SUPPORTING TEACHERS USING APPROPRIATE TOOLS STRATEGICALLY: A PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK FOR SELECTING AND REVISING DGS TASKS

• In Event: TEACHER EDUCATION & KNOWLEDGE: CURRICULUM AND TASK DESIGN

Description

Given the implications of high cognitive demand tasks for student learning, we sought to determine how to support teachers in selecting or designing tasks that use Dynamic Geometry Software to support students’ high-level thinking. We discuss the development of a practical framework for supporting teachers in this important work of teaching. The framework integrates Sinclair’s Design Principles (2003) and the amplifier/reorganizer metaphor for technology use (Pea, 1987) in order to assess the role of technology in relation to thinking requirements. We discuss results regarding how teachers used the framework to evaluate and revise tasks found in current Geometry textbooks.

Authors

• Milan F Sherman, Drake University

• Charity Cayton, East Carolina University

• Kayla Chandler, North Carolina State University