Elementary Teachers’ Self-Directed Approach to Developing Knowledge of Inquiry-Based Teaching of Mathematics

• In Event: Poster Session 19
  In Poster Session: Supporting, Challenging, and Shifting Teacher Practice in STEM

Abstract

This article reports on a self-directed, school-based, practice-based professional development experience aimed at helping elementary school teachers develop knowledge and expertise in inquiry-based teaching of mathematics. It discusses the characteristics of the self-directed orientation of this professional development approach that supported the teachers’ learning, the nature of the inquiry-based knowledge they constructed, and the impact on their teaching. It highlights the centrality of agency, practical knowledge, and situated learning in this professional development approach. The findings indicate that this approach can help teachers who want to be the architect of their own learning to transform their classrooms in meaningful and desirable ways.

Author

• Olive Chapman, University of Calgary