What an Innovative Curriculum for Teachers Reveals About Supporting Teachers' Professional Learning

By Geist, P.K. & Remillard, J.T.

Researchers agree that achieving the fundamental changes called for by current reforms in mathematics education requires new learning on the part of teachers. To meet this challenge, a tremendous variety of teacher-enhancement projects, representing a range of perspectives and approaches to supporting teachers? learning, currently exists across the country. This paper presents a comparative analysis of three teacher educators using a curriculum, Developing Mathematical Ideas (DMI), designed to serve elementary teachers in an inquiry-group setting. The aim of the study was to examine the process and demands of supporting teachers? learning and their efforts to reform their practices. Analyses revealed that the central demand of supporting teachers? learning through inquiry involved navigating through what we have called openings in the curriculum. These openings took the form of unanticipated questions, challenges, observations, or actions by participating teachers and required facilitators to make on-the-spot judgments about how to guide the discourse. Examinations of the teacher educators? processes for navigating these openings revealed that they used a set of three activities in determining how to respond. Analysis of facilitators? activities further illuminates the work involved in supporting teachers? learning and offers implications for the type of support needed by teacher educators engaged in this work.

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Published by: Center for the Development of Teaching

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