DFG-NSF Conference
US Panelist Papers
their work. And beyond knowing, understanding, and appreciating the mathematics they will use, teachers also need to know students and need to know classroom practice (see Kilpatrick, Swafford, & Findell, 2001, ch. 10). Reviewing programs to develop the proficient teaching of mathematics, a recent report from the U.S. National Research Council says the following: Programs of teacher education and professional development based on research integrate the study of mathematics and the study of students’ learning so that teachers will forge connections between the two. Some of these programs begin with mathematical ideas from the school curriculum and ask teachers to analyze those ideas from the learners’ perspective. Other programs use students’ mathematical thinking as a springboard to motivate teachers’ learning of mathematics. Still others begin with teaching practice and move toward a consideration of mathematics and students’ thinking. (Kilpatrick et al., 2001, p. 385) The report goes on to give examples of four types of programs for developing proficiency in teaching that illustrate some possible approaches. The report argues that such proficiency is best developed over time in communities of fellow practitioners and learners who work together on common problems of teaching: If teachers are going engage in inquiry, they need repeated opportunities to try out ideas and approaches with their students and continuing opportunities to discuss their experiences with specialists in mathematics, staff developers, and other teachers. These opportunities should not limited to a period of a few weeks or months; instead, they should be part of the ongoing culture of professional practice. Through inquiry into teaching, teacher learning can become generative, and teachers can continue to learn and grow as professionals. (p. 399) However teacher preparation programs and continuing professional development programs are organized, development of the teacher’s knowledge base seems to demand that programs be appropriate, coherent, collaborative, and sustained. Neither standard university courses in mathematics nor one- or two-day workshops for teachers have proven to be very effective in improving teachers’ knowledge of mathematics in and for teaching. Much more is required if that knowledge is to make a difference in practice. My priorities for further research and development come from the proposed work of the NSF-funded U.S. Center for Proficiency in Teaching Mathematics (see http://www.cptm.us/) and are the following: 1.
Where and how do teachers use mathematics during their work?
2.
What mathematical knowledge, skills, and dispositions are entailed in teaching mathematics for proficiency?
3.
How can teachers, prospective or practicing, develop their mathematical knowledge and use it more effectively in teaching?
4.
What constitutes a professional learning opportunity in mathematics that is consonant with making instructional practice and its development central to that learning?
5.
What are the characteristics of high-quality, self-sustaining professional development opportunities for P-16 teachers that make those opportunities effective?
6.
What does it take to develop productive alliances and collaborations across communities that can contribute to the professional learning of mathematics teachers?
Note Paper prepared for the German-American Workshop on Quality Development in Mathematics and Science Education, Kiel, Germany, 5–8 March 2003.
References Ball, D. L., Lubienski, S. T., & Mewborn, D. S. (2001). Research on teaching mathematics: The unsolved problem of teachers’ mathematical knowledge. In V. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching (4th ed., pp. 433–456). Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.
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