Long-term Use of Standards-based Instructional Practices in Mathematics Classrooms in Southwestern Pennsylvania

[摘要] In July 2010, the Pennsylvania Department of Education adopted the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.Consequently, school districts are adopting and implementing Pennsylvania’s Core Standards (PAC) beginning with the 2013-2014 school year.Encapsulated in the PAC are both content standards and process standards, and the Standards for Mathematical Practice of the PAC capture tenets of standards-based mathematics.Professional development encouraging standards-based mathematics instruction was promoted during the Teacher Leadership Academies (TLAs) provided by the Math Science Partnership (MSP) of Southwestern Pennsylvania.Through these, teachers were provided professional development experiences reflecting research-based practices.The TLAs also advocated for the use of standards-based mathematical instructional practices.With the implementation of the PAC and the Standards for Mathematical Practice, standards-based mathematics instruction is a timely topic.This study analyzed career trajectories and professional experiences of teachers who participated in the TLAs since their culmination in 2008.It also examined the self-reported frequency of mathematical instructional practices occurring in classrooms after the research-based professional development experience of the TLAs ended.This study categorized the instructional strategies into two types:traditional and standards-based.Finally, the study identified potential barriers and supports which may have helped or hindered the continued use of standards-based practices.Some stability exists across Southwestern Pennsylvania for teachers who participated in the TLAs; moreover, teachers who participated in the TLAs continue to use instructional practices reflective of traditional mathematics instruction and standards-based mathematics instruction.However, traditional mathematical instructional practices occur more frequently.As far as potential barriers and supports, barriers most often self-reported consisted of time and covering curriculum as required by high stakes standardized testing.The supports identified the most often addressed teacher beliefs concerning mathematics, content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge.The greatest limitation of this study is the relatively small sample size, making it difficult to generalize the findings.However, the findings of this study still provide guidance for the implementation of standards-based instruction in classrooms today as called upon by the Standards for Mathematical Practice.

[发布机构] the University of Pittsburgh