Developing Collaboration in the Elementary Mathematics Classroom: Preservice Teachers and Inservice Teachers Working Together for Student SuccessRobert Bonner, Ed.D.TOTOM ConferenceSeptember 9, 2011

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

The PlanThe Co-Teaching Project

The SettingCo-Teaching is Collaboration

The ImpactMathThe Work SampleSupporting Students

An Invitation

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Changing Paradigms

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Setting the StageAll students in the Undergraduate Teacher Education Program

Two student teaching experiencesElementary & Early Childhood1 full-time (5 days a week, all semester) (Meets OAR 584.017.180)1 part-time experience

The part-time experience6 weeks, 2 days a week3 weeks, full-time

Work Sample Required – In MathematicsTraditionally

Student & cooperating teacher chose work sample topicWork sample was the focus

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

MathAttitude Awareness

Anxiety & Angst – Math 211 (n=56)26.8% - Negative26.8% - Middle of the Road17.9% - Positive25.0 – Enjoy

AvoidanceMost avoid math for their work sample.Choose a subject with which they are more comfortable

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

MathDomains of Knowledge (Ball et al., 2008)

Subject Matter KnowledgeContent Matter Knowledge (procedural vs. conceptual)Horizon Content KnowledgeSpecialized Content Knowledge

Pedagogical Content KnowledgeKnowledge of content and studentsKnowledge of content and teachingKnowledge of content and curriculum

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Professional PreparationModel Core Teaching Standards (CCSSO, 2010)Transforming Teacher Education Through Clinical Practice (NCATE, 2010)

Emphasis on the clinical practice of teacher education programs.Emphasis on collaboration.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Collaboration Through Co-Teaching

Two teachers (a cooperating teacher and a teacher candidate) working together with groups of

students; sharing the planning, organization, delivery, and assessment of instruction, as well as

the physical space.

Foundational elements: Friend & Reising, 1993; Cook & Friend, 1995; Bacharach, Heck, & Dahlberg, 2010.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Paradigm ShiftFor the teacher candidate (formerly student teacher), this means that he/she is expected to be involved in all aspects of the classroom experience. This involvement is not the checking off of a list of requirements, but instead is the fulfillment of his/her role as an adult teacher in the classroom. Being a partner and collaborator means that the teacher candidate accepts the responsibility and expectations for the planning, organization, management, and teaching that occurs in the classroom in collaboration with the classroom teacher. His/her focus is the learning and achievement of the students.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Paradigm ShiftFor the cooperating teacher, this means that he/she can expect the teacher candidate to be a valued partner and collaborator in the pursuit of success for all students in the classroom. Being a partner and collaborator means that the cooperating teacher shares the responsibility and expectations for the planning, organization, management, and teaching that occurs in the classroom with the teacher candidate.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Fluidity in TeachingTraditional – Often formal delineations between student teacher & cooperating teacherNew Paradigm – Fluid movement with roles transitioning easilyStrategies

One teach, one observeOne teach, one assistStation teachingSupplemental teachingDifferentiated teachingTeam teachingParallel teaching

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Implementation of Bridges

Concurrently with the implementation of co-teaching, the Newberg School District was also implementing Bridges across the elementary grades.Students experienced two dimensions of implementation. (Nicol & Crespo, 2006)

AdheringElaboratingThe third dimension of creating was not present.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

The Impact Upon MathYou know, like maybe the fact that they were planning together and they were creating lessons together. They were looking at standards together. They were really focused in on what the task was together. It was very helpful and was a real strength to us. We had a student teacher actually at one point took the lead and try to find different activities to support one of the focal points of Math and did a lot of investigation and took it back to the teacher…and it just helped to divide workload a little bit. And she did a great job of finding and also presenting new ways of doing long division, which was very helpful at that time. (Principal)

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

The Work SampleS. …I don’t know that the whole Work Sample Model…It’s effective for the students, but it’s not necessarily effective for our classrooms. When our teachers are very direct about “Yes, you can do a Work Sample and here is what it must be about within this timeframe because this is what I would have been teaching,”…That can work. But I don’t know that we have been that prescriptive and so we’ve had pretty weak content in my opinion, in the form of Work Samples that teachers have allowed the students to do. More, they’re being nice and “making it work for you” and that didn’t really help anybody in my opinion. (1st Principal)

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

The Work SampleK. Sometimes it was focused on what standards they were supposed to cover, and sometimes it wasn’t.…Yes, this time it was very focused because it was actually occurring together. They were planning…. (2nd Principal)

