Teacher Education and Mathematics Knowledge for Teaching

• In Event: 65.066 - Mathematics Teacher Education: Results and Implications of an International Study

Abstract

Objectives

In this presentation I share the results of an investigation of the association between future primary and secondary teachers’ mathematics teaching knowledge and a number of key features of pre-service teacher education programs using data from the Teacher Education Study in Mathematics (TEDS-M).

Theoretical Framework

Globally, teacher education is undergoing vigorous systemic education reform (Author, 2007) and while contextually different, pre-service programs share similar features including the goal of improving the mathematics preparation of future teachers. Teacher education is mediated by individual future teacher characteristics including background and prior attainment. According to Shulman (1987), teacher education is expected to have an effect on the knowledge base for teaching, including knowledge of the school curriculum (see Mullis et al., 2007). TEDS-M assessed these expectations using mathematics and mathematics pedagogy knowledge assessments and used the concept of opportunity to learn as a key determinant of learning (Floden, 2002; Husen, 1967; McDonnell, 1995), as mediated by individual characteristics, programs’ policies, and program coherence (see Author, 1996, 1998, 1999) to explore the association between program characteristics and performance on the assessments.

Methods

After controlling for collinearity, we modeled (using regression analysis and HLM--a multilevel method using two-level hierarchical linear modeling; see Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002; Raudenbush et al., 2004) the influence of individuals’ backgrounds and teacher education program characteristics (such as opportunities to learn, philosophy, selection policy, curricular policy, and program staff and resources) on future teachers’ performance on the TEDS-M tests of mathematics knowledge and mathematics pedagogy knowledge. The models are by country and explore the effects of the same variables across all countries.

Data Sources

A total of 15,163 future primary teachers were surveyed in 451 institutions and 9,389 future secondary teachers were surveyed in 339 institutions in 16 countries participated in the TEDS-M study (Author, et al., 2013). We use the results of the individual country reports and the institutional and future teachers’ survey (primary and secondary) results as the sources of data for our analysis.

Results

We found the effects of teacher education varied across countries and, within countries, across programs. There are strong associations between performance in the assessments of mathematics teaching knowledge and varied opportunities to learn and other program features. Individual characteristics of future teachers were strongly linked to scores in the study’s assessments.

Scholarly Significance

TEDS-M shows that while the provision of teacher education shares many common features in structure and content within and across countries, it is unevenly implemented at the program and local levels. Without central control and performance standards, policy mandates may result in teacher education that is highly differentiated from program to program. Being taught by a knowledgeable, capable mathematics teacher should be seen as a basic right among school children. Similarly, future teachers have a right to expect to be well prepared to teach mathematics when they finish their teacher preparation. The TEDS-M study is very timely as educational policy makers are turning their attention to teacher quality especially in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) areas.

Author

• Maria Teresa Tatto, Michigan State University