Abstract
In many countries, it is becoming increasingly common for teachers to analyse data from learners’ tests and classroom work in order to improve their practice in response to what learners need to learn. In order to use data well, teachers need to develop diagnostic competence, which has been defined as the ability to respond in a didactically sensitive manner to learners’ mathematical productions. In this chapter we look at the extent to which mathematics teachers enact elements of diagnostic competence in professional learning communities and their classroom practice. We analyse data from one professional learning community over a two-year period and show that there were features of diagnostic competence in the teachers’ conversations and that three of four teachers shifted their diagnostic competence in practice.
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Notes
- 1.
In South Africa, we use the word learners rather than pupils or students to refer to learners at school.
- 2.
We note that misconceptions can be masked by correct answers, i.e., errors are not the only routes into learners’ misconceptions. However, they are important routes and as teachers’ diagnostic competence with errors develops, they also begin to see different ways of working with correct answers.
- 3.
There were three phases to the project and this chapter reports on phase three. The team that conceptualized and implemented phase three consisted of the first and the third author of this chapter and two other graduate students, referred to here as the DIPIP team. The second and fourth authors were not part of the original team but have been involved in analysing the data.
- 4.
Townships were established under apartheid as segregated living areas for black South Africans. They remain largely inhabited by black people, and township schools usually have black learners and teachers and are poorly resourced in relation to suburban schools, which are more diverse.
- 5.
We do not discuss level in detail in this chapter, although we do refer to it.
- 6.
We follow the use of “student” in the MQI instrument (Hill et al., 2008).
- 7.
Chamu only joined the project towards the end of 2012 and we only videotaped his lessons in 2013 and 2014.
- 8.
Funeka struggled with illness during 2013 and 2014 and was often absent from school and from the PLC.
- 9.
The small changes are also a result of the 3-point scale on the MQI. A larger scale, which differentiates more in the middle band, would probably be more appropriate for the teachers in our study.
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Appendix: Rubrics for Coding Teacher Knowledge
Appendix: Rubrics for Coding Teacher Knowledge
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Brodie, K., Marchant, J., Molefe, N., Chimhande, T. (2018). Developing Diagnostic Competence Through Professional Learning Communities. In: Leuders, T., Philipp, K., Leuders, J. (eds) Diagnostic Competence of Mathematics Teachers. Mathematics Teacher Education, vol 11. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66327-2_8
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