Conference presentation
Mathematical synergies toward numeracy and the implications for the SC Model
SCU Scholarship of Learning and Teaching Symposium (Online, 08/11/2022 - 10/11/2022)
08/11/2022
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Abstract
The quality of primary and secondary school mathematics teaching relies on individual teachers mathematical competence (Rowland & Ruthven, 2011; Ball, Thames & Phelps, 2008; Hill, Rowan & Ball, 2005). That, in turn, relies on the quality of teacher education and training. This presentation explores an approach to enhancing pre-service teacher training to enhance teachers mastery of mathematics teaching and the implications for teaching and learning within the SC Model.
In Australia, the government has pushed for improvements to shift pre-service teachers mathematical capacity (AITSL, 2011). In particular, primary and early childhood education students are now expected to have a level of numeracy broadly equivalent to the top 30% of the population (AITSL, 2011). This reflects an agreement amongst educators on the importance of sound mathematics learning in early schooling, and the recognition that the early stage learning of mathematics has a significant positive influence on later learning (Nguyen et al., 2019; Orcos et al., 2019). The importance of a profound understanding of fundamental mathematics is well recognised (Mason, 2008; Graeber & Tirosh, 2008; Ma, 1999). Teachers mathematical content knowledge, importantly, should not be limited to topics and the procedures. Hill et al. (2005), in introducing mathematical knowledge for teaching, argued that teachers not only need to calculate correctly but also need to know how to represent mathematics concepts and procedures to students, provide students with explanations for common rules and mathematical procedures and analyse students solution and explanations (p.372).
The presentation explores a curriculum response to the aforementioned challenge at SCU in the Faculty of Education and provides clues for navigating the numeracy teaching and learning challenges in the SC Model. Pre-service teachers in the Faculty of Education Primary and Early Childhood degree courses are introduced to specialised mathematical knowledge for teaching in a mathematics discipline unit, Foundations of Mathematics and Numeracy: Numbers That Count, and to mathematical pedagogical content knowledge in a unit entitled Mathematics Education: Curriculum and Pedagogy I. We have explored?270 pre-service teachers capacity to incorporate specialised content knowledge into tasks that require pedagogical content knowledge of teaching mathematics in early childhood and primary education settings. and the implications for delivery in the SC Model. Over a two-year period, data were collected on two cohorts of pre-service teachers enrolled in the two units. Findings of the study will be shared, along with potential implications for teaching and learning in the SC Model.
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, (2022), Accreditation of initial teacher education programs in Australia, AITSL, Melbourne. https://www.aitsl.edu.au/tools-resources/resource/accreditation-of-initial-teacher-education-programs-in-australia---standards-and-procedures??
Ball, D. L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps, G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching: What makes it special? Journal of Teacher Education, 59(5), 389-407.?https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487108324554
Graeber, A., & Tirosh, D. (2008). Pedagogical content knowledge. In P. Sullivan & T. Wood (Eds.), Knowledge and beliefs in mathematics teaching and teaching development (Vol. 1, pp. 117-132). Rotterdam, Netherlands: Sense Publishers.??
Hill, H. C., Rowan, B., & Ball, D. L. (2005). Effects of teachers mathematical knowledge for teaching on student achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 42(2), 371-406.?https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312042002371
Ma, L. (1999). Knowing and teaching elementary mathematics: Teachers understanding of fundamental mathematics in China and the United States. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.??
Mason, J. (2008). PCK and beyond. In P. Sullivan & S. Wilson (Eds.), Knowledge and beliefs in mathematics teaching and teaching development (Vol. 1, pp. 301 322). Rotterdam/Taipe: Sense Publishers.??
Ruthven K. (2011). Conceptualising Mathematical Knowledge in Teaching. In T. Rowland, K. Ruthven (eds.), Mathematical Knowledge in Teaching, Springer.??
Nguyen, T., Duncan, R. J., & Bailey, D. H. (2019). Theoretical and methodological implications of associations between executive function and mathematics in early childhood. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 58, 276-287.?https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2019.04.002?
Orcos, L., Hernandez-Carrera, R. M., Espigares, M. J., & Magrenan, A. A. (2019). The Kumon method: Its importance in the improvement on the teaching and learning of mathematics from the first levels of early childhood and primary education. Mathematics, 7(1), 109 . https://doi.org/10.3390/math7010109
Details
- Title
- Mathematical synergies toward numeracy and the implications for the SC Model
- Creators
- Christos Markopoulos - Southern Cross UniversityLewes Peddell - Southern Cross UniversityPatrick Bruck - Southern Cross University
- Contributors
- Southern Cross University (Institution)
- Conference
- SCU Scholarship of Learning and Teaching Symposium (Online, 08/11/2022 - 10/11/2022)
- Identifiers
- 991013074713402368
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Education
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Conference presentation
- Local Fields
- Evidence Based Practice - SoLT