematics in teaching. For the Learning of Mathematics, 29(3). Special Issue.
Ball, D. L. (2000). Bridging practices: Intertwining content and pedagogy in teaching and learning to teach. Journal of Teacher Education, 51, 241–247.
Ball, D. L., & Bass, H. (2000). Interweaving content and pedagogy in teaching and learning to teach: Knowing and using mathematics. In J. Boaler (Ed.), Multiple perspectives on mathematics teaching and learning (pp. 83–104). Westport: Alex.
Ball, D. L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps, G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching: What makes it special? Journal of Teacher Education, 59(5), 389–407.
Chapman, O. (2008). Mathematics teacher educators’ learning from research on their instructional practices: A cognitive perspective. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 115–134). Rotterdam: Sense.
Cory, L. (2001). Mathematical structures from Hilbert to Bourbaki: The evolution of an image of mathematics. In U. Bottazzini & A. D. Dalmedoco (Eds.), Changing images in Mathematics. New York: Routledge.
Davis, B., & Simmt, E. (2006). Mathematics-for-teaching: An ongoing investigation of the mathematics that teachers (need to) know. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 61, 293–319.
Even, R. (2008). Facing the challenge of educating educators to work with practicing mathematics teachers. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol.4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 57–74). Rotterdam: Sense.
Hill, H., Ball, D., & Schilling, S. (2008). Unpacking pedagogical content knowledge: Conceptualizing and measuring teachers’ topic-specific knowledge of students. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 39(4), 372–400.
Jaworski. (2001). Developing mathematics teaching: Teachers, teacher educators, and researchers as co-learners. In F. L. Lin & T. J. Cooney (Eds.), Making sense of mathematics teacher education (pp. 295–320). Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic.
Jaworski, B., & Wood, T. (Eds.). (2008). The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The Mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional. Rotterdam: Sense.
Krainer, K. (2008). Reflecting the development of a mathematics teacher educator and his discipline. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 177–200). Rotterdam: Sense.
Lockhart, R. (2009). A mathematician’s lament: How school cheats us out of our most fascinating and imaginative art form. New York: Bellevue Literary.
Mason, J. (1998). Enabling teachers to be real teachers: Necessary levels of awareness and structure of attention. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 1(3), 243–267.
Mason, J. (2008). Being mathematical with and in front of learners: Attention, awareness and attitude as sources of differences between teacher educators, teachers and learners. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 31–56). Rotterdam: Sense.
Mason, J., & Pimm, D. (1984). Generic examples: Seeing the general in the particular. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 15, 227–289.
Noddings, N. (2001). The caring teacher. In V. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching (4th ed., pp. 99–105). Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.
Polya, G. (1945/1988). How to solve it. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Simon, M. A. (2006). Key developmental understandings in mathematics: A direction for investigating and establishing learning goals. Mathematical Thinking and Learning, 8(4), 359–371.
Simon, M. (2008). The challenge of mathematics teacher education in an era of mathematics education reform. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 17–30). Rotterdam: Sense.
Shulman, L. S. (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4–14.
Skemp, R. (1976). Relational understanding and instrumental understanding. Mathematics teaching, 77, 20–26. Reprinted (2006) in Mathematics teaching in the middle school, pp. 88–95.
Sztajn, P. (2008). Caring relations in the Education of practicing mathematics teachers. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 299–313). Rotterdam: Sense.
Watson, A. (2008a). School mathematics as a special kind of mathematics. For the Learning of Mathematics, 28(3), 3–8.
Watson, A. (2008b). Developing and deepening mathematical knowledge in teaching: Being and knowing. The Nuffield seminar series on Mathematical Knowledge in Teaching. Available: http://www.mkit.maths-ed.org.uk/seminar5.html.
Watson, A., & Mason, J. (2007). Taken-as-shared: A review of common assumptions about mathematical tasks in teacher education. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 10(4–6), 205–215.
Zaslavsky, O. (2008). Meeting the challenges of mathematics teacher education through design and use of tasks that facilitate teacher learning. In B. Jaworski & T. Wood (Eds.), The international handbook of mathematics teacher education, vol. 4: The mathematics teacher educator as a developing professional (pp. 93–114). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.
Zaslavsky, O., & Leikin, R. (2004). Professional development of mathematics teacher educators: Growth through practice. Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 7(1), 5–32.
Zazkis, R. (2008). Looking for a possible intersection: A response to Anne Watson. For the Learning of Mathematics, 28(3), 8–9.
Zazkis, R., & Liljedahl, P. (2009). Teaching mathematics as storytelling. Rotterdam: Sense.
Zazkis, R., & Mamolo, A. (2009). Sean vs. Cantor: Using mathematical knowledge in ‘experience of disturbance’. For the Learning of Mathematics, 29(3), 53–56.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zazkis, R., Zazkis, D. The significance of mathematical knowledge in teaching elementary methods courses: perspectives of mathematics teacher educators. Educ Stud Math 76, 247–263 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-010-9268-z
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-010-9268-z