This session examined the theoretical and empirical issues related to the
preparation of middle grades mathematics teachers.
Mary Kim Prichard (University of North Carolina at Charlotte),
Mary Eron (East Carolina University),
Cathy Brown (LRDC, University of Pittsburgh), and
Glenda Lappan (Michigan State)
were each asked to respond to the following questions from the perspective of
current projects in which they've been involved.
What are the characteristics of a pre-service program that would prepare
teachers for teaching mathematics in the middle grades?
Knowledge of Mathematics-What mathematics courses should a teacher take to
be comfortable with your inservice program/curriculum and to see
implications and extensions of it?
Knowledge of School Mathematics-How will pre-service teachers connect the
mathematics they are learning to the mathematics they will be teaching?
What content in your inservice program/curriculum are today's prospective
middle grades mathematics teachers likely not to have learned at the
pre-college level and how should they explore this content? In what ways
should they revisit the pre-college content that they have learned?
Knowledge of the Teaching of Mathematics-What kinds of classroom
experiences should prospective teachers have to accommodate the beliefs
about instruction reflected in your inservice program/curriculum? What
facility in using classroom tools such as manipulatives, calculators,
and/or computers is optimal for implementing your inservice
program/curriculum? What modes of instruction should pre-service teachers
have experienced in mathematics courses and/or in methods courses?
Knowledge of the Learning of Mathematics-What assessment techniques should
prospective middle grades mathematics teachers know about and/or be
evaluated with to accommodate the beliefs about evaluation reflected in
your inservice program/curriculum? What should they know about the research
on the difficulties students have in learning middle grades mathematics?
How should they learn about this research?
Knowledge of the Learner of Mathematics-How would you prepare teachers to
manage a diverse student population using your inservice program? What
should they learn or experience to facilitate the inclusion of all kinds of
students?
What are the implications for setting a research agenda regarding the
preparation of middle grades mathematics teachers?
Sidney L. Rachlin, East Carolina University
Orlando Meetings: Presentation Summary
The Math Forum is a research and educational enterprise of the Drexel School of Education.