Equitably Teaching and Mathematically Preparing

• In Event: Elementary Mathematics Teaching That Is Responsive to Student Learning, Emotions, and Culture

Abstract

Mathematics teaching can reproduce social injustice or, with attention and skill, disrupt patterns of oppression and advance socially just communities of practice. This study examines differences between equitable mathematics teaching and “good” mathematics teaching in three domains often identified in the literature. Using differences in the teaching of two mathematically skillful teachers who provide uneven learning opportunities to students, we find that equitable teaching requires more than combined cultural knowledge, general pedagogical skill, and will. It requires nuanced pedagogical work with specialized mathematical demands. We conceptualize the work of teaching equitably, with implications for the mathematical preparation of teachers.

Authors

• Imani Masters Goffney, University of Maryland

• Mark Hoover, University of Michigan