Abstract
This article reports findings from a study conducted within a teacher education program to help highlight the importance of equitable instruction of mathematics for all students. The researcher developed four scenarios of her oppressive and liberative teaching practices. Prospective teachers were then asked to write scenarios describing their oppressive and liberative teaching practices. Results showed that prospective teachers found it easier to write liberative teaching practices of themselves than oppressive examples. Scenario themes centered on allowing students ample time to understand mathematical concepts, having high expectations for all students, and addressing individual student’s needs. Developing prospective teachers who are aware of equity in teaching requires ample time to discuss authentic issues in diversity. Teacher educators need to be aware of their own oppressive and liberative teaching practices in doing such work.
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Acknowledgments
The author wishes to thank Dr. Elizabeth Powers-Costello for initial conversations in conceptualizing this study, Dr. Ed Dickey for feedback and help in thinking through definitions, and Drs. Megan Burton, Christine Lotter, and Stephen Thompson for their feedback on multiple drafts.
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Yow, J.A. Prospective teacher beliefs about liberative and oppressive mathematics teaching practices: a first step toward equitable instruction. J Math Teacher Educ 15, 83–96 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10857-011-9197-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10857-011-9197-5