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Choy, Ban Heng
- PublicationOpen AccessBy teaching we learn: Comprehension and transformation in the teaching of long division(2021)
; ; Dindyal, JaguthsingDespite recent calls to adopt practice-embedded approaches to teacher professional learning, how teachers learn from their practice is not clear. What really matters is not the type of professional learning activities, but how teachers engage with them. In this paper, we position learning from teaching as a dialogic process involving teachers’ pedagogical reasoning and actions. In particular, we present a case of an experienced teacher, Mr. Robert, who was part of a primary school’s mathematics professional learning team (PLT) to describe how he learned to teach differently, and how he taught differently to learn for a series of lessons on division. The findings reiterate the complexity of teacher learning and suggest possible implications for mathematics teacher professional development.128 183 - PublicationOpen AccessConsiderations for teaching with multiple methods: A case study of missingvalue problems in proportionality(2022)
; In this paper, we present a case study of a secondary mathematics teacher, Isaac (pseudonym), and his considerations for teaching with multiple methods for solving missing-value problems. While his students preferred methods that drew more closely on their intuitive understanding of proportionality, Isaac emphasised the algorithmic cross-multiplication method. Analysis of Isaac’s introduction and use of the cross-multiplication method suggest his key considerations were linked demonstrating the efficiency of the cross-multiplication method, while also helping students to make making meaning from the cross-multiplication method.48 124 - PublicationOpen AccessBoundary actions for collaborative learning: A practical perspective of adapting lesson study in a Singapore primary schoolThis qualitative study seeks to establish a deeper understanding of how and what teachers and teacher educators learn collaboratively during the lesson study process in a Singapore primary school. We used the boundary theories to conceptualize this learning process and delineate the learning mechanisms to foster mutual learning between the teacher educators and teachers in the case school. It was found that the teachers’ practical concerns and the improvement proposals from the teacher educators were constantly being negotiated considering the perceived and received consequences, which drove the boundary actions that include both boundary making and boundary crossing to form a learning space for the participants. Findings from this study provide a practical perspective that explains the complexities, challenges, and possibilities of implementing lesson study and working with boundaries to support teacher professional learning.
Scopus© Citations 4 109 105 - PublicationOpen AccessTeachers’ engagement in lesson study for learning community: Shaping teachers’ beliefs about students from disadvantaged social backgrounds.(National Institute of Education (Singapore), 2019)
; ; 147 248 - PublicationOpen AccessMathematics teacher noticing: Expanding the terrains of this hidden skill of teaching(2016-07)
; 189 214 - PublicationMetadata onlyDevelopment of a self-reflection scale for observers of mathematics lesson during lesson study(Emerald, 2024)
; ; Hiroaki, OzawaPurpose
This study aims to develop a self-reflection scale useful for teachers to improve their skills and to clarify the Japanese teachers’ characteristics during mathematics lesson observation (MLO). In MLO, it is important to understand the lesson plan in advance to clarify observation points, and we aim to develop a scale including these points.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the pre-questionnaire survey, nine perspectives and two situations for MLO were extracted. From these, a questionnaire for MLO was created. The results obtained from 161 teachers were examined, and exploratory factor analysis was conducted. ANOVA was conducted to analyze the effect of differences across the duration of teaching experience on the identified factors.
Findings
We developed a self-reflection scale consisting of 14 items with three factors: [B1] focus on instructional techniques and evaluation, [B2] focus on proactive problem-solving lesson development and [B3] focus on the mathematical background of the learning content. While duration of teaching experience showed no effect, three factors of the self-reflection scale for MLO showed a significant effect. Further multiple comparisons revealed the degree of focus was [B2]>[B1]>[B3].
Originality/value
Teachers who use this developed scale may grasp the strengths and weaknesses of their own MLO, which leads to self-improvement. The perspectives emphasized in lesson observation are the same when creating lesson plans and implementing lessons, leading to lesson improvement. Furthermore, based on the characteristics of teachers revealed, new training programs regarding MLO can lead to higher-quality lesson studies.53 - PublicationMetadata onlyProductive teacher noticing and affordances of typical problemsIn this paper, we extend the notion of noticing during the planning of a lesson to examine what and how teachers notice concerning the affordances of typical problems, such as examination-type or standard textbook questions. Teachers in examination-oriented educational systems generally use these types of problems to develop procedural skills. However, the affordances of such problems for developing conceptual understanding have been largely untapped. Here, we present an exemplifying case of a mathematics teacher, Alice, who used typical problems effectively in her classroom to deepen students’ understanding of mathematics. We argue that Alice productively noticed the affordances of these typical problems beyond their usual use, and we suggest recommendations for supporting mathematics teachers in providing high-quality learning experiences for all students.
10 - PublicationMetadata onlySnapshots of a teacher's productive talk moves when orchestrating a whole-class discussionOrchestrating productive mathematics discussions by building on students’ ideas is challenging. Although certain talk moves involving eliciting student responses are associated with this high-leverage practice, they may not be sufficient for enhancing student reasoning. Telling, on the other hand, may play an important role despite the perception they are contradictory to a more interactive stance in teaching. In this paper, we examined how an elementary school teacher orchestrated a productive whole-class discussion through the skillful interweaving of talk moves and telling.
56 - PublicationOpen AccessExcellence in mathematics education: Multiple confluences(2021)Excellence in mathematics education is often linked with high performance in international achievement tests such as TIMSS. In this short paper, I broaden the notion of excellence by considering how the different aspects of mathematics education come together instead of only focusing on what these aspects are. Using confluence as a metaphor to describe excellence, I examine Singapore’s excellence in mathematics education by showing how the “big things” of education such as societal expectations, policy formulation and implementation, and how the “small things” of classroom practices—scheme of work, tasks (especially typical problems), and examinations—flow together towards the same vision of ambitious teaching articulated by the Singapore Mathematics Curriculum Framework.
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