Episode 57: Dilemmas and Design Principles in Planning for Justice-Oriented Community-Based Mathematical Modeling Lessons

October 24th, 2023  |  Season 14  |  34 mins 36 secs

This article details the development of design principles to support teachers in planning for a Community-Based Mathematical Modeling task with a focus on social justice in the elementary grades. By reflecting on the dilemmas we encountered in the design and enactment of the tasks, we developed five design principles that allowed us to address issues of social justice as well as attend to powerful mathematical ideas to bring awareness and take action around a local problem. Through our article, we hope to share with mathematics teacher educators
design principles to help plan for tasks with pre- and in-service teachers that prioritize connecting mathematics to social issues and empower both teachers and students to take action to make a positive impact in the community.

Episode 32: Developing an Asset-Based View of Students’ Mathematical Competencies Through Learning Trajectory-Based Lesson Study

December 15th, 2021  |  Season 8  |  33 mins 37 secs

equity and diversity; learning trajectories (or progressions); teacher education—in-service/professional development; geometry and geometrical and spatial thinking

This article details the design and implementation of a professional development model called Learning Trajectory-Based Lesson Study focused on issues of equity, identity, and agency. We developed the Vertical Articulation to Unpack the Learning Trajectory (VAULT) tool to orient teachers’ instructional planning toward an asset-based view of students’ mathematics competencies. We examined teachers’ use of the VAULT to plan, implement, and debrief on student strategies for one spatial reasoning task in elementary, middle, and high school classrooms. The VAULT facilitated intentional planning for a progression of anticipated strategies and equitable access to instruction. Teachers demonstrated an asset-based view of all student thinking independent of grade-level expectations.