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

The Work SampleS. …planned it together…delivered it together…. Whereas, I did see that in other staff, just let their person just do their Work Sample while they weren’t present. It was just night-and-day difference at that point in time. And I think the teachers wanted to be there, because they were used to doing the back-and-forth stuff; whereas the other ones were looking forward to having someone else take it over. This just felt different in the building. (2nd Principal)

Learning TogetherI think it was a much more valuable experience, because they were learning alongside; so the teacher went through it, especially in Math, since there were some different kinds of situations in Math. Some teachers were learning different concepts, different evaluative tools, and different standards along the way, as well as a new curriculum. So they were kind of doing it together and…I liked that. (Principal)

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

What if this had said math…

I actually -- I feel like I really made a difference in their confidence and reading ability over the time I was with them because I got so much time to interact with them and try different strategies with them for reading. So that was really valuable and for my cooperating teacher it left her a lot more time to try new strategies for assessment with the kids because the reading groups got done about twice as fast with two people doing it. I especially got to try new strategies and ended up doing some assessments that ended up with her breaking kids into strategy-based reading groups rather than ability-based reading groups by the end which was also very beneficial.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Student SupportI think it’s very beneficial for student learning because you’re just providing them with more support, the more support the better, and I definitely think the learning of the students in my classroom was enhanced by the fact that we have two teachers and two pairs of eyes and two people to, you know, help and encourage and support, so yeah, I would say it was definitely -- it was a positive impact. (Teacher Candidate)

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Co-Teaching ReferencesBacharach, N., Heck, T. W., & Dahlberg, K. (2010). Changing the face of student teaching through coteaching. Action in Teacher Education, 32(1): 3-14.Beilock, S. L., Gunderson, E.A., Ramirez, G., & Levine, S. (2010) Female teachers’ math anxiety impacts girls’ math achievement. Proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences 107(5): 1860-63. Retrieved from http://www.pnas.orgCook, L., & Friend, M. (1995). Co-Teaching: Guidelines for creating effective practices. Focus on Exceptional Children, 28(3):1-17.Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010, July). Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC). Model core teaching standards: A resource for state dialogue (Draft for public comment). Washington, D.C.: author.Nicol, C. C., & Crespo, S. M. (2006). Learning to teach with mathematics textbooks: How preservice teachers interpret and use curriculum materials. Educational Studies in Mathematics 62:331-355.Friend, M., & Reising, M. (1993). Co-Teaching: An overview of the past, a glimpse at the present, and considerations for the future. Preventing School Failure, 37(4):6-11.Gresham, G. (2009). An examination of mathematics teacher efficacy and mathematics anxiety in elementary pre-service teachers. Classroom Interaction, 44(2): 22-38. National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. (2010). Transforming teacher education through clinical practice: A national strategy to prepare effective teachers. (Report of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Clinical Preparation and Partnerships for Improved Student Learning). Washington, D.C.: author.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Invitation to ParticipateAre students who have taken Math 211, 212, and 213 better prepared to teach mathematics in the elementary schools than students who have not taken Math 211, 212, and 213? What is effect on the mathematical knowledge for teaching for students who have taken Math 211, 212, and 213? Does an emphasis upon student analysis of mathematical situations from the Mathematical Knowledge For Teaching Measures released items in Math 211, 212, & 313 produce greater mathematical knowledge for teaching effects than non-use of the measures in Math 211, 212, & 213? Other questions that the research team might have.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Math 211 & 212 StudyThe released items from the Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching assessment were included in the Math 211 and 212 courses as math tasks to be completed.Students were required to analyze one math task each week. Instead of just choosing an answer, the students were required to provide mathematical justification for why an option should or should not be chosen. Tasks were aligned with the content being studied.Students were given the secure assessment in a pre- and post- setting via computer.

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice

Preliminary ResultsElementary School Patterns, Functions, & Algebra

Math 211 Fall 2010 – Effect size - 0.1Math 211 Spring 2011 – Effect size .1428

Elementary School Numbers, Concepts, & Operations (2004)

Math 211 Fall 2010 – Effect size .531Math 211 Spring 2011 – Effect size .4283

Grades 4-8 GeometryMath 212 Fall 2011 – Effect size .679Math 212 Spring 2011 – Effect size .6955

George Fox University: Preparing Teachers Who Think Critically, Transform Practice, & Promote Justice