Explaining Differences In One Teacher’s Instruction Across Multiple Tracked Fifth-Grade Classes

Authors

Corey Webel, University of MissouriFollow
Kimberly A. Conner, University of Northern IowaFollow
Christina Sheffel, University of Missouri

Comments

First published in School Science and Mathematics, v.122 n.1 (2022), by Wiley. DOI: 10.1111/ssm.12504

Document Type

Article

Publication Version

Published Version

Keywords

classroom discourse, elementary, inquiry/discovery, mathematics, teacher knowledge

Journal/Book/Conference Title

School Science and Mathematics

Abstract

In this article, we describe the case of “Keri,” a fifth-grade teacher who had completed an Elementary Mathematics Specialist (EMS) certification program. Drawn from a larger study investigating the knowledge, beliefs, and practices of EMSs, Keri's case was unique in that she was teaching mathematics to four classes in a departmentalized structure, where students were placed into different classes according to perceived mathematics ability. Observations from the larger study revealed that Keri's instructional practices did not align with her reported beliefs and knowledge. To explore this deviation, we conducted a case study where we observed Keri's instruction across multiple classes and used interviews to explore reasons for Keri's instructional decisions in terms of her perceived professional obligations. We found that Keri did employ practices that were aligned with her reported beliefs and knowledge such as pressing students for mathematical justifications, but only in her “higher ability” classes. Interview data suggested that Keri's decisions were driven by a strong obligation to individual students, overriding other obligations. We describe implications of these findings, including the limitations of teacher assessments and surveys as proxies for teaching quality, and discuss recommendations for approaches to teacher development that account for teachers’ perceived obligations.

Department

Department of Mathematics

Original Publication Date

12-23-2021

Object Description

1 PDF file

DOI of published version

10.1111/ssm.12504

Repository

UNI ScholarWorks, Rod Library, University of Northern Iowa

Copyright

©2021 The Authors. CC BY-NC-ND license.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

Recommended Citation

Webel, Corey; Conner, Kimberly A.; and Sheffel, Christina, "Explaining Differences In One Teacher’s Instruction Across Multiple Tracked Fifth-Grade Classes" (2021). Faculty Publications. 5197.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/facpub/5